Bodyweight Exercise Series- Sprinting Burns Fat

Sprinting burns fat like crazy folks! Sprinting is one of the best ways to get your total body lean and toned. It is probably one of the least used exercises done by general exercisers. And, you don't have to be fast, just run as fast as you can! To avoid injuries, always sprint on surfaces like grass or sand and never run on hard surfaces like concrete or asphalt. 

Athletes are forced to run sprints because of their particular sport. As a former college football player, I can remember running as many as 50 consecutive 40-yard sprints on the Monday after a Saturday game! Running sprints was the total practice for that day. Either way, sprints will lean and tone your body like never before (combined with full body strength training).

You see, sprinting activates your bulkier, shapely fast twitch muscle fibers. These fast twitch muscle fibers lie dormant when you do slow-paced cardio sessions (hint). Sprinting will really burn the fat on your butt, hips, thighs, hamstrings and lower legs. Fat will also be burned on your upper body.  

It is important to properly warmup before doing sprinting intervals. A proper warmup is a dynamic warmup such as doing 5-10 minutes of jogging, walking lunges, half-speed sprints and three-quarters speed sprints. Do static stretches after your workout to bring your muscles back to normal length.  

To sprint efficiently and avoid injuries, you need to master correct running mechanics. Most people that I see at gyms need to work on running mechanics. Running the right way really does make running easier (and vice-versa)!  

A 20-minute sprint interval workout is very simple---and tough! Do it this way:  

Run a 50 to 60 yard sprint 
Walk back to start line 
Run a 50 to 60 yard sprint

Do this rotation for 20-minutes and you are done (exhausted)! Do this type of workout no more than 2 times a week. This will allow your body to recover from this intense form of exercise.  

A sprint interval workout will also give you superior heart-health.   

Ready, set, go!

About the Author:

Mark Dilworth, Performance Enhancement Specialist and Former NCAA Division I Athlete

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