How to Do
The wind sprints should begin with good posture to avoid injury. Brace the spine by drawing your lower abdomen inward. Your core muscles should be activated to support your posture as you perform the exercise.
If any pain is experienced, immediately stop the wind sprints.
Beginning
1. Start your cardiovascular activity with a five- to seven-minute warm-up walk or jog at a low-intensity, feels-easy speed.
2. Increase your speed to a jog or sprint that feels hard or extremely hard, but not all-out. Depending on your fitness level, stay at this wind sprint for 10 to 120 seconds.
3. Reduce your speed and return to walking or jogging. If you feel like you need more time to recover from the sprint interval, take a walk. If you have a greater level of athleticism or are training for activities that need you to stop and go, such as soccer, jog. Maintain your recovery level for two or three times the sprint's duration.
Movement
1. Increase your speed and sprint again once you've fully recovered and are able to breathe normally. Increase your speed for the same amount of time as your original sprint. After that, make sure you're getting enough active recovery.
2. If you already workout, start with about 20 minutes of wind sprint time per week. If you're new to sprinting, start with three to five minutes every week until your aerobic system improves.
3. After your sprint training, take a five- to ten-minute cool-down walk to get your heart and respiratory rates back to where they were before the workout.
ACSM Recommendations
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the American College of Sports Medicine advocates that you take part in a combined 30 minutes of moderate to intense aerobic or anaerobic activity most days out of the week.
What does that mean for you?
Based on the intensity and your typical hour-long strength training and cardio program, that usually works out at three to five sessions each week.
