I asked a dozen of my friends to tell me about the first image drawn on their minds when I said ‘Cardios’ and each one of them said ‘running’ be it on the road, in the park, or on a tread mill. Did you imagine the same as well?

I understand that I am aim to tell you why you should choose Interval training over Cardio Workouts but my goal remains unresourceful until and unless you are clear about the differences between these two workouts.

So let me start by telling you how Cardios are different from Interval workouts though they all look the same.

Cardio Vs. Interval Training

So what are cardios?

Cardios or Cardiovascular exercises also known as aerobics are low intensity workouts such as medium to long distance running, jogging, swimming, cycling, and walking.

These exercises, in short, are anything which increase your heart rate. While carrying out cardios, large muscle movement is used over a continued. The heart rate is kept at almost 50% of its maximum level during cardios.

We can know that we are over stressing our cardio workouts when we are gasping for breath. So I guess we can somewhat understand what it is for now. Now let’s talk about Interval training.

Interval Training

Interval training is the combination of low, moderate, and high intensity workouts like yoga, water exercises, cardio workouts, and dance workouts. Exercises which do not always need equipment and are done in repeated intervals of time.

Interval training includes more than the usual exercises which leave you gasping for breath. These exercises are adjustable according to place and time. You can’t wake up early- choose a 15 minute interval workout before a shower. Trust me it burns a huge amount of calories. Plus it’s more fun to do.

I guess I have been able to clear some of the doubts about the difference between these two workout regimes.

So now let me explain further why interval training is a better option to lose weight, though cardios do the same as well.

5 benefits of interval training over Cardios:

Here are some of the benefits of interval training-

1. Interval training burns more calories and fats than any other exercise.  The rest metabolic rate in the case of interval training is higher than after doing a 30 minutes cardio workout. ^[1]

2. While you lose fats by doing interval training it also ensures to strengthen the muscles and tone them up unlike other exercises. Cardio too helps in losing weight but prolonged practice results in muscle loss.

3. Interval training increase the body’s capacity to utilize oxygen intake to upto 100%. This training ensures that the oxygen pulled from the blood stream is utilized by the muscles. ^[2]

4. Interval training builds up the body’s resistance level and so is suitable for training for any type of sports activity. Of course if youare training for a marathon I would suggest for you to continue with your cardio.

5. Interval training is not at all time consuming and can be done for any amount of time. It is especially beneficial for those who are busy to squeeze in a workout into their schedule.

References

[1] Boutcher, S. (2011). High-Intensity Intermittent Exercise and Fat Loss Journal of Obesity, 2011, 1-10 DOI: 10.1155/2011/868305. ^Back to Top^
[2] Burgomaster, K. (2005). Six sessions of sprint interval training increases muscle oxidative potential and cycle endurance capacity in humans Journal of Applied Physiology, 98 (6), 1985-1990 DOI: 10.1152/japplphysiol.01095.2004. ^Back to Top^