Is it more effective??

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sandram82
sandram82 Posts: 615 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I waas wondering if instead of doing a 1 hr workout each day if it would be more effective to do several smaller workouts through out the day, like 3 - 20 min workouts?? Or is it the same? Less effective?? Any advice fab people!!

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  • luv2ash
    luv2ash Posts: 1,903 Member
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    personally, I like to get my heart rate in zone for at least 40 mins straight.
  • lrns88
    lrns88 Posts: 151 Member
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    I waas wondering if instead of doing a 1 hr workout each day if it would be more effective to do several smaller workouts through out the day, like 3 - 20 min workouts?? Or is it the same? Less effective?? Any advice fab people!!

    A PT I follow on twitter says you can either work out hard, or work out longer, you can't do both - do the former! So I'd personally recommend shorter workouts where you can really get your heart rate up quickly (like High Intensity Interval Training) - but that's my own personal choice as I hate spending 90mins in the gym after work!
  • mmobsess
    mmobsess Posts: 3
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    i always thought that exercise was synergistic
  • superstarcassie
    superstarcassie Posts: 296 Member
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    I'm not sure- exercise is exercise. Just make sure you are getting your heart rate up for those 20 mins. I know for me, after about a year of weight loss, its harder to get myself into the cardio zone unless I do high intensity workouts for longer periods of time. I think its great to get that hour in any way you can!! For me personally, i don't want to get sweaty 3 times a day :)
  • SillySarah
    SillySarah Posts: 62
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    I waas wondering if instead of doing a 1 hr workout each day if it would be more effective to do several smaller workouts through out the day, like 3 - 20 min workouts?? Or is it the same? Less effective?? Any advice fab people!!

    For me, anything cumulatively over 60 minutes seems to really give me results. I have some days where I break it up into 30 minute blocks. Some days, it's 90 minutes straight. I don't know what it is, but that seems to do the trick for me.

    I think the important thing though isn't so much how much "exercise" you do, as it is more important to just be active and moving around (instead of stationary or eating). Sure, everyone needs to regularly get in some activity that makes them sweat, I won't deny this. But if you're up on you feet moving around and doing things that you enjoy, you may find that it's easier to stick with an active lifestyle in the long run. If anything, don't become a slave to the clock.

    Also, if your schedule only allows for you to break up the hour into 3X20 minutes, than that's fine too. Do what you can. Every bit helps. = )
  • SillySarah
    SillySarah Posts: 62
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    I waas wondering if instead of doing a 1 hr workout each day if it would be more effective to do several smaller workouts through out the day, like 3 - 20 min workouts?? Or is it the same? Less effective?? Any advice fab people!!

    A PT I follow on twitter says you can either work out hard, or work out longer, you can't do both - do the former! So I'd personally recommend shorter workouts where you can really get your heart rate up quickly (like High Intensity Interval Training) - but that's my own personal choice as I hate spending 90mins in the gym after work!

    HIIT is awesome! Even as little as 20 minutes a day can really give a body some great results. Also, I find it helps to do a variety of things. I love doing HIIT or intense calisthenics followed by cycling and then swimming. I've had great results just mixing things up.

    And another tip is to alternate easy and hard days. Say for instance you workout M-F. You could do M,W,F hard with HIIT for X amount of time. Then on T & Th, you could do mellower activities such as walking, pilates, or even yoga. The body does best when it has to adapt to new stimuli. And changing things up makes exercising that much more fun too!
  • fitmamaoftwins
    fitmamaoftwins Posts: 116
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    I suppose it can be done but I wouldnt recommend doing so
  • soysos
    soysos Posts: 187 Member
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    here is what I do, I have 2 workouts that I like to do. the first is a high intensity interval workout that I like to do 3-4 times a week takes 5-10 min. the second, my full circuit 20 min with 15-20 min weight training 2-3 times a week. then I have judo practice on wed, altho I haven't been in a while.

    it's really not good to do the same exercise for an extended period of time.
  • lrns88
    lrns88 Posts: 151 Member
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    I waas wondering if instead of doing a 1 hr workout each day if it would be more effective to do several smaller workouts through out the day, like 3 - 20 min workouts?? Or is it the same? Less effective?? Any advice fab people!!

    A PT I follow on twitter says you can either work out hard, or work out longer, you can't do both - do the former! So I'd personally recommend shorter workouts where you can really get your heart rate up quickly (like High Intensity Interval Training) - but that's my own personal choice as I hate spending 90mins in the gym after work!

    HIIT is awesome! Even as little as 20 minutes a day can really give a body some great results. Also, I find it helps to do a variety of things. I love doing HIIT or intense calisthenics followed by cycling and then swimming. I've had great results just mixing things up.

    HIIT is insanely good - I can burn 400 calories in 20mins, and my metabolism is raised for 48 hours afterwards. And I get a serious exercise after - I really recommend it as I'm getting far more results doing this and resistance work than I did doing 45 - 50mins on the x-trainer 4 times a week!

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