High Intensity Interval Training: More Effective Exercise Than Traditional Aerobics

Who doesn't want more for less?  A BOGO, for instance?  You know, buy one, get one free.  Similarly, we've been recommending 30min of moderate intensity exercise 3x/wk for health benefits for years.  Well, in a small short prospective randomized controlled study published in PLoS ONE, the authors concluded that high intensity interval training consisting of as little as 4 minutes three times weekly was enough to improve VO2max of maximal oxygen uptake, an indicator of cardiorespiratory fitness.

I grant you it was a study of just 24 healthy 42yo overweight men (body mass index greater than 27), one third of whom were randomized to a single 4 minute bout of high intensity interval exercise three times weekly for 10wks while another third were randomized to 4 episodes of high intensity interval exercise, each lasting 4 minutes w/another 3min of active rest between each set.  This group was also expected to practice this 25min session 3x/wk for 10wks.  The control group did not participate in any of these exercise sessions.  

Bottom line: just under 15min/wk of high intensity interval training was similar to 25min/wk in terms of improving VO2max, body composition, high blood pressure, etc.  So no more excuses now!

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