It’s now been clinically demonstrated that 1 minute of all out exercise may equal 45 minutes of moderate exertion. Please keep in mind that the sample size for this study was small and all male. Also, of course as we all know, there are benefits to other forms of exercise: serotonin release, camaraderie, cardiovascular fitness, fun, muscle bulk and definition, etc. Plus diet is always key.

I’ve never loved High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) like burpees or mountain climbers, but after reading the New York Times article reporting this news, I do now have a new appreciation for them. They are not easy but quick. I separately read that doing 8 reps of squats for 20 seconds then 8 reps of mountain climbers for 20 seconds (with a rest in between reps) burns over 300 calories. That’s a pretty awesome result – much quicker than running or spinning.

Strength training is different but this reminded me of when I changed my routine to very short (15 minutes) of low rep (only 3 sets of 5) heavy weight lifting, rotating body parts daily, I told my husband who recommended this to me that it felt wrong. I just couldn’t wrap my brain around such a short workout leading to better results than a longer workout. I actually felt guilty buzzing in and out of the gym in only 15 minutes when others were clearly there for an hour at least. My husband was right because I definitely started seeing results a lot quicker.

This HIIT news also reminded me of the Pareto Principle, which is when you realize the majority of results come from a minority of inputs. Originally, the Pareto Principle referred to the observation that 80% of Italy’s wealth belonged to only 20% of the population. But it is now a commonly used ubiquitous term. I will use it when I need to justify (to my brain) that spending less time in the gym is ok as long as I am focused on the appropriate approach. #hiitlove

To read the article from Wednesday’s New York Times, click HERE.