For years it’s been assumed that you eliminate more lipids in the magical fat-burning zone—exercising between 68 and 79 percent of your maximum heart rate—than when you really exert yourself. Why? Because, the theory went, low-intensity exercise allows the body to fuel itself from the midsection rather than from readily available food calories.
But a report by David Nieman, a professor in the Human Performance Laboratory at Appalachian State University in North Carolina, showed that strenuous exercise burns more calories per minute than easy sessions. Which isn’t surprising: higher intensity equals more calories. But that study also determined that intense exercise increases your metabolism for up to 14 hours afterward. In other studies, light-duty exercise produced no such caloric afterburn. “We’ve become a nation of exercise wimps,” Nieman says. “Too many people don’t bother or are afraid of exercising hard. But intensity is probably the only way to lose weight with exercise.”
Get over it: Start sprinkling high-speed intervals into your slow runs. Do hill repeats on your bike. Try to maintain a heart rate at or above 80 percent of your max for about 45 minutes several times a week.
Comments
This is ridiculous. The argument in your heading isnt even part of the research. LONG and SLOW I assume is referring to the length of the workout along with the level of exertion vs what I would assume as the opposite SHORT and intense in regards to the type of workout. However the study listed gives no mention to the length of the workout tested. Basically this whole list of myths is ridiculous, under researched and very subjective. This makes Outside magazine lose a huge amount of credibility in my mind.
Flag ThisIt's widely known in the biochemical/physiological world that low intensity exercise burns a higher % of fat to carb, BUT, higher intensity burns a higher % of kCal in total...so long and slow is better for burning fat IF the duration meets the caloric burn of a shorter, higher intensity exercise. Each has it's place.
Flag ThisIt's a ratio... As said low intensity burns more fat than carbs. As you go up in intensity your body starts switching to carbs. Basically, if you're running mid-intensity, you're still burning more fat and calories total than if you were going low intensity.
Flag ThisHIIT/sprints>hogging the treadmill all day
Flag ThisThis is true, your body burns carbs first, regardless of the intensity. if you dont burn all the carbs during a workout then you body will store them as fat. burn all of the carbs as fast as you can to get to the fat burning stage. Also, you can burn up to twice as many calories at rest 24 - 48 hours after an intense workout (near your max heart rate) than you would following a workout in the "fat burning zone". Burning more calories = burning more fat.
Flag This