Do you have an exercise bike or elliptical bike gathering dust in the corner of your room?
Because we all need goals in our workout, here's a workout plan to get you back on your exercise bike or elliptical bike. Do you want to build muscle? Tone up? Burn calories? Work on your quads, glutes, abs and most of all stay in shape? This program is accessible to all, gets you back into it gently and burns a lot of energy over the weeks.
The interval training it offers burns a significant amount of calories, which ideal if you want to firm up certain areas of your body. Designed with care and love by our Domyos coach, these sessions, which are three times per week, can also be used on any cardio machine, such as a treadmill, bike or rowing machine (yep, you’re welcome!). Three sessions are scheduled each week. Let’s take a look!
1/ First week
To get back into it, we propose two 30-minute intermittent sessions with a 3-minute warm-up to start you off.
Then this is followed by a minute of fairly intense effort (between 160-180 bpm), and then two minutes of active recovery. We don't stop between sequences! Repeat these three minute sessions ten times in a row, the equivalent to a good half hour of exercise. At the end of the 30 minutes, allow yourself two minutes of low intensity to recover.
During the week, we also suggest you do a longer session; we recommend one hour at 125 bpm.
2/ Second week
Keep up the good work! We continue into this second week with two intermittent sessions of 30 minutes, which start with a 3 minute warm-up.
This is followed by one minute of effort (between 160-180 bpm), then one minute of active recovery, without stopping. The whole thing is to be done 15 times for 30 minutes of exercise! Allow yourself two minutes of low intensity to recover.
Finish off your week with a one-hour session, this time at 130 bpm.
3/ Third week
For this third week of training, go ahead with two 30-minute intermittent sessions, with a 3-minute warm-up.
Start this time with one minute of effort (between 160-180 bpm), followed by 30 seconds of active recovery. Most importantly, don't stop your activity between the effort and the recovery. Repeat this combination 20 times to complete your 30-minute session. Allow yourself two minutes of low intensity to recover.
On the schedule for this third week is a long session of 60 minutes, at 135 bpm.
4/ Fourth week
Last week of the program and again, it’s two 30-minute intermittent sessions! After your warm-up, go for 30 seconds of effort (between 160-180 bpm), then follow up with 30 seconds of active recovery. The pace is more intense, this is what we’re aiming for, and the whole thing should be repeated 30 times to get in your 30 minutes of exercise. Allow yourself two minutes of low intensity to recover properly.
Finish off with your long session, still lasting one hour, but this time at 140 bpm.
If you don’t have a heart sensor on your equipment, you can use a heart rate monitor. But your own body is an excellent indicator during exercise: In intense effort (160 - 180 bpm), it will be difficult to talk, you’ll sweat a lot and your heart rate will accelerate intensely. In moderate effort (130 - 140 bpm), it will be difficult to talk, you’ll start to sweat and your heart rate will accelerate slowly. During a mild effort (recovery/active rest), you will be able to talk easily (or even sing a song), and the body does the movements "all by itself".
