A 48 Hour Fat-Burning Workout... With Just 20 Minutes of Effort?
Shin Ohtake
Creator of Max Workouts
Let me explain by asking: How does exercise help you lose weight, melt away fat, and slim down?
Exercise burns calories.
More calories burned (especially calories stored in your body as fat) equals more weight lost.
But not all exercise is created equal!
This is where the principle of “EPOC” or “Excess Post-Exercise Oxygen Consumption” comes in.
Exercise scientists use the term “EPOC” to describe how much oxygen it takes to get your metabolism “back to normal” after a period of exercise or effort.
You’ve heard “EPOC” called the “Afterburn” effect because it lasts after exercise is over to burn calories while you are at rest.
Here’s How EPOC Works: Your Body Needs Time to Recover After a Workout. That Recovery Period Uses Up Energy.
There’s a long list of things your body needs to do after you exercise in order to return to “normal” or resting.
One of the most important things on that list is this:
Your body has to produce ATP (that’s the biological term for “energy”) to replace the ATP you used during the workout.
Now here’s the key to what I said above:
There are two types of ways your body “produces” energy when you exercise:
Anaerobic – This is “without oxygen.” When you need energy fast your body relies on anaerobic pathways to provide ATP. This energy is stored in your muscles in the form of glycogen, your body turns it in ATP by breaking down glycogen quickly and using it as energy.
Aerobic – This is “with oxygen.” When you need energy over a longer period of time, your body uses aerobic pathways to provide ATP. This energy is stored in your body as fat. Your body turns fat into ATP by breaking it down slowly and using it as energy.
It’s easier (more efficient) for your body to produce energy (ATP) aerobically.
It’s harder (less efficient) for your body to RESTORE energy (ATP) you’ve burned anaerobically.
EPOC or “Excess Post-Exercise Oxygen Consumption” is the process of restoring the energy (ATP) you’ve used during a workout.
When you utilize your anaerobic metabolism for ATP (energy) in your workouts, it takes your body up to 48 hours to restore the muscle glycogen you’ve used up.
All that work requires more oxygen.
The more oxygen your body takes in, the more calories you burn.
What does this mean for you?
Here’s the Short Version: With the Right Workouts, You Can Increase the Number of Calories You Burn After Your Workout is Over.
When you string together the right sequence of exercises that utilize anaerobic energy pathways you end up with a workout that burns calories long after it’s over.
You can burn additional calories up to 48 hours (2 full days) after your workout is over.
According to LaForgia, Withers and Gore (2006), certain types of weight and interval training create higher EPOC response (post exercise calorie burn) when compared to cardio like running or low-intensity steady-state circuit training.
Researchers Bersheim and Bahr (2003) agree stating, “studies in which similar estimated energy cost or similar exercising VO2 have been used to equate continuous aerobic exercise and intermittent resistance exercise, have indicated that resistance exercise produces a greater EPOC response.” Their conclusion came after an extensive review of available studies and experiments at the time.
In my own real-world research as a personal trainer and exercise psychologist, I’ve found that – with the right sequence of exercises – it takes just 20 minutes of effort to burn additional calories for up to 48 hours.
Just 20 Minutes of Effort Can Equal 48 Hours of Increased Calorie Burning. Over Time, The RESULTS Add Up.
How big are the calorie burning benefits from EPOC?
You’ll hear people tell you “they aren’t huge.”
Overall, according to Bersheim and Bahr (2003), the right workouts can add around 6% to 15% MORE calories burned after an exercise session.
This can amount to around 300-500 calories or more per week with just a few 20 minute workouts.
Those are calories you burn just sitting on the couch watching TV.
It’s truly effortless weight loss.
And overtime, it adds up. Over the course of just one or two workout cycles, 500 additional calories per week can equal 2-4 more pounds lost over traditional workouts.
Watch this Video to Learn More. I’ll Explain the Workouts You Need to Trigger EPOC.
I’d like to explain the type of workouts you need to follow to burn more calories after your workouts.
To help explain, I’ve created a video.
All it will take is a few minutes of your time.
Take a few minutes now to learn more and burn more calories with less time spent working out.
Click below to watch the video.
Men >> Click Here and I’ll Show You How. →
Women >> Click Here and I’ll Show You How. →
Bersheim, E. and Bahr, R. (2003). Effect of exercise intensity, duration and mode on post-exercise oxygen consumption. Sports Medicine, 33, 14, 1037-1060
LaForgia, J., Withers, RT. And Gore GJ. (2006). Effects of exercise intensity and duration on the excess post-exercise oxygen consumption. Journal of Sports Sciences, 12, 1247-1264.