Background

The purpose of this blog is to discuss your health and wellness. Everything from nutrition, to manual therapy, to CrossFit to Functional Movement Systems as well as pain and injuries.

Mini-Bio
I was raised in northern Virginia and played every sport they'd let me. I injured my low back/hip while playing baseball at Radford University in Virginia. I was treated by a physical therapist, an orthopedic, a primary care md, and an athletic trainer, but no one made the difference for me until I got chiropractic treatment. That day I knew what I wanted to do with my life. I'm a fitness consultant and sports chiropractor in South Florida and I'm dedicated to helping people maintain the well-oiled machine that their bodies could be. I'm certified as a Functional Rehab specialist, a Titleist Performance Institute golf fitness specialist, an Active Release Technique provider as well as a former personal trainer. To contact me, log onto www.mobility-4life.com or email me at drscotthoar@gmail.com

Wednesday, April 3, 2013

Tabata Intervals

Today I'd like to write about one of the quickest ways to effectively burn fat without using wasting your own muscle.  They're called Tabata Intervals.  For those of you with extremely packed schedules, this is my favorite way to get a quality burn with a limited amount of time.

Tabata Intervals
-5 minutes of warming up
8 intervals of 20 seconds of max effort exercise followed by 10 seconds of complete rest
Cool down

















What's great about Tabata intervals is that you can vary the activity, so it doesn't get boring.  I'd recommend starting with non-weight bearing cardio activity and gradually shifting towards anything else.  As well as you get better at the Tabata intervals, you'll want to increase the intensity.   You literally want to be going as fast and as hard as possible, like what you do during an all out sprint with an African lion chasing you....or maybe a hippo.



Recommended Exercises:
Stationary Bike
Rowing Machine
Running (outside)
Swimming (just don't drown)
Lunges
Step Ups
Box Jumps
Squats

etc:

High End Exercises:
Burpees
Kettlebell swings
Push Ups

Standard aerobic training (think going out for a 30 minute jog) never get's that intense.  Therefore your heart rate stays relatively level the whole time.  Doing that doesn't activate fat burning all that well.  Have you ever noticed a lifetime jogger/swimmer that just isn't all that fit looking?  The worst part about standard aerobic training is that once you exhaust whatever carbs are in your system, you start burning your own muscle as energy.  So your not burning fat that well, but you are burning your own muscle......great.

Tabata intervals initially came about in a study designed by....you guessed it...Tabata (a Japanese scientist), that compared 3 times per week of performing Tabata intervals 3x/wk and comparing it to the standard long duration type aerobic activity 5x/wk.  The study showed that the Tabata group had more gains in their aerobic conditioning (oxygen based) as well as gains in their anaerobic conditioning (glycogen/muscle based). So you end up burning more fat, and training your muscles better.  Don't forget that you saved over 20 minutes in your workout and have the ability to change it up whenever you'd like.

No matter your exercise level or comfort, I'd recommend trying Tabata intervals on your own.  Keep track of the number of reps/revolutions/etc so you can gauge yourself as you get in better shape.  Then get competitive with yourself.

WARNING - Be extremely careful if you decide to perform these intervals on a treadmill.  Personally I do these from time to time, but I still question my sanity while doing so.  Since the speed on the treadmill would be so high, it opens the door to accidents.  I've treated people that fell while on a treadmill and ended up getting severely burned by the cycling belt.  Check out this link to see what I'm talking about

Having said that, you should consult your doctor before beginning any exercise program.  If your in the Boca Raton, FL area, contact me at 561.997.8898 or email me directly at drscotthoar@gmail.com. To check out more visit www.Mobility-4Life.com


No comments: