Skip to contentTime is our most precious commodity because we can never get it back once we’ve used it up. Like the saying goes, “time is money” and I’d rather spend it on things that I love doing like hanging out with friends and family and seeing the world.
So it’s great to know that achieving a lean body through awesome fat loss workouts doesn’t – and shouldn’t – take up a huge chunk of your day. Here’s how keeping your fat loss workouts short and sweet will benefit you.
Keep intensity high and drive EPOC up
Have you ever tried to go at 100% in anything for an extended period of time? Whether it be a school assignment or during a sporting event, maintaining your intensity and concentration for a long time is difficult, not to mention unsustainable.
By keeping the workout time short you’re able to keep your intensity high which will drive up your EPOC (Excess Post-Exercise Oxygen Consumption) and burn more fat. Note: If you don’t know about EPOC learn more about it here.
Works well with higher frequency which is required for fat loss
When trying to lose body fat one of the best things you can do is to up your frequency of weekly training. When bringing up the frequency it becomes difficult to maintain long workouts throughout the week (remember what I said about going 100% for long periods?) due to recovery demands and the lack of actually wanting to be in the gym.
Luckily when you lower the duration of your sessions they will still be intense without being too hard on your system. Your metabolism will stay high throughout the week because of the increased frequency of training and you’ll actually enjoy hitting the gym for a quickie.
Long workouts will drain you especially on low calorie diets
When you’re trying to lean down, your low calorie diet may cause you to feel like poo at times. I don’t know about you but when I have low energy going to the gym is never really the first thing that comes to mind.
Having workouts that drag on for more than an hour can be counterproductive for fat loss (remember that time I talked about keeping the intensity up? That was good times) and can even start to breakdown your muscle for fuel.
Keeping your workout time to a minimum will take advantage of the energy you actually have and preserve your muscle mass.
So how long and how many?
So by now you’re probably asking how long is too long and how many sessions should I have per week if I’m supposed to up my frequency?
For individual workouts directed at fat loss we try to keep them at 45 minutes or less, even 30 minutes, and this time includes warm ups! Short and to the point, we kill it and we leave.
As for the frequency during the week, bring it up as high as your lifestyle and recovery will allow. 4-5 sessions per week is a good goal with some general activity such as walks or light jogging on off days.
Keep it Short
Fat loss training is best executed with laser like focus and adequate intensity. Short workouts are great for achieving both of those along with making a high frequency of training possible. They also have the benefit of saving tons of time for things you actually love doing. Except now you can do them with abs.
