Exercise Physiologists who study the effects of
exercise on weight loss, have determined that
the "jiggling" or shaking of excess body fat
when someone walks fast or jogs, in combination
with the muscle contractions invlovled in that
activity, causes weight loss. I call it the
"jiggle effect". :)
This effect is caused by chemical messengers in
the body - in response to the "jiggle" and
muscle contractions - they say, "hey body, this
person needs to be able to move more efficiently,
let's get rid of some of this fat". So, above
and beyond the normal caloric expenditure of that
activity, these chemical messengers cause fat
loss to happen more easily.
So, how can you take advantage of the "jiggle"
effect? The more you "jiggle", and the more
intense the muscle contractions, the more
pronounced the effect. Thus, faster walking
is better than slower walking, and a slow
jog is better than a fast walk. A good way
to incorporate this into your aerobic exercise
is to use "intervals".
As you may know, I believe in making "intervals"
a major part of your aerobic exercise sessions.
I've received lots of encouraging feedback from
my subscribers who have been very successful
with interval training. Here are a few of the
messages..
"Greg, Thanks for all your help. I took your
advice and started using intervals in my walking
sessions. Woooooo! The results have been
dramatic. First of all in the way I feel. I have
never really felt good after exercise, but now
I think I'm getting that "high" thing. I feel
fantastic. I am so much more energetic all
day long now.
I had been struggling at a weight loss plateau
but this got me over it and I'm consistently
losing two to three pounds a week. Thanks
for turning me on to this."
"Hello Greg, I read on your site about intervals
and decided to give it a try. I really can't
believe how different my exercise is now.
I have much more muscle tone, and I know
this sounds crazy, but some weeks my
weight loss just seems to take off. I love
this!"
"Greg, About three months ago I started doing
intervals as you suggested and I actually
look forward to exercise now. It makes the
time pass quickly and I really feel pumped
when I finish. Thanks for the recommendation."
I receive a few messages similar to these
every week. Are you ready to give "intervals"
a try? Here's how to get started..
Intervals are brief periods (about one minute)
of more intense exercise mixed into your
regular aerobic exercise sessions. For
example, if you're walking, you would do a
one minute interval of faster walking about
every five minutes throughout your exercise
session.
Here's how it will look.. you'll start with
your normal three to five minute warm-up and
then five minutes into your workout you do
your first interval, one minute of faster
walking (or perhaps jogging). At the end of
that minute you should be "winded" and ready
to slow down. You'll slow down to your normal
exercising speed for the next four minutes
and then your fifth minute is another one
minute interval. This pattern continues
throughout your exercise session.
You'll derive several benefits from intervals..
1. Intervals can help you to get past a
weight loss plateau.
2. Intervals increase your aerobic fitness
level by "pushing the envelope". While doing
your interval you cross the anaerobic
threshold into anaerobic metabolism, forcing
your body to become conditioned to more
intense exercise.
3. Your increased level of fitness means that
a given level of exercise will feel easier
and that you will be able to exercise at a
higher intensity which "burns" more calories.
4. Your increased level of fitness also means
that you will be less fatigued from daily
activities and you'll have more "energy"
throughout the day.
5. Intervals increase your basal metabolic
rate (BMR), causing you to burn more calories
24 hours-a-day.
6. Intervals cause you to "burn" more calories
during your exercise session and for several
hours afterwards.
7. Intervals will tone the involved muscles
to a greater degree than your regular aerobic
exercise would.
8. Intervals can make your exercise less
monotonous and help the time pass more
quickly.
9. Intervals will energize you!
10. Intervals will activate the "jiggle affect"
If you'd like to put a little excitement into
your exercise, and you're looking for better
results, give intervals, and "jiggling" a try!
copyright 2004 by Greg Landry, M.S.
Author and exercise physiologist, Greg Landry,
offers free weight loss and fitness success stories
and targeted, highly affective weight loss programs
for women, men, type 2 diabetics, and people with
slow metabolisms and hypothyroidism..
http://www.Landry.com