Will tries interval training

Lately I've been doing some high-intensity interval training, where "high" takes into account that I'm a baby boomer with a desk job. If you have my sort of Homer-Simpson-esque physique, then start with things you can do without injury, not what the 18-year-old neighbor can do without injury. ObDisclaimer: Talk to your doctor before beginning any exercise regimen.

Studies (1, 2) conclude that brief interval training periods two or three times per week, totaling just a few minutes of high-intensity exercise per session, can produce benefits similar to those from tedious 90- to 120-minute aerobic Jane Fonda workouts. The clearly measurable part appears to be that you can bump up the oxygen usage of your muscles, which means that your muscle mass has increased as has the number of mitochondria. Interval training also causes your muscles to continue burning extra calories for several hours following your workout (1, 2, 3). If I leave my heart-rate monitor on, I see that my heart rate remains mildly elevated long after I've stopped.

After about a month of doing this, I haven't seen any visible shrinkage of my midsection, but I've definitely got better stamina. I have a much easier time climbing stairs or getting up from sitting on the floor. All my exercise has been lower body, to take advantage of the larger muscles, but I'm pretty sure I've gained strength in my upper body as well.

I think I would benefit faster if I were more careful with my diet. I keep thinking about cutting back on carbs, maybe I'll actually do that. Silly to put in the trouble to exercise and not add the piece that would actually allow me to lose some body fat. Sillier still to regard interval training as a license to eat donuts.

Android app: a timer for Sprint 8 workouts

I recently learned about an interesting exercise technique called Sprint 8, promoted by a guy named Phil Campbell, due to my sister's interest in Joseph Mercola, a doctor who took an interest in Sprint 8. The idea is pretty simple. Pick a favorite exercise, maybe a stairmaster or a stationary bike, and do eight sprints in the following way. Remember to consult your physician before starting any exercise program.

• Do two or three minutes of warm-up, nothing too strenuous.
• Push yourself for 30 seconds. Work as hard as you can without risk of injury. This is a "sprint".
• For 90 seconds to 2 minutes, move to a slower easier pace. Catch your breath. This is called "active resting".
• Do a second 30-second sprint, followed by another 90-to-120-second active rest.
• Repeat until you've done a total of eight sprints.

The Android app is a timer for doing Sprint 8, and the source code is posted on Github. If you're set up for Android app development, feel free to compile it and try it on your Android phone. The app is now available in the Android Market.

There's a lot of exercise physiology knowledge to Sprint 8 that, in all honesty, I haven't yet studied. Maybe I will in future, and possibly blog about it. But I do know that after just a couple of short Sprint 8 workouts I feel really good. My back pain is way down and I get less winded when I climb a flight of stairs. Sprint 8 workouts are claimed to produce human growth hormone (the stuff outlawed in Olympic and professional sports because it gives athletes an unfair competitive advantage) which appears to have anti-aging effects. Also see "interval training", believed to work well for fat loss.