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Avoid Zombie Mode with Intervals

Whether you get your cardio fix by hopping on the treadmill, or strength training, try going for a positive work-to-rest ratio, says Mike Wunsch, coach at Results Fitness. That means working at 80 to 90 percent of your maximum heart rate for 30 seconds and resting for 30 seconds at 70 percent of your max heart rate. When you use intervals, your heart rate goes much higher and spikes your kJ burn.

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Limit Your Rest
Since burning kilojoules is all about keeping your heart rate up, long rest periods are not your friend. Try to catch your breath during a 30- to 60-second break, says Kernen. Set a timer on your phone so you know exactly when it's time to push it again.

Don’t Use the Machine's Pre-Set “Weight-Loss” Program
The programs on cardio machines can take the guesswork out of your sweat session, but choose your program wisely. The “weight-loss” or “fat-loss” programs keep your heart rate at around 55 percent of your max, while the cardio program keeps your heart rate at around 75 of your max, says Kernen. The higher your heart rate, the more oxygen your body uses, and the more kJs you burn.

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Hit the Treadmill Hills
Sprinting isn’t the only way to get your heart rate up on the hamster wheel. Try increasing the incline on the treadmill between three and five percent instead of the cranking up the speed, says Kernen. The higher the incline, the more you’ll burn, even without going any faster. Plus, by taking your incline up a notch, you engage different muscles than you do on a flat road, which adds an extra challenge.

Stop Being Basic
You could slow the treadmill down to a brisk walk during your rest intervals—or you could try taking your speed way down and performing walking lunges. Since lunging requires your quads, glutes, and lower back to exert much more force than they would while walking, you'll burn more energy during your break, says Kernan.

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Check Your Pedaling Form
On a stationary bike, a lot of people just push down on the pedals and don’t think about the upstroke. But when you focus on pulling the pedals up, too, you engage your hip flexors, which are typically neglected, he says. By focusing on the pulling and pushing motion, you'll involve more muscles and also be able to cycle faster.

Get On Your Feet
The easiest way to work more leg muscles and use more energy on a bike is to stand up. When you sit down and pedal away, your quads do most of the work, but when you get up, you activate your calves and core, as well.

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Use Supersets For Weight Training
Instead of resting between sets of moves, perform exercises that work different muscle groups back-to-back. This way, your lower-body muscles will have a chance to recover while your upper-body muscles will keep chugging along. And since you’re never coming to a standstill, your heart rate stays in the kJ-burning zone, he says.

Trade Machines for Compound Movements
If you’re looking to kick your own butt, using resistance machines won’t quite do it for you. When you sit on a machine, your glutes aren’t activated, your hips get tight, and only one muscle is working at a time. Swap out the machines for exercises that get as many joints moving as possible, like the squat to press or lunge to bicep curl. Those moves engage your core, improve your balance, and strengthen more than one muscle group.

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