To succeed in events that require a lot of stamina and endurance, you require several physical attributes. But, for an endurance athlete needing to compete at an elite level, a decent level of aerobic power (also known as VO2 peak) is a minimum requirement.
Cardiovascular power is critical for just about any endurance athlete wanting to perform at their best. A high level of cardiovascular power lets you run, cycle or swim faster for an extended period of time.
Achieving a high level of performance in almost any endurance competition requires many years of exercise, which is necessary to develop a solid foundation of fitness. However, there exists growing evidence to show that it is possible to significantly improve your VO2max in 3 weeks or less.
Interval training has formed a significant part of professional athletes exercise routines for many years. It calls for rounds of high intensity exercise (i.e. sprinting) separated by phases of low intensity exercise (such as walking or jogging).
In the last few years, a branch of interval exercise termed high intensity intermittent exercise (HIIE) has developed a track record of generating fast improvements in VO2 peak – in some cases using workouts lasting just 4 minutes. HIIE (which has also been referred to as tabata intervals) calls for brief rounds of all-out activity lasting 30 seconds or less. Rest periods may last anywhere between ten seconds and five minutes.
Top exercise professionals believe that high intensity intermittent exercise programmes can play a huge role in increasing your VO2max several weeks before a competition or event.
As an example, investigators at the University of Barcelona analyzed a high intensity intermittent exercise programme lasting just fourteen days. The programme included daily exercise sessions containing 15-second maximal effort work periods, followed by 45 seconds of rest. Following just fourteen days of training, VO2max had improved by a striking 11% – a change normally associated with programmes lasting considerably longer.
Even more interesting is research from a team at Japan’s National Institute of Fitness and Sport. They reviewed two exercise programmes, the first composed of conventional moderate intensity exercise (cycling) for one hour, 5 days each week. The other training routine involved high intensity intermittent exercise, and contained eight maximal effort work periods lasting 20 seconds, with 10 seconds of recovery. Despite the fact that each exercise session lasted only four minutes, VO2max gains in the high intensity intermittent exercise group were more than 50% higher than individuals performing the moderate intensity training.
Similar results have been reported in numerous other scientific studies, some involving just 10 all-out work bouts lasting 30 seconds each. Even the investigators were surprised by their findings, describing such extraordinary gains in VO2 peak as surprising, considering the short length of each workout.
Not only has high intensity intermittent exercise demonstrated striking effects on VO2max, research shows it may also improve your endurance performance. A team of scientists from the University of Cape Town Medical School assessed the effect of five unique variations of interval exercise on a 40-kilometre time trial. The length of the work bouts varied between half a minute and 8 minutes. Each cyclist performed a total of six sessions over a 3 week time period, carrying out their usual training on separate days. You
The 30-second work periods produced a substantial improvement in results, while intervals lasting 60 seconds provided no benefit. Although the scientists were not absolutely sure why the 30-second bouts were so effective, they propose that short, more intense work periods can make the body more resistant to fatigue.
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