Quality vs. Quantity – Learn to Exercise More Effectively

Exercise is as much about quality as quantity. For example, several intense workout sessions in one day are just as effective as one long marathon session, given that they’re of the same quality. Increasing the quality of the workout such as by upping the intensity of the activity can give you the same benefits as a longer workout at a lower level.

The challenge for many is learning how to exercise more effectively instead of adding a few more minutes to their workout routine. Here’s how you can do it.

Pay Attention to the Quality of Your Daily Activity

Health experts say you should rack up at least 45 minutes of moderately intense physical activity most days of the week. Doing so daily is ideal. Note that they said activity, not exercise. This includes any activity that gets you up to at least sixty percent of your maximum heart rate.

You could hit this threshold by gardening, climbing stairs or walking briskly to catch the bus. However, you need to be sure that you’re actually getting your heart rate up. Otherwise, that walk to the corner store doesn’t negate your need to spend time on the treadmill. The same is true for conventional workout regimens.

Analyze the Quality of Your Workouts

Focusing on quantity over quality of exercise can actually hurt you. For example, high endurance training like running for more than an hour stresses your heart.

This can actually cause health problems. Look for higher quality exercises instead of adding more time to your workout routine. High-intensity interval training is more efficient and effective than conventional cardio workouts.

Take Your Workout to the Next Level

There are a number of ways you can get more out of your workout, effectively improving the quality of your exercise routine. Instead of doing basic resistance training, do multi-dimensional workouts. A multi-dimensional workout leads to greater loss of fat and weight.

You can also take steps like increasing the impact of your workout such as wearing a sauna suit. It will increase your sweating rate and heart rate, and this, in turn, improves the cardiovascular benefits of your workout. If you’re in a cold environment, it will also help keep you warm. This may allow you to continue jogging in the winter.

And it will increase circulation in your extremities as well. This can improve the flexibility in your legs, which will also raise your heart rate and metabolism.

Give Yourself Enough Time to Recover

After high-intensity exercise, you must give your body enough time to recuperate and repair itself. In fact, you’ll actually see greater benefits by working out 20 minutes at a time several times a day instead of trying to jog for an hour straight. This gives your body time to rest and recover between sessions.

Another strategy is to diversify your workout regimen. By alternating between sprints, resistance training, high-intensity interval training, and yoga, you avoid overworking particular muscle groups.

The side benefit of mixing resistance training, cardio, and high-intensity interval training with lower impact activities like Pilates is that you lose weight and fat mass faster. However, you can’t just do random exercises and see these benefits. You have to do all of the above on a regular basis to see these benefits. Try something you’re unfamiliar with such as strength training, and you’ll get hurt.

Conclusion

If you improve the quality of your exercise routine, you could lose weight faster. It can save you from having to increase the quantity of time taken up by your workout regimen as well. Increase the intensity enough, and you could achieve better results in less time.