You've probably run into days before when you're so busy that you don't have time to get to the gym before or after work. Rather than tossing in the towel and counting your losses, consider sneaking in a quick midday workout that you can accomplish on your lunch break.
If you want to get your heart rate up in a jiffy and sweat your butt off, consider an interval treadmill workout. Michael Olzinski, MSc, Purplepatch endurance coach and Equinox run coach, designed an exclusive 20-minute running session that is bound to improve your cardiovascular health, burn fat, and give you a natural glow.
"In this session, you are going to have the opportunity to run hard and fast for some short intervals," Mike told POPSUGAR. "This is hard, but really fun if you do it right!"
Before you get scared off and insist that you're not a strong enough runner for this kind of workout, Mike says this kind of session will "really improve your technique," so you've got a lot to gain by putting in your full effort. "This is a style of work where you switch on the sequence and depth of each and every muscle involved with your run," he explained. "This means it can help develop your running muscles and running form."
Bonus: "The high-demand of these intervals should keep your engine revved up for the rest of your day, which would increase your normal calorie expenditure," Mike said. What does that mean? You'll burn more calories throughout the day.
The Workout
This workout is pretty straightforward. You'll be running 30-second intervals, each followed by a 60-second rest, and there are two main speeds you need to decide for yourself before you get started. Here's how Mike describes them.
- Sprint: "This is your highest speed that you can hit with good form and with the ability to improve. The way I would determine this speed to begin is to figure out what your best training speed for one minute would be. What is a one-minute speed that pushes you very hard? That will be your starting speed for these 30-second intervals."
- Recovery: "Most people will be using a simple power walk here, but a more advanced runner could use a very light jog just to stay loose and active. Your heart rate and breathing need to drop, and you need to feel good for your next run."
The first half of the workout will work on increasing incline, while keeping your sprint speed the same. But the second half is when you tack on a little more speed. Let's say your sprint speed is 8.0 mph. If you see Sprint + 0.3 mph, then your new speed is 8.3. At this point in your workout, you'll be decreasing the incline so you can really concentrate on your speed. The very last interval is meant for you to go as fast as you can, so don't be afraid to push yourself!
Finally, don't forget the importance of the warmup. "This is a very important part of the session and your chance to improve the way you run if you do this frequently enough," Mike added. You'll see the warmup exercises marked as High Knees and Skipping. When you're performing these, make sure you bring your treadmill down to a low speed so you don't feel like you're losing control. Somewhere between 2.0 and 3.0 mph is a good number to aim for. If this still makes you feel uncomfortable, feel free to do these movements off the treadmill.
After going through five minutes of these dynamic running drills, you'll be ready to push it to your full effort.
| Time | Speed | Incline |
|---|---|---|
| 0:00-0:30 | High knees | 0.0 |
| 0:30-1:00 | Skipping | 0.0 |
| 1:00-1:30 | High knees | 0.0 |
| 1:30-2:00 | Skipping | 0.0 |
| 2:00-2:30 | High knees | 0.0 |
| 2:30-3:00 | Skipping | 0.0 |
| 3:00-5:00 | Light jog | 0.0 |
| 5:00-5:30 | Sprint | 2.0 |
| 5:30-6:30 | Recovery | 0.0 |
| 6:30-7:00 | Sprint | 2.5 |
| 7:00-8:00 | Recovery | 0.0 |
| 8:00-8:30 | Sprint | 3.0 |
| 8:30-9:30 | Recovery | 0.0 |
| 9:30-10:00 | Sprint | 3.5 |
| 10:0-11:00 | Recovery | 0.0 |
| 11:00-11:30 | Sprint | 4.0 |
| 11:30-12:30 | Recovery | 0.0 |
| 12:30-13:00 | Sprint + 0.3 mph | 3.5 |
| 13:00-14:00 | Recovery | 0.0 |
| 14:00-14:30 | Sprint + 0.3 mph | 3.0 |
| 14:30-15:30 | Recovery | 0.0 |
| 15:30-16:00 | Sprint + 0.3 mph | 2.5 |
| 16:00-17:00 | Recovery | 0.0 |
| 17:00-17:30 | Sprint + 0.3 mph | 2.0 |
| 17:30-18:30 | Recovery | 0.0 |
| 18:30-19:00 | Best Sprint! | 1.0 |
| 19:00-20:00 | Recovery | 0.0 |
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