How “Bursting” works

by JJ Virgin

This may shock you but all of that agonizing time on the treadmill may actually be making you fat!

You may be having one of two reactions to this:  one is anger and the other is denial. I will deal with those of you in denial first.

You don't want to believe it because let's face it, you are hooked!  You get a big old adrenaline boost from your aerobics session and you aren't willing to give it up. Of course, this addictive adrenaline boost is the very reason your exercise could be damaging your metabolism, creating more oxidative stress and actually making you fat.

Or you may fall into the other camp and be breathing a collective sigh of relief that you haven't been doing loads of aerobic exercise because you simply don't have the time to exercise. I am going to show you how to fit quality fitness in just minutes a day that will have a significant impact on your metabolism, your physique and your health.

Burst to Blast Fat!

The alternative to endurance exercise is to workout in short intense bursts of 30 to 60 seconds with active recovery of 1 to 2 minutes to accumulate 4 to 12 total minutes of high intensity bursts (this will take you 20 to 30 minutes and if you are still upright at that point, you are NOT doing this hard enough…).

With bursting, you also raise stress hormones BUT you raise anabolic building hormones alongside them which counteract the negative effects of the stress hormones.

The short bursts train your body how to handle stress and recover. The repeated intense bursts raise lactic acid which in turn raises growth hormone and supports fat burning. The research is clear that the more intense the exercise the bigger metabolic "cost" after you are done, hence you burn more calories, especially from fat, post-exercise.  To clarify, active recovery is where you are moving, but at a low intensity that allows you to catch your breath and lower your heart rate back down.

Let's Get Technical

So, how to get started?  Grab your cross trainers or running shoes and let's go.

Warm up for a few minutes and then go all out with your workout of choice for 30 -60 seconds. If you can go past 60 seconds, you aren't doing it hard enough.

Take twice as much time to recover by doing a lower intensity version of the same move or by walking around.

Then repeat until you accumulate between 4 and 12 minutes of high intensity interval bursts (honestly, I am putting 12 minutes here but if you can get to 8 minutes total I am impressed and if you can get past that, you probably aren't doing it hard enough and intensity is EVERYTHING).

Do this every other day and watch out, you will find that you get leaner, stronger and more energetic practically overnight!

Here's a Burst cheat sheet:

• Warm up for three minutes.
• Burst for 30-60 seconds.
• Recover for 1-2 minutes.
• Repeat to accumulate 4 total minutes of bursting (8 if you are already in great shape and want to take it to the next level).
• Cool down for three minutes.
• You're done. Really, you're done.

Great Ways to Burst

Below, I offer you some of my favorite bursting exercises. One is not better than another.

One day I might do Turkish Getups (which honestly I hate, but I do them) and then the next session I'll do stair climbing.

You can certainly do four, 60-second bursts of anything you hate because these minutes will go by in a flash. Ideally, your aim isn't even to last the whole 60 seconds of the burst, but to wipe yourself out as quickly as possible. You should be thinking, "Uggggh, enough" during those last 30 seconds―if you can make it.

My top ways to burst are:

• Take the stairs
• Sprint or run
• Bike
• Rollerblade like the Olympic speed skaters
• Butterfly stroke in the pool
• Stairmaster
• Turkish Get Ups
• Jump rope

Signs You Are Not Bursting Hard Enough

• You can call your friend and catch up while doing your cardio.
• You can concentrate on reading a book while bursting.
• You don't ever seem to sweat.
• You do more talking than working out at the gym.
• You do all your exercises sitting or lying down.
• You feel like you could take a nap…while exercising!

Sample Advanced Burst Workout

If you want to use a machine, consider the X-iser Machine

The days of the 30 to 60 minute workouts on oversized machines are over.

I have found the science behind sprinting combined with the technology of The X-iser gives you a full cardio workout in just a few minutes a day.

It is not just another stepper! The X-iser is specifically designed to allow any age and fitness level a way to sprint train. No other stepping device can provide the same level of benefit.

I have personally tested it with my 12 and 13 year old boys and I can confidently proclaim that it is virtually indestructible! I have all my clients get this machine, it is my excuse-proof workout. Burst to blast fat!