Gassers--A Top Cardio Fat Burner

If you need a change to ramp up the intensity and fat-burning of your summer cardio sessions, gassers will do the trick.


I don't know which sounds worst, gassers or burpees....one thing for sure is that they are both tough and excellent fat burners.

Its been awhile since I ran gassers but they are still tougher than ever! Gassers are a cult favorite among football coaches. What are they you ask?

Basically, gassers are sprint intervals if you do them right.

Two Types of Gassers

Note: For best results, do these gassers on a grass surface. And, you don't have to be fast, just run as fast as you can on each repetition.

Half Gassers - sprint across one football field sideline to the other sideline (53 yards). Immediately sprint back. That's 106 yards and one repetition. Walk one minute and do it again. Simple as that. Do as many as you can for 20 minutes. You will be gassed.

Full Gassers - sprint across one football field sideline to the other (53 yards). Immediately sprint back. Do the same thing again without rest. That's 212 total yards for one repetition. Walk for 1-2 minutes and go again. Do as many as you can for 20 minutes.

I like to do half gassers because I can sprint full blast all the way through. And, I can get in more sprints. Full gassers are more for conditioning purposes. Football coaches love full gassers more.

Doing these types of short burst workouts will change your hormones allowing your body to naturally regulate fat burning, appetite and moods.

Short burst workouts, such as interval cardio and circuit weight training has more fat burning benefits.

Research at Duke University, directed by Dr. Cris Slentz, supports high-intensity exercise for better fat loss. The eight-month study showed that people could lose weight with exercise and no dieting. Those who exercised intensely (especially using interval training) lost much more fat than those who exercised moderately.

According to the research, the high-intensity exercisers had these advantages over the low-to-moderate intensity exercisers:

--more release of fat from cells
--more fat used as fuel during exercise
--increased metabolic rate after exercise

Doing this type of exercise will burn more calories and fat during and after your workout. Exercise Post-Oxygen Consumption (EPOC) causes your body to burn more calories and fat after a tough workout.

Your body has to work harder to get back to its pre-exercise state. Fat burning and metabolism can increase for up to 48 hours after your workout.

Traditional lower-intensity, steady-state aerobic exercise on treadmills, bikes, ellipticals, etc. are good for beginners or those who have been inactive. It will also bore you to tears! Aerobic exercise is an activity that is done continuously for more than 2 straight minutes.

But, research has proven that the heart-health and fat-burning benefits of anaerobic exercise is superior to aerobic exercise. The progression of exercise should be low-intensity aerobics to moderate/high-intensity aerobics to high-intensity anaerobics (intervals).

Sprinting activates your bulkier, shapely fast twitch muscle fibers. These fast twitch muscle fibers will lie dormant when you do slow-paced cardio sessions.

Sprinting will really burn the fat on your butt, hips, thighs, hamstrings and lower legs. Fat will also be burned on your upper body.

Go and get gassed this week!

Be sure and download your Free Bodyweight 500 Metabolic Fat Burner Workouts and start shaping your body faster!




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About Mark

Hi, I'm Mark Dilworth, Nutritionist, Dietary Strategies Specialist, Nutrition for Metabolic Health Specialist and Lifestyle Weight Management Specialist. Since 2006, I have helped thousands of clients and readers make lifestyle habit changes which includes body transformation and ideal body weight.