Short bursts of activity as good as long endurance
19 September 2006
by Richard Conan-Davies
Short bursts of very intense exercise — equivalent to only a few minutes per day — can produce the same results as longer endurance training. This is according to a study by researchers from McMaster University led by Martin Gibala, an associate professor of kinesiology. Dr. Gibala explained that " The most striking finding from our study was the remarkably similar improvements in muscle health and performance induced by two such diverse training strategies," 16 college-aged students who performed six training sessions over two weeks. Half the group performed between four and six 30-second bursts of "all out" cycling separated by 4 minutes of recovery during each training session. The other half cycled moderately for 90-120 minutes of each day. Both groups showed similar improvements in exercise performance and muscle condition associated with muscle fatigue . This was despite the marked difference in training times. |
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