Workout Puddle | Interval Workout

Interval workouts are intense and burn a ton of calories in a short amount of time. One measure of a workout is the workout puddle. Here is an interval workout that is an excellent example of metabolic conditioning and left this behind…

When I workout or go on adventures I tend to enjoy intervals – go hard, recover, repeat. What can I say – I was a hockey player. The pattern of intervals is deeply ingrained. The good part is that intervals are proving to be an excellent way to train and burn off fat.

If you took StrengthFinder 2.0 and have Learner on your top-5, here are some interesting research papers about interval training:

• Physiological and Performance Changes From The Addition of a Sprint Interval Program to Wrestling Training.
• High intensity interval training alters substrate utilization and reduces oxygen consumption in the heart.
• Aerobic and anaerobic changes with high-intensity interval training in active college-aged men.

Regardless of the reasons behind doing high intensity interval training it proves to be fun (I know I’m sick), effective, and efficient way to work both your muscles and your cardiovascular system.

Interval Workout – 24 Minutes of Fat Burning

This workout is timed and lasts for 24 minutes. Grab a timer, I use the Tabata Timer application on my iPhone. (KATR’s Tabata Timer App in iTunes) Setup for the following intervals:

• 48 Cycles
• 20 second work period
• 10 second rest period

Metabolic Training Exercises

The workout consists of 6 different exercises. Each one is done as a Tabata protocol which is 8 cycles of a 20 second work period followed by a 10 second rest period. Move from one exercise directly to the next without an additional rest period.

For the kettlebell exercises make sure to use a lighter weight that will allow you to keep moving with proper form throughout the entire work period. I used a 20kg kettlebell.

Here are the six exercises included in the workout:

1. Kettlebell Snatch – alternating sides each cycle
2. Kettlebell One-Arm Swing – alternating sides each cycle
3. Kettlebell One-Arm Clean – alternating sides each cycle
4. Ring Flys – I lowered my EXF Rings to waist height and spread them out 4 feet from each other. Then to perform the ring fly I grabbed the rings and leaned forward at roughly 45 degrees. Then performed a fly movement similar to cable flys or dumbbell flys.
5. Lunges – forward lunges alternating legs on each repetition.
6. Mountain Climbers

Keep going working hard through each work period. Those ten second rest periods will seem to get shorter and shorter with each cycle. This is not for the faint of heart – so just be reminded of my standard disclaimer: I am not a doctor, so talk to your’s before starting new exercise programs.

What Was The Hardest Exercise?

With an interval workout spanning 24 minutes and utilizing six different exercises it will undoubtedly affect people differently. I’d love to hear which exercises were the most challenging to keep that intensity up through all eight intervals of that movement.

For me I found the ring flys to be the most physically challenging. I ended up stalling on a few repetitions where my body just didn’t have the strength to continue.

Then the mountain climbers would be a very close second. By this part of the workout my body has been working hard and longs for a break. The mountain climbers nailed my cardiovascular system and those 20 second work periods started to feel like an eternity.

How about you? Give this a shot and let’s hear which movements were the most challenging.

Show Us Your Workout Puddle

I rolled over onto the floor in the garage when I was done. It felt great. I know, I know it is better to walk it off. But I also had a strange idea that I would create a workout puddle and sure enough I did. Gross as it is my sweat glands were busy pumping out the liquid they were so busy that there was an obvious workout puddle on the ground when I got up.

So give your workout everything you’ve got and see what kind of workout puddle you can create. Then send it in, post it on our Facebook page, or link to it in a comment.

What’s your workout puddle look like after doing an intense interval workout?