Does 1 Min Hard Exercise = 45 Min of Cardio?
- 3 hours ago
- 7 min read
This article is a transcribed, edited summary of a video Bob and Brad recorded in January 2024. For the original video, go to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TfwmtTQx-xk
Mike: Science says one minute of hard exercise equals 45 minutes of jogging. Is that true or not?
Brad: Whoa. Well, we're going to find out because actually, right now I am doing 20 seconds of a hard exercise. And I'm going to do a relaxing or active recovery, as soon as I get the 20 seconds, which is right about now. And then back to marching in place.
Brad: So this is going to relate to a study we looked at and how you can actually incorporate this into your daily exercise if it's true.
Mike: So we made a video like this many years ago that Bob did.
Brad: Yes, five years ago. And it has been incredibly popular. We've got almost 10 million views on it. And in the comment section, people actually question, is this really true that one minute of exercise, hard exercise, equals 45 minutes of jogging, we're going to actually break this myth if it's a myth or whether it's true or not, so you know. Alright, so on this particular exercise, it was a little misleading. It was actually three sets of 20 seconds of max exercise, which I just demonstrated, one 20-second set, which was pretty aggressive for me. And then there's a two-minute act of recovery or the marching between the aggressive ones. So it was actually a nine-minute bout because there's a two-minute warmup, two-minute cool down, blah blah blah. Nine minutes equals 45 minutes of jogging. Is that possible, Mike?
Mike: Well, that's the question we're going to look at here. And to be honest, there's still a lot of debate among experts looking at different studies if it's equal.
Brad: That's right, so we did some research ourselves, and we're going to tell you what we came up with.
Mike: Now, Brad actually did his homework, and he found six research studies that supported this thesis and six studies that contradicted or argued to the contrary if this was actually true. Now, we don't want to bore you to death going through 12 different studies here. So we'll put up the study names and who performed them. You can simply type them into Google for yourself. Here are the six that support the thesis.
Mike: Here are the studies that oppose the thesis.
Brad: Right, so actually, what are we looking at? We're looking at interval training, which is commonly known as HIIT, high-intensity interval training, that's the way I pronounce it. Each one of these studies. Now, we have to be careful because they look at the different factors. What makes it a valid, physically beneficial study? And it varies. You know, some look at body composition, some look at cardiovascular fitness, metabolic health, VO2 max, and the list goes on. So this really can get into the weeds. So we're trying to make it for the average person who wants to look and see if they can do this, so they can be efficient with their workouts if they're busy to go to work, or they just don't like spending long times doing their workouts.
Mike: I would like to mention that what we're talking about with HIIT training is known as anaerobic fitness. So anaerobic means without oxygen. Usually, these are things like Brad was doing, some type of burpees, high-intensity exercises. It can also be sprinting. It can be biking as fast as you can on a bike. Whatever you do, basically your heart rate's going to get up a lot, your heart rate's really going to go up, and then it comes back down. The other type of exercise is called aerobic fitness with oxygen. So, for some people, this is just walking, hiking, light activity, if you're a really good, big runner, sometimes slow jogging, that is aerobic, easy. Normally, you can talk and have a conversation when performing that type of exercise.
Brad: So let's make it clear, Mike, we're talking about HIIT training, and we're going to actually have high-aggressive exercise for a short period of time, and slower, like as in the marching for the longer period of time. And make it clear if you're a sedentary person and you want to do this, you're not going to do burpees, because they will wear you out too quickly. It's going to be too much too soon, and you'll quit. So, your exercise, you know, someone sedentary, just starting jumping jacks, maybe 20 minutes or 20 seconds to this may put you out of breath, so you need to slow down to a simple one. So this varies from individual to individual, older, sedentary, and active people. Everybody's a little different. So the big question for this video is, is it a myth or not? Can we cut exercise time dramatically by using HIIT exercise and have the same health results? The answer is.
Mike: Yes.
Brad: Yes, yes. But there's always a but; there are some exceptions and variations to the answer. So you really need to stick around to listen to these; they're short. What's the first thing?
Mike: Now, if you are an endurance athlete, and obviously you have to spend a lot of time running, biking, swimming, whatever you do, you need to make sure you're still doing those activities, but it's important to do some HIIT cardio in between. And most people who do this for a long time already understand that and build it into their routines.
Brad: So, for example, if you are going to run a 5K, a 10 K, or even a marathon, you can do hit training for the nine-minute period, but you definitely need to go out and do your running at a longer distance to get your body used to that length. So it's kind of a, I guess we call it sports-specific or activity-specific answer, it has to use somewhat, I would just think is common sense with it.
Mike: Yes, and I will personally say when I was younger and first heard about HIIT training, I used to do it a lot, but you get a little more sore and a little more tired afterwards. So doing it every day consistently kind of takes wear and tear on you. So it's good to mix up some easier days and some harder days.
Brad: That's right, I personally use HIIT training on my bicycle. I'll bike as hard as I can for maybe a mile, which takes about two to three minutes, depending on the hills, and then I'll ride really slow for maybe five miles, and then I'll repeat it. That's just my opinion. Again, it might be just doing jumping jacks for 20 seconds and then just doing marching for one to two minutes. What you'll need to do is go onto YouTube and type in HIIT training, specifically, and you'll find many videos on different options of how to hit train, so they can fit it into your lifestyle. It's a great option for the active person or the person just getting into it, or in a hurry to get to work. And you need to get your exercise fast.
Mike: Now, if you want to check out a video like Brad was talking about, watch "Best HIIT Workout for Beginners-Burn Fat & Improve Posture. High Intensity Interval Training." It's a good beginner option for different things you can try.
Brad: And that's featuring not Bob and Brad. So Mike's not in there yet, but you'll have to put up with Bob and me, and you know, see what happens.
Mike: I'd probably be happier.
Brad: Good luck and take care. Make sure you stay here.
Mike: Yeah.
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