Benefits of Interval Training

Interval Training
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A graduate of the PharmD program at the University of Michigan, Ashkan Khabazian serves as lead emergency department clinical pharmacist at Sharp Memorial Hospital in San Diego, California. In his free time, Ashkan Khabazian enjoys interval training at Orangetheory Fitness.

Characterized by alternating bursts of intense physical exercise followed by short periods of lighter activity or rest, interval training provides a number of health benefits. Because interval training causes multiple spikes in heart rate during a workout, it can actually burn more calories than sustained moderate exercise for the same length of time. Furthermore, your body will continue to burn calories long after the workout is finished, due to a biological principle known as excess post-exercise oxygen consumption, or EPOC.

From a practical standpoint, interval training workouts can take a wide variety of forms, depending on an individual’s fitness goals. For those interested in improving aerobic capacity, try incorporating sprints. For those interested in building strength, weighted exercises fit in well with interval training programs. Many consider program flexibility to be one of the biggest selling points of interval training.