It Works Out Less is More When It Comes to Exercise

By SARAH HOWDEN

WE spend hours upon hours every week slogging it out at the gym in a bid to rid ourselves of a few inches here and there.

Pound the treadmill, they tell us. Climb the stairmaster faster, we’re told.

Quicker, they shout at our legs, already manically turning the pedals on the exercise bikes. Now, after all the blood, sweat and tears, apparently the only way to really trim, slim and win against the battle of the bulge is actually to do less. Yes, really.

According to new research, less really does mean more. Researchers at the Health and Exercise Unit of the University of Glamorgan found people can exercise less while still achieving the same results and spending extra hours working out in the gym can be a waste of time.

The study found it was unproductive to spend large amounts of time training and the amount of time spent at the gym could be cut by up to two-thirds with the same level of fitness achieved.

“It is counter-productive to spend hours at the gym and a shorter work-out can achieve exactly the same results,” says researcher Dr Julien Steven Baker. “Muscles can get tired and a maximum is reached – beyond that the sample group doing three sets weren’t achieving extra results. Lower volume training might also help lean-tissue growth because it limits muscle damage.

“It’s quality over quantity. It means that you can spend less time in the gym as long as the exercise you are doing is intense.”

Celebrity personal trainer and fitness coach Matt Roberts agrees. “Your body quickly gets used to an exercise plan, so you need to keep finding new exercises to keep one step ahead,” he says.

As a result, the fitness experts are now proclaiming shorter workouts equal just as beneficial results.

Julien explains: “There is a growing trend now towards fitness classes of shorter duration which promise beneficial results and there is much research in the field to suggest that interval training [intense activity followed by a fast recovery period] and brief high intensity work outs [performing at 80 per cent of your maximum aerobic capacity] can achieve maximum results in a limited time.”

Matt adds: “We usually exercise for an hour at about 60 per cent of our maximum aerobic capacity, so instead aim for 30 minutes at 80 per cent capacity.”

But one Edinburgh fitness centre, Curves, already knows all this. The part-gym, part-exercise class, part-social club based in Beaverhall Road works on the simple philosophy that women can change their figures by exercising for half an hour, three times a week.

Using a circuit which combines a range of hydraulic machines that exercise every part of your body, Curves workout sessions can tone every major muscle group, increase bone density, increase joint stability and increase metabolism. Natalie Gallagher, general manager of the Edinburgh club, says there’s a simple reason why the “less is more” philosophy works: “That’s what’s recommended by health professionals!”

And she says people who spend too much time in the gym only risk injuring themselves.

The system uses hydraulic resistance machines, so your muscles are pushing and pulling rather than lifting weight stacks.

Natalie says most injuries occur while the weight is being lowered so the hydraulic system, which is moving fluids, eliminates that risk. Anna Milne is one “less is more” devotee. And she has the results to prove it.

After the birth of her first son, Lockie, in July last year, the 32-year-old sales manager realised she needed to shed the excess stones to reinstall her body confidence.

“I was 13 stone before I joined Curves,” explains Anna, who lives in Trinity.

“I had gained four stone when I was pregnant with my son as I had massive cravings for full-fat smoothies and it turned out I was anaemic.

“I then breastfed for six months and didn’t feel as if I’d lost any weight, and I felt really unhappy with how I looked.

“I had neglected myself, but I was simply too busy looking after my newborn son, Lockie.”

Anna was so busy with her newborn son that she didn’t have time for a gruelling regime, but after receiving a flyer promising results with minimum input, she decided she had nothing to lose.

“I joined with a couple of my anti-natal girlfriends in May and we haven’t looked back,” says Anna.

“I go on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. It’s been really life- changing, it’s made me so much more healthy.

“I work out three to four times a week on a circuit of equipment – basically circuit training – that focuses on women’s danger areas such as arms, stomachs and thighs.

“You use eight pieces of equipment for 30 seconds a time, with three circuits. You count your heart rate and work to your fat- burning zone for your age.”

As a result, Anna lost a quarter of a stone every month, and is now one stone lighter and 18 inches smaller after only four months.

Dropping several dress sizes, her physique and muscle tone have improved dramatically too, thanks to the combination of aerobic activity and resistance exercises. She says: “I’m not wasting time at the gym as I’m now really focused on fat burning, and not messing around. It makes good use of the time when you are there.

“When you are a wife, a mum and a career girl you can lose yourself quite easily and have no time for yourself. By exercising less, and in a better way, you can have still that time for yourself. It’s 30 minutes just for me.

“I feel much more confident about myself.

“I feel more attractive to my husband and I feel more attractive in general. It has made a huge difference.”