Yesterday I introduced the virtues of interval training for fat loss.  Today I’m going to lay out a very straightforward plan so you can actually include it in your training.

 Wingate aftermath: Note the number of towels

Step 2 – Introducing Sprints

I’ve seen people running for 3 minutes and walking for 2 minutes and calling in interval training.  So I’m going to clarify by stating that only Short High Intensity Training (S.H.I.T) is best for fat loss.  All other forms of interval training that use longer intervals may be useful for certain athletic situations, but they are not best for fat loss.

To properly perform S.H.I.T your bouts must be:

- High intensity
- Short duration
- Have rest periods where you are doing absolutely nothing

I’ve seen people pedaling lightly on a bike for “active recovery”, but I don’t agree with this practice as it increases the time needed for full recovery.  And yes, I’m aware that it helps clear lactate from the muscle…blah, blah, blah.  I’m only asking for a few minutes.  You’ll have the whole rest of the day to clear your lactate.

To properly perform a sprint you must go ALL OUT for anywhere from 30 seconds to a maximum of 1 minute to get the best effect.  I don’t think that this should change for novices.  However, I do think that the rest time and total number of sprints should be adjusted accordingly.

I personally prefer shorter sprints for fat loss so here’s how I think a beginner program should look after the general conditioning phase.  I would strongly advise the use of a stationary bike for this as I don’t like treadmills for sprint work.  Adjust the tension up so that it allows you to exert a maximal effort for the full 30 seconds.

Note: Even if you’re an advanced trainee, if you haven’t done intervals before you’re technically a beginner in this regard.

Note #2: The program below is just a guide and it should be adjusted if you’re finding it too easy or too hard for your current level of conditioning.  Some people need a full 4 minute rest between each interval in the beginning.  Adjust accordingly.

Week 1 – 4 intervals (1:4 work to rest ratio)

Interval #1 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 120 seconds
Interval #2 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 120 seconds
Interval #3 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 120 seconds
Interval #4 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 120 seconds

Week 2 – 5 intervals (1:4 work to rest ratio)

Interval #1 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 120 seconds
Interval #2 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 120 seconds
Interval #3 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 120 seconds
Interval #4 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 120 seconds
Interval #5 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 120 seconds

Week 3 – 6 intervals (1:4 work to rest ratio)

Interval #1 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 120 seconds
Interval #2 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 120 seconds
Interval #3 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 120 seconds
Interval #4 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 120 seconds
Interval #5 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 120 seconds
Interval #6 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 120 seconds

Week 4 – 7 intervals (1:4 work to rest ratio)

Interval #1 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 120 seconds
Interval #2 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 120 seconds
Interval #3 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 120 seconds
Interval #4 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 120 seconds
Interval #5 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 120 seconds
Interval #6 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 120 seconds
Interval #7 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 120 seconds

Week 5 – 7 intervals (1:3 work to rest ratio for first two intervals – 1:4 work to rest for remaining intervals)

Interval #1 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 90 seconds
Interval #2 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 90 seconds
Interval #3 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 120 seconds
Interval #4 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 120 seconds
Interval #5 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 120 seconds
Interval #6 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 120 seconds
Interval #7 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 120 seconds

Week 6 – 7 intervals (1:3 work to rest ratio for first four intervals – 1:4 work to rest for remaining intervals)

Interval #1 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 90 seconds
Interval #2 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 90 seconds
Interval #3 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 90 seconds
Interval #4 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 90 seconds
Interval #5 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 120 seconds
Interval #6 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 120 seconds
Interval #7 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 120 seconds

Week 7 – 7 intervals (1:3 work to rest ratio for first six intervals – 1:4 work to rest for remaining interval)

Interval #1 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 90 seconds
Interval #2 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 90 seconds
Interval #3 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 90 seconds
Interval #4 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 90 seconds
Interval #5 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 90 seconds
Interval #6 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 90 seconds
Interval #7 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 120 seconds

Week 8 – 7 intervals (1:3 work to rest ratio for ALL intervals)

Interval #1 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 90 seconds
Interval #2 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 90 seconds
Interval #3 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 90 seconds
Interval #4 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 90 seconds
Interval #5 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 90 seconds
Interval #6 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 90 seconds
Interval #7 – Sprint 30 seconds – Rest 90 seconds

If you happen to feel inclined to do longer intervals instead of the proposed 30 second intervals above a shorter work to rest ratio is advised (1:3 for novices and 1:2 for more advanced trainees).

For example:

Novice: Sprint 60 seconds – Rest 180 seconds
Advanced: Sprint 60 seconds – Rest 120 seconds

One more bonus tidbit on interval training

Recently I was reading a post by Mike Boyle on Eric Cressey’s blog and he suggested that instead of using a set time for the rest interval that heart rate could be used instead.  He proposed that 60% of your theoretical heart rate maximum could be used to determine your rest time.

So if you were 30 years old your 60% mark would be:

(220 – Age) x 60%
(220 – 30) x 0.6 = 114 beats per minute

In this case, you would simply wear a heart rate monitor and perform your sprint as usual.  Afterward, when your heart rate dropped to 114 beats per minute it would be time to go again.  In essence, this would eliminate the need to time the intervals between sets and it would automatically adjust the difficulty based on your level of conditioning and fatigue.

Less conditioned people would be allowed more time to recover and more conditioned people would be allowed less.  However, as the less fit people became increasingly fit, the rest times would automatically decrease.

Coincidentally (I’m not even sure if Mike noticed this or not), the ACSM guideline for increasing aerobic fitness is to increase the heart rate above 60% of your theoretical max for 20 minutes at a time.  Go figure!

Regardless of whether you’re timing or using your heart rate as a guide, you can finally get out there and do interval training the way it was meant to be done.

What are you waiting for?

Go get ripped!