What blasts calories and fat best - Get Fit

Shape, May, 2002 by Stacy Whitman

You've probably heard that high-intensity exercise, such as interval training, is key to blasting maximum calories. But it's also true that people who exercise at moderate intensities tend to stay more active throughout the day and thus burn more calories overall.

A few studies have shown that high-intensity workouts result in more total fat loss (credit a modest post-exercise calorie burn), even if the same number of calories are burned during exercise. And if time is an issue, you can zap almost twice as many calories cycling at a fast (14-16 mph) pace than you would at 10-12 mph. But few people are willing to tolerate these kinds of demanding sweatfests.

Bottom line: What matters most in terms of fat loss is the total number of calories expended, and it doesn't matter whether you burn them fast or slowly. However, to get cardio benefits and save time, your goal should be to get your heart pumping at about 60-70 percent of its max -- so you're breathing heavily but not gasping for air.