Fun fact: Just 60 seconds of hardcore exercise can deliver the same benefits as 45 minutes of moderate exercise, according to a rock-solid study recently conducted by researchers at McMaster University in Canada. “Brief bursts of intense exercise are remarkably effective”, Gibala said in a university news release. “Our study shows that an interval-based approach can be more efficient – you can get health and fitness benefits comparable to the traditional approach, in less time“.
Advertisement
So the study doesn’t exactly show that one-minute workouts are miraculously better than longer workouts, but it does show that the key to maximizing health benefits may lie in exercising smarter – not longer.
And for people who don’t have 45 minutes to devote to daily exercise, the study’s findings could be a game-changer. But the new study tested an even shorter interval training period – just 10 minutes, compared to a previous study that tested the effects of a 25-minute interval workout.
A total of 27 participants, who had not done exercise previously, were asked to perform either intense or moderate training three times a week for 12 weeks. In addition to monitoring the men’s increased endurance, the researchers also observed their cardiovascular health and how their bodies regulated their blood glucose, Voice of America reported.
The moderate group in the exercise study consisted of a 45-minute moderate effort of cycling and had a two-minute warm up and three-minute cool down. Besides the three-minute cooling down time included, the men also rode the exercise bikes in two-minute-long “easy cycling” stretches between the sprints, as the “recovery time” mentioned. While the goal wasn’t weight loss, speed, or a sexy after pic to post on Instagram, both groups reaped big gains in endurance, improved their insulin resistance, and improved muscle functioning.
Although moderate-intensity continuous training involved five times as much exercise and a fivefold increase in time commitment, the results after 12 weeks of training were similar among men in the all-out exercise group and the moderate exercise group.
Advertisement
Even you can do a quick and effective workout by climbing a few flights of stairs on your lunch hour and get the necessary health benefits. All up, the routine will take you 10 minutes, which includes warming up and cooling down, but really, it’s 10 minutes.
