Interval training adds intensity to workouts Published June 13, 2006 By Col. Michael S. Stough 100th Air Refueling Wing commander RAF MILDENHALL, England -- I’ll never be a fitness guru, and I don’t believe in a “one size fits all” approach to fitness. That said, I do have one tip about physical conditioning I’d like to offer. If you haven’t already incorporated interval training into your fitness routine, I highly recommend you do so. Interval training adds brief periods of increased intensity to your exercise routine. After warming up, you’ll increase your intensity level to a point you can only maintain for a short period followed by a period of recovery. Then, alternate between the two intensity levels for a specified number of repetitions. I’ll use my particular routine as an example. After warming up with a mile jog, I pick up the pace to a fast run for a quarter mile. Then I slow back to a jog for the next quarter mile - alternating back and forth for six to eight repetitions (about 3.5 miles total) and finishing with another mile jog (to cool down). There are an infinite number of variations to this routine, using different distances, times and intensities, but all follow the same basic pattern of interspersing intense activity with recovery periods for a given number of repetitions. Interval training offers several important benefits to fitness. First and foremost, the increased intensity will translate to a faster increase in overall fitness. You’ll also burn more calories, both during exercise and while in post-exercise recovery. The added variety also freshens your routine and (to me at least) helps make the exercise period seem shorter. Finally, if you incorporate interval training into your runs (and you probably run at least a couple of days each week), you should see faster run times. Running regularly, even when you’re not actually using intervals, means you’ll gradually run more comfortably at a faster pace. A quick caution: I’m not advocating you start out with 440-meter sprints. Actually, I’m not advocating sprints at all. My idea of interval training probably won’t satisfy the purists in the audience, but as far as I’m concerned, any exercise that increases intensity level for brief periods qualifies as interval training. You just have to work harder for brief periods of time at a pace you can’t sustain for the entire period of your workout. Again, to use my routine as an example, I start out with an eight-minute mile. At the mile point, I pick up the pace to a six-minute mile for a quarter mile. Then I slow to my eight-minute recovery pace for the next quarter, alternating six to eight repetitions. I’m not sprinting; I’m just running at a faster pace that I can sustain for a short period. If you’re normally a 10-minute “miler,” your routine might be a 10-minute warm-up mile, followed by alternating quarter-mile segments at 10- and eight-minute paces. Or, you might start with 10- and nine-minute mile paces. Or, you might choose something completely different. It doesn’t really matter. Just make sure you increase your intensity to the upper limit of your comfort zone, and you’ll see results. Obviously, if you’ve never trained with intervals before, start slowly. One or two repetitions the first time, increasing by an additional rep or two each time you use intervals, will help prevent injury — and will produce progress faster than you might expect. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t feel it, however. Fitness improvements require at least a little discomfort. Besides starting slowly, be aware interval training isn’t something you should do every day. You need time to recover from the extra intensity. Experts recommend you add a couple of interval training days to your weekly routine, with active recovery days (exercise at reduced intensity) in between. I personally train with intervals on Tuesday and Thursday of each week. There is no magic bullet for increasing fitness, but incorporating certain proven techniques into your exercise routine can make a big difference in your progress. Forcing your body to adapt to new stresses — including those found with interval training — will bring results. Who knows, you might find yourself with a max mile-and-a-half score.