Thursday, January 11, 2007

Heart Rate Means Nothing for Weight Loss

One of the biggest myths in fitness is that you have to maintain a certain heart rate in order to lose fat. But that's just not true. Unfortunately, this myth has led to a whole lot of low-intensity training and therefore, a whole lot of failed programs.

The quicker you lose the "high heart rate equals the best workout" mentality, the quicker you will start to change your body.

In the Turbulence Training for Fat Loss workouts, you are going to burn more fat and more calories when you are OUT of the gym because of the high-intensity training methods that you will use. Not because your heart rate increases during the workout (even though your HR will be up there from the supersets and intervals).

In the last 10 years, research has shown us two very important things about exercising for fat loss. First, lifting heavier weights leads to burning more calories after the workout when compared to lifting light weights. So that's why 8 repetitions per set is better than 12 reps per set. And that's one of the foundations of Turbulence Training.

And the second thing we have learned is that interval training is superior to slow, steady cardio for fat loss and post-exercise calorie burning. So it is more effective and more efficient to use short high-intensity interval training workouts instead of slow, long cardio sessions.

The only time you might need to know your heart rate is during the recovery period of the interval training. It's important to take enough time between intervals so that your heart rate drops significantly. That way you get more work done when it counts. You don't want to start your next high-intensity interval too soon, nor do you want to exercise too hard during your recovery interval.

All of these details are provided in the interval guidelines in the TT for Fat Loss manual. And I'll show you how to properly structure your intervals so that you have enough recovery between each. That way, you don't have to worry about monitoring your heart rate or anything fancy. Just follow my instructions.

So the bottom line:
Don't worry about your heart rate during exercise (unless you just like to keep track for interest sake). Instead, make sure that you are working at a high-intensity during each lifting and interval session.

The TT workout guidelines will give you all the details you need on the specific rest periods to use between supersets and intervals. I'll be featuring more articles on the science and application of Turbulence Training in Turbulence Training Member's site.

There is a better way to train,
CB

P.S. You know what's more important than training for fat loss?

Nutrition.

I want you to understand that as we trek through the holidays and also as you start the New Year, that you have to eat right to lose fat.

For more info, I recommend one of the top nutrition sources on the Internet ==> Dr. John Berardi

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