Mini Workouts?

maleficent · September 23rd, 2008, 04:58 AM

The Canadian Press: No time? Squeeze in a short workout, but will it make a difference?

Quote:

No time? Squeeze in a short workout, but will it make a difference?

4 days ago
NEW YORK — Stephen Lowrie has received the message to squeeze in exercise wherever he can. He parks far from the entrance, takes the stairs - even lifts weights at his desk.

"I don't do all these things all the time every day," said Lowrie, 47, of Bedford, N.H. "If I did I'd be in great shape."

Perhaps. Lowrie's piecemeal fitness regimen is something that's been encouraged as even videotaped exercise routines shrink to mere minutes. But as enticing as such programs sound, getting into shape is generally going to take more than a session of eight-minute abs, said Jillian Michaels, a personal trainer on "The Biggest Loser."

"Ten minutes?" said Michaels. "Forget it. What are you going to burn? A hundred calories. A pound is 3,500 calories. I'm so tired of sending Americans a false message. 'Hey, just take the stairs."'

The American College of Sports Medicine and the American Heart Association recommend for adults under age 65 a minimum of 30 minutes of moderately intense cardio (such as brisk walking) per day five days a week or 20 minutes of vigorously intense cardio (such as running) three days a week. Strength training should be done as part of the routine twice a week.

To lose weight or maintain weight loss, 60 to 90 minutes of physical activity may be necessary, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Still, micro-workouts are everywhere, from Jorge Cruise's "8 Minutes in the Morning" to Tracey Mallett's "Sexy in 6," a fitness program with six-minute workouts.

Studies show that breaking workouts into mini sessions is as effective as continuous workouts. And considering time is one of the biggest reasons people give for not exercising, the mini-sessions make sense.

"The key isn't really how long the duration or short," said Tamilee Webb, best known for "Buns & Abs of Steel." "It's the intensity and the consistency."

Over the years, efficient exercises have shortened workouts, said Kathy Smith, whose "Tummy Trimmers" DVD includes short ab workouts. For example, she said a squat with a bicep curl works more than one muscle.
The DVD method has also made it easier to package multiple workouts, said Denise Austin, who has more than 80 DVDs under her belt. People don't have to fast forward and rewind, she said. And the short workout means people can't make excuses.

"The nicest part about it is they are ready to do 10 but stay and do a little more," said Austin, whose newest DVD, "Best Belly Fat-Blasters," is a series of ab workouts. "'For 10 minutes I can do this.' The next week they can do 20 minutes and then they're on their way to a healthy habit."
For Hiu Chung So, 26, of Arcadia, Calif., breaking up her workouts works. She does 10 minutes of weights in the morning and another 20 to 30 minutes of cardio in the evening.

"It makes it a lot less daunting compared to saying you need to do an hour of exercise," she said.

The American College of Sports Medicine doesn't recommend mini sessions shorter than 10 minutes. And David Kirsch, author of the "The Ultimate New York Diet," questions how only eight minutes in the morning is enough to increase the heart rate, tone the muscles and bring about an overall feeling of wellness.

Ten minutes toning a muscle is long enough, said Ben Quist, founder of Form and Fitness in Grafton, Wis. But for someone who wants to get in shape, 10 minutes three times a week is probably not going to produce the change people are hoping to see.

And once you look closely at those 10-minute routines, some do require more than you'd think. With Mallett's, the idea is to do more than one six-minute session (three is ideal) plus cardio and change your diet. Austin herself said she does 30 minutes of straight cardio.

"10, 10, 10 is less than ideal," said Michaels. "You need a longer period of exercise to improve endurance."

But any exercise is better than nothing.

Katie Feuer, 35, of Summit, N.J. said her 12-minute abs routine works. She has been doing Denise Austin's "Super Stomachs" since high school and said when she stops, she gains weight.

"If I get lazy and haven't been working out, that's what I go back to," said Feuer, a mother of two, who also runs and bikes. "Maybe it's the familiarity of it. I know what to expect. When it's only 12 minutes, that's not bad."

txsqlchick · September 23rd, 2008, 06:11 AM

So far I've been shedding weight pretty easily and steadily without working out 60-90 minutes per day. My workout on weekdays is a mere 40 minutes, and I do one 60 minute workout a week on Saturday.

maleficent · September 23rd, 2008, 06:23 AM

While I think Jillian Michaels is an absolute halfwit - she has somewhat of a point - I've come across countless people who think they're being good little campers by taking the stairs and parking a few extra spaces away... but they're missing the point where they have to also do something about nutrition.. taking the stairs is good... taking the stairs and rationalizing that you can have a big whopper isn't...

it's the consistent behavior over time that gets the results...

ladyumbra · 09:32 AM

But Mal if I take the stairs clearly I've earned the right to that whopper becuase that's how it works. Any amount of exercise negates the calories in whatever I'm eating don't ya know.

I wish I could explain to some people that taking the stairs won't even cover the calories in a kitkat mini never mind make up for the " treat" you get for being good and exercising. Fuck I can DDR for an hour and not necessarily burn off my morning bowl of cereal never mind use it as an excuse for a bowl of icecream later.

chouston · September 23rd, 2008, 12:13 PM

Those gimmicky workout tapes are stupid.

I do think that squeezing any exercise into your day is good though. It's the idea of "baby steps" that can get someone to start being more active. Starting off with mini workouts and also small mini nutrition changes could be a great way to ease someone into a healthier lifestyle.

The problem is that people are being led to believe that ALL the have to do is take the stairs and skip the mayonnaise and they'll be on the cover of Sports Illustrated.

bluet · December 3rd, 2008, 05:27 AM

I guess it wont make a difference if you don't do it everytime. And you can take a 10 minutes exercise three times a day. That will give you the same result as a 30 minutes cardio

MotherOf2 · 05:54 AM

im ure if they did the 10 minute excersizes 3 or 4 times a day it would be somewhat effective. the problem is IMO its much harder to try to sqeeze in 3 or 4 10 minute sessions throughout the day than to knock out a full hour in one shot and your probably less likely to manage keeping on top of sqeezing them in consistantly. Also if you can't pull yourself to do more than 10 minutes at a time your lacking the motivation and will power needed to stick to it and pull off any significant weight loss anyway... but what do i know, i'm not a professional

lol

usedtobefatmatt · December 3rd, 2008, 06:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by maleficent

While I think Jillian Michaels is an absolute halfwit - she has somewhat of a point - I've come across countless people who think they're being good little campers by taking the stairs and parking a few extra spaces away... but they're missing the point where they have to also do something about nutrition.. taking the stairs is good... taking the stairs and rationalizing that you can have a big whopper isn't...

it's the consistent behavior over time that gets the results...

Mal,
I agree with you that the real issue is the nutrition. I'm probably preaching to the choir here but people really need to understand nutrition is the key to weight loss.

I am a strong believer that these types of small changes can be benificial if they are accepted for what they are, mini-workouts. If someone takes the stairs, parks further away or walks on their 15 minute break and they use that as a motivator to eat healthier more power to them. Like you said, if they do these things to jusitfy a binge or crap food then that is the problem.
I was one that did these types of mini-workouts. Granted, i got a regular "gym" workout as well and watched my nutrition but i really felt good about walking on my break or taking the stairs. It was always more physcological for me.

Matt

FitnessExpert · December 3rd, 2008, 11:38 AM

You can definitely get in a great workout in 30 minutes or less but the intensity has to be increased. If you expect an easy 15 minute walk to make a significant difference in your weight loss, you are sadly mistaken. You have to increase the intensity of your workouts and focus on exercises that work the whole body. I'm a personal trainer and I encourage people to do my 30 minute workouts because they can get a great fat burning workout in short time and not have to be in the gym for an hour or more which gives them more free time to do stuff they enjoy. The most important thing though is the diet. If you eat more than you are burning, you are just going to keep gaining weight.

Steve · December 3rd, 2008, 11:51 AM

What's a fat burning workout?

mishi · December 3rd, 2008, 04:27 PM

lol it's one of those "extreme" workouts... involving blow torches

Any bit of exercise seems to be good for me. Just being out and about makes me feel a lot better than sitting around. However, for weight loss certainly longer and more intense sessions have made a big difference... well that and eating healthy... in fact I lost most of my weight with eating healthy and then added exercise that just helped tone. I certainly do all the tricks though: park farther, take stairs, walk to the store.

mscandyrain · December 5th, 2008, 09:04 AM

I must say that I was one of those that believed that I could lose weight with just a little work out here and there and still eating the same crap that I used. How could I have been so dense... Well after countless months of eating terribly and a very low amount of excersize I never lost any weight and rather gained.

FitnessExpert · December 8th, 2008, 10:14 AM

The fat burning workouts I do with my clients consist of total body strength training focusing on compound movements. Compound movements are exercises that work multiple muscle groups at the same time, for example, squats, lunges, push ups, pullups,etc... I also add some high intensity interval training since it's been shown to be much better for burning fat and calories and moderate or low intensity cardio.

Carlos Torres
Personal Trainer

Steve · December 8th, 2008, 01:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FitnessExpert

The fat burning workouts I do with my clients consist of total body strength training focusing on compound movements. Compound movements are exercises that work multiple muscle groups at the same time, for example, squats, lunges, push ups, pullups,etc... I also add some high intensity interval training since it's been shown to be much better for burning fat and calories and moderate or low intensity cardio.

Carlos Torres
Personal Trainer

Those things are fueled more by the anaerobic lactic system than the aerobic (as in fat oxidizing) ya know?

Fat burning implies fat is the primary fuel substrate used to fuel the activity. Neither of those methods you outlines utilize fat as the primary fuel substrate.

FitnessExpert · December 15th, 2008, 06:23 AM

Yes but you are burning more fat overall and more calories so it's better than doing low intensity cardio. Just because an exercise may not burn a higher percentage of calories from fat doesn't mean it's not burning more fat overrall. You also have to take into account the metabolic boosting effects for hours and sometimes more than a day after the workout. That is why high intensity interval training and high intensity weight training is far more effective for burning calories and fat than low intensity cardio.

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