Sprint for 10 seconds to give your health a boost

You don’t have to jog around the park for hours—even short bursts of running for just 10 seconds can do wonders for your health.

Just think 10-20-30 when you plan your workout—that’s 30 seconds of walking, 20 seconds of running at a moderate pace, and 10 seconds of full-out sprinting.

The approach, known as interval running, is based on the principles of high-intensity interval training (HIIT), a workout style that alternates short bursts of intense effort with brief recovery periods.

Research consistently shows that HIIT-style running provides significant health improvements for the heart, metabolism, and body composition.

In studies involving overweight or obese participants, sprint intervals led to greater gains in cardiovascular fitness than steady-paced runs. Those who sprinted showed higher improvements in their V̇O₂ max—the measure of how much oxygen the body can use during intense activity, says Christopher Gaffney, a researcher at Lancaster University in the UK.

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