After watching the 2024 Paris Olympics, many people have become inspired to get in shape. But “Fitman” Eric Brown, who owns the Fitman Performance & Physique Center in Roslyn, says that many people take the wrong approach to reach their goals.
“Most people who have a gym membership have great intentions in terms of getting in shape,” Fitman said. “But the reality is that many people waste a lot of time pounding away for hours on a treadmill at a commercial gym. They are on that treadmill because they believe that doing hours and hours of cardio is the main key to fat loss. Cardio can assist with fat loss by helping you burn more calories, but the true key to losing fat comes from creating an energy deficit. This means that you must use more energy on a daily/weekly/monthly basis than you consume to lose body fat at a steady rate.”
“If your main goal is fat loss, the most effective way of reducing your energy intake would be to reduce your daily caloric intake from food. Cardio is important in terms of heart health and actually being in great shape. But pounding away on the treadmill for hours on in is not the answer in terms of fat loss, transforming your physique, getting into ridiculous shape, or time management,” Fitman said.
Time Saved
Fitman pointed out that you can get more done in less time with sprinting.
“No other exercise will make a lifter faster, more powerful, and stimulate fat loss like sprinting,” he said. “But another benefit that is not talked about much in terms of sprinting is the time you will save sprinting vs. going nowhere fast on the treadmill.”
“Listen, most people have busy schedules between work and family obligations. Do you truly want to stay on a soul-draining device like a treadmill, elliptical, or stairmaster for 1-2 hours just to have the machine tell you that you burned 100 to 200 calories? Are you kidding me? Unfortunately, many lifters will repeat this process over and over for years and still not see the results they want to see when they look in the mirror. That is a deflating feeling,” Fitman said.
Fitman notes that sprinting will allow you to get an effective workout done in a fraction of the time. Look below to see a brief comparison of sprinting vs. exercising in the cardio section in terms of time:
Sprinting Workout:
• Warm- Up: 10-12 minutes
• Workout: 15-25 minutes
• Cool Down: 5 minutes
• Total Workout Time: 30-42 minutes
Cardio Section Workout:
• Warm-Up: 5 minutes
• Workout: 60-120 minutes
• Cool Down: 5 minutes
• Total Workout Time: 70-130 minutes
“The old adage of quality over quantity applies here as no cardio machine can compete with the supreme power of sprinting,” Fitman said. “If you are new to sprinting or you have not run sprints since high school, you would be better off starting with hill sprints.”
“Sprinting up a hill will prevent you from reaching top speed, which will significantly decrease the likelihood that you pull a hamstring. There is no reason why if you are healthy and injury-free that you should not be sprinting. You won’t be good on day 1, but have you ever met anyone who was good at something on day 1? We all need to put in the time, work, and consistency to become great,” Fitman said.
Follow Fitman
Fitman is on multiple websites and social media platforms. Fitman is also an internationally published author of 3 eBooks. To get the unvarnished truth about natural bodybuilding, athletic performance, fitness/health, and to purchase his eBooks, follow him at:
Books:
FitmanClassicBodybuilding.com/Books
Websites:
FitmanPerformance.com
FitmanClassicBodybuilding.com
Social Media:
Instagram: @FitmanEB
Tik Tok: @FitmanEB
X: @FitmanEB
YouTube: @FitmanEB
Facebook: @Fitman
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Photo: Fitman