After watching the 2024 Olympics in Paris, many people are inspired to get fit. But “Fitman” Eric Brown, owner of Fitman Performance & Physique Center in Roslyn, says many people are taking the wrong approach to achieving their goals.

“Most people who join a gym have great intentions of getting in shape,” Fitman said. “But the reality is that many people waste a lot of time working out for hours on the treadmill at a commercial gym. They’re on the treadmill because they believe that hours of cardio is the key to fat loss. Cardio can help with fat loss by helping you burn more calories, but the real key to fat loss is creating an energy deficit. This means you need to expend more energy than you burn on a daily/weekly/monthly basis to lose body fat at a consistent rate.”

“If your main goal is fat loss, the most effective way to reduce your energy intake is to reduce your daily calorie intake from food. Cardio is important for heart health and staying in top shape. But spending hours on the treadmill is not the answer when it comes to losing fat, transforming your body, getting in incredible shape or time management,” Fitman said.

Time saving

Fitman pointed out that sprinting allows you to get more done in less time.

“No other exercise makes a weightlifter faster, more powerful and promotes fat loss like sprinting,” he said. “But another benefit of sprinting that isn’t talked about much is the time it saves compared to going fast on the treadmill.”

“Listen, most people have busy schedules between work and family obligations. Do you really want to stay on a grueling machine like a treadmill, elliptical or stair climber for 1-2 hours just to have the machine tell you you burned 100-200 calories? Are you serious? Unfortunately, many weight lifters repeat this process over and over for years and still don’t see the results they want when they look in the mirror. It’s a discouraging feeling,” Fitman said.

Fitman points out that sprinting allows you to get an effective workout in a fraction of the time. Below is a quick comparison between sprinting and cardio in terms of time:

Sprint training:

• Warm-up: 10-12 minutes
• Training: 15–25 minutes
• Cooling: 5 minutes
• Total training time: 30–42 minutes

Cardio training:

• Warm-up: 5 minutes
• Training: 60–120 minutes
• Cooling: 5 minutes
• Total training time: 70–130 minutes

“The old adage ‘quality over quantity’ applies here because no cardio machine can compete with the supreme power of sprinting,” Fitman said. “If you’re new to sprinting or haven’t run sprints since high school, you’re better off starting with hill sprints.”

“When you sprint up a hill, you are not reaching your top speed, which significantly reduces the likelihood of a hamstring strain. If you are healthy and injury-free, there is no reason why you shouldn’t sprint. You won’t be good on day one, but have you ever met anyone who was good at something on day one? We all have to put in the time, work and consistency to become great,” Fitman said.

Follow Fitman

Fitman is featured on several websites and social media platforms. Fitman is also an internationally published author of 3 eBooks. To learn the unvarnished truth about natural bodybuilding, sports performance, fitness/health and to purchase his eBooks, follow him at:

Books:
FitmanClassicBodybuilding.com/Books

Sites:
FitmanPerformance.com
FitmanClassicBodybuilding.com

Social Media:
Instagram: @FitmanEB
TikTok: @FitmanEB
X: @FitmanEB
YouTube: @FitmanEB
Facebook: @Fitman

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Photo: Fitman