The advantages of interval training is that it allows work at 80 percent or higher for a short period of time followed by an active period of recovery during which the stress load is reduced to 30-40 percent of the maximum heart rate.

Most sports are anaerobic in nature, involving short bursts of intense activity followed by some sort of active recovery - as in football, basketball, soccer, and tennis. Training with intervals allows the athlete to be more sports specific during training. Interval training allows the athlete to apply the overload principle by making the training period much more intense.

Training Variables

There are several important points to consider when planning an interval training program.

• Training period - is the amount of time that continuous activity is actually being performed.
• Recovery period - is the time between training periods.
• Set - is a group of combined training and recovery periods.
• Repetition - is the number of training/recovery periods in a set.
• Training time or Distance - refers to the rate or distance of the training period.
• Training / Recovery Ratio - indicates a time ratio for training versus recovery.

Recommended Intervals

The table below recommends the training intervals in terms of both time and distance. This information can be used as a quick guide for establishing an interval workout.

Interval Training Workouts

70-75% of MHR

75-85% of MHR

85-95% of MHR

Beginner

Intermediate

Advanced

35-40% of MHR

40-45% of MHR

An example of interval training would be a soccer player running sprints. An interval workout would involve running two sets of four 400 meter dashes in less than 70 seconds, with a 2:20 walking recovery period between each run. During this training session, the soccer player's heart rate would probably increase to 85-95 percent of the maximum level during the run, but the heart rate will fall to 35-45 percent during the recovery period.

References:

Cox M: Exercise training programs and cardiorespiratory adaptation, Clin Sports Med 10(1):19-32, 1991.

Gaesser GA, Wilson LA: Effects of continuous and interval training on the parameters of the power-endurance time relationship for high-intensity exercise, Int J Sports Med 9(6):417, 1988.

Swain D, Abernathey K, Smith C: Target heart rates for the development of cardiorespiratory fitness, Med Sci Sprts Exerc 26:112-116, 1994.