More people today use jogging as part of their daily fitness routine...But are they correct? I want to give you 10 reasons why you should stop jogging and start sprinting. Now let me be clear, I am not fully against jogging as a form of exercise. However, I believe too many people have been duped into thinking that running 5 or 10 miles everyday is going to torch away fat. Giving them the body they have always wanted. This is simply not true.
While jogging does have some health benefits from a cardiovascular standpoint, and you will lose some weight, it does not have the ability to drastically transform the body into what most people are looking for.
Why you Should Make the Change to Sprinting Now
10. Easier On Your Joints in the Long Term:
Now you may be thinking "how is that possible." Let's break this down with some quick math.
* A normal sprint routine like I would recommend contains about 10 X 100M sprints. This combined with the average strides/impacts per sprint for the average Joe Somewhere in the 50~60 Strides gives us (60 strides X 10 sets = 600 Strides)
Sprinting ~ 600 impacts per workout
* The average jogger runs somewhere between 3 and 5 miles each session with about 160 strides per minute. This is done at an average pace of 5 - 6 MPH. Let's look at the 5 miles example. (5 MPH = 60 min X 160 = 9600 Strides)
Jogging ~ 9600 impacts per 5 miles
That's 16 times the impacts in just a single workout! Now do this 3x a week for a year, or even a month. Think about those knees, hips, ankles, and feet.
9. Burns More Calories (fat) than Jogging:
My normal Sprint routine takes 30 minutes total...including warm-up. According to my heart rate monitor I usually burn somewhere around 500 calories during that span.
To top it off, I am only running 10 set X 100M or ~ 120 seconds of work. The vast majority of the 30 minute workout is RESTING!
According to myfitnesspal jogging at 5 MPH would give me about the same calorie burn...don't forget though about the difference in work done.
Sprinting - 120 Sec Vs. Jogging - 60 Min
8. Increased Production of Testosterone and HGH:
More studies are beginning to show the benefits on muscle-building hormones with (HIIT) workouts, of which, sprinting could be considered the king. Sprinting will promote the creation of these hormones, radically transforming your physique in a relatively short period of time.
There is also the problem of over-training in many endurance oriented activities like jogging and cycling that can shut down hormone regulation. Not good for the healthy athletic body we all want!
7. Develop Full Body Strength & Power:
Sprinting involves moving your entire body weight as fast as possible which means it will dramatically improve your overall strength & power. Vertical forces have been measured in elite sprinters at 3.5X body weight. I don't know about you but I can't squat that much. But everyone can sprint!
Sprinting is self-regulating, in that as you get better, i.e. faster, you just progressively challenge your body more. No worrying about upping the weight 5 Lbs this week. Just run that same distance as fast as you can.
You will build tremendous power in a way that is nearly impossible to replicate in the gym.
6. Increased Muscle Mass and Appearance:
The high power demands of sprinting specifically target your fast twitch or type II muscles fibers. These muscle fibers (although generally thought to be genetically determined) can be trained, and have the most potential to become larger. You may not be able to increase the amount of them, but you can increase their size and strength.
This brings us to the Sprinter Vs. Jogger debate. Granted there are some genetic differences between all of us but this asks, "would you rather look like a sprinter or a jogger?" Sure most of us will never look like we were carved from stone but you know the adage "you are what you eat"? Same thing applies here.
Train like a sprinter and look like a sprinter or train like a jogger and look like a jogger...simple as that!
5. Increased Athleticism:
I would define athleticism as the ability to move one's body through multiple planes of motion with speed, agility, full range of motion, and coordination.
Doing sprints, especially combined with warm-up routine of high knees, cariocas, side shuffles, skips, butt-kickers, backwards running, or similar exercises will make you a better athlete. You will be more adept at moving your own body regardless of what you are doing...period
We have all seen the gym bro with a massive upper-body lumbering around looking awkward on the basketball court. These guys are not utilizing dynamic explosive movements, like sprinting or jumping in their routines. Are they strong? Yes. Do they ave big muscles? Yes, but they cannot perform athletically.
We want to look like athletes and move like athletes.
4. You'll Have Fun:
There is just something primal or intrinsic about running as fast as we can. Feeling your muscles, lungs, and heart working at their maximum capacity makes you feel alert and alive. The cool breeze kissing your face as you drive your arms and legs with everything you have.
It's Just Fun!
3. Increased VO2 Max:
Your VO2 Max is considered one of the best indicators of overall cardiovascular health and athletic ability, especially in regards to endurance sports.
Nowadays more coaches and trainers are realizing that (HIIT) training of any form is actually quite beneficial to rapidly increasing your VO2 Max. Reducing the amount of rest between sprints is a great way to accomplish this.
2. After-burn Effect (EPOC):
Excess post-exercise oxygen consumption(EPOC) or more commonly known as the after-burn effect is where the body can't bring Oxygen in fast enough during high-intensity bouts of exercise.
What does this mean for us?
The bodies systems have been so taxed after a hard sprint that they must work overtime to regulate everything to its baseline.
In simple terms: You will continue to burn extra calories hours after you have completed your workout
...And finally, my number one reason you should quit jogging and start sprinting!
Photo by Ryan Mcguire - Gratisography.com
1. Full Body Workout:
You Will not find a better full-body workout that can be completed in under 45 minutes.
Every muscle from you feet through your arms will get an exhausting workout.
Driving your arms back will work your biceps, triceps, shoulders and back.
Sprinting will give you a better core workout than any plank or crunch.
You will build more strength and explosiveness.
You will torch body fat...which combined core work you get from this, will actually get you that six-pack!
Conclusion
If I had to choose one exercise to rule them all, it would be Sprinting.
Now I want to clarify I'm not hear to bash on endurance sports, but how many of us really want to win a marathon? If you enjoy endurance by all means enjoy yourself, but do it knowing you probably won't lose more than a little body fat, you will be beating up your joints, and you won't be getting ripped anytime soon.
Most of us just want to look good, feel good, and fit that into our busy lives. However, if you are an endurance athlete, I guarantee you that you can improve you overall times by occasionally working in some sprints.
I plan to release a sprint workout that I have been using for the last couple years that has given me tremendous results in under 40 minutes a day, just 2 - 3 times a week.
Please do yourself a favor and think about why you are exercising. If you like grinding out your joints jogging around town, more power to you, at least you are out working hard. However, if you want to be athletic, muscular, toned...maybe even LumberJacked...then go find some grass or a track and run as fast you can!
Please leave some comments below, as I would love to hear any and all thoughts on this. have you ever done anything like this before? What are your fitness goals? Or any questions you have for me.
Thanks for reading everyone!
Tony D.