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Re: GMAT Club's Health & Fitness Thread
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19 Apr 2011, 09:54
For interval training, I'm not sure that there is a 'right' answer in terms of length/intensity of intervals.
The basic idea is that you you have intense cycles and recovery cycles. Your intense cycles should last x minutes, and be intense enough that you cant maintain that intensity for significantly longer than x minutes. Your recovery cycles should be less intense, and long enough that you have time to recover a bit.
Now, the shorter your cycles are, the more intense your intense cycle will have to be in order to match the criteria of 'not being able to maintain that intensity for more than the length of the cycle'.
Similarly, the more intense your intense cycles are, the easier your recovery cycles will have to be.
A good approach might be to get a heart rate monitor, and base your cycles off your heart rate.
For example, I've often done interval training where I set an alarm for 175bpm and an alarm for 115bpm. Start off, run at a high speed until you hit 175, then slow down til you hit 115, etc. (Obviously the specific heart rate caps you set will be tailored to your specific goals)