High intensity interval training, HITT, has been around for many years. Almost all top trainers will agree that HITT training is the best way to do cardio to burn fat and not burn muscle. There are scores of workouts that vary the time of the high intensity, the lower intensity, and the rest time. A recent study has determined that the best combination is the 10 20 30 method.
The 10 20 30 method says that you do 10 seconds of high intensity, 20 seconds of medium intensity, and 30 seconds of low intensity. Do this cycle 5 times then rest for 2 min. Repeat this cycle 2 or 3 times for an intense workout.
Why should you do HITT? The reason to do this type of workout is to burn the highest amount or fat while losing the least amount of muscle. It started by observing runners in training. If you look at sprinter, they are lean and muscular, their muscles are defined and they look ripped. Sprinters train by sprinting, which is doing HITT training.
If you look at distance runners, you see athletes with very low body fat levels, but also very little muscle mass. There is no way to train for distance running, without burning a large part of your muscle as well as fat.
What the 10 20 30 method has found is that if you do your HITT in this configuration, you get the most bang for your buck. You get cardio in the conventional sense to help your heart, as well as keeping the muscle that you spend so much hard work building in the gym.
The system is setup for runners, but it can be easily adapted to other forms of intensity training. Run as fast as you can for 10 sec. slow down to a fast jog for the next 20 sec, then slow to an easy jog for the last 30 sec. do the cycle 5 times, rest 2 min and repeat 2 or 3 times.
On a bike, ride as fast as you can for 10 seconds, slow to a lower pace, but still pushing hard for the next 20 seconds, then slow to an easier pace for the last 30 seconds. A good way to gauge would be, 30 mph for 10 sec, 20 mph for 20 sec, and 10 mph for 30 sec. When you finish that minute, do this for 5 cycles, rest 2 min and repeat 2 or 3 times, and you’re done in 10 or 15 min.
You could do this workout on a rowing machine, a treadmill, you could jump rope, you could do jumping jacks, you could run in place, etc. Any way that you can train cardio, you can adapt this method to an effective HITT workout.
The greatest thing about this training method is that you can get a full HITT workout in 10 or 15 minutes, as opposed jogging for 30 or 40 minutes, and you will keep your hard earned muscle. If you are short of time and need to combine your workout, this would be a great way to end your weight training workouts with 10 minutes of HITT to keep the fat burn going for hours. Add this training to your workouts and you will be pleasantly surprised by the results.
