You only need to train for one minute a day to be in top shape

Yes, that was actually the first thing I thought when I heard this wisdom. I just boxed and did boot camp and then boxed again, hours and days a week until I couldn't anymore because of my back and now it turns out one minute is enough. Honestly, quite unfair. Right? But it also gives the non-sporty person hope.

Staying fit is not that easy. We have all sat down under work, except for the walk to the coffee machine and most of us prefer the car or public transport over a bike or walking. Now that Netflix has also become hobby number one, movement has stalled and anti-exercise has taken on dramatic forms. On top of that, we no longer have to grow our broccoli and cucumbers ourselves, the cleaner vacuums for you and makes the bed, and your fitness evaporates right before your eyes. Well, not if it’s up to ultra-runner Andy Magness from New Zealand. An ultra-runner, yes, that surprised me a bit too. I thought being a runner was already intense, but apparently, there are people who do this ultra. He swears by The One Minute Workout and then runs races of 80 kilometers. Mamma mia.

Rather lazy than tired as we are, we naturally want to know how it works. It was so simple that I felt a bit of secondhand embarrassment. You sprint for twenty seconds as hard as you can at high intensity and then recover at a normal pace. You repeat that crazy hard running two more times for twenty seconds and you're done. It seems to be the most effective workout that exists. Short and intense is better than long and a bit lighter.

In case you think that Magness and I have gone completely cuckoo: research has indeed been done. One group did the one-minute workout three times a week, the other group trained moderately but long with 150 minutes per week. The result after three months? Both groups were equally fit. The idea is that you quickly burn through your energy reserves and that it’s not about the amount of reserve you have.

Eureka, I'm not much of a runner but if I follow the training schedule of The One Minute Workout I could very well become an ultra-runner. I believe I need to recover from the shock. For a good schedule, you should check the book by Professor Martin Gabala, then I’ll surely see you at the start of such an ultra-running race.

Source: Runner’s World