Can a 60-second workout really work?

[soundcloud id='262167550'] Too good to be true?

Headlines around the world proclaimed last week that researchers in Hamilton had proven that just 60-seconds of high intensity exercise produced the same results as 45-minutes of moderate exercise. That was a tease, of course.

What the research study really showed was that a regular 10-minute exercise regime on a stationary bicycle, comprising...

• 2 minutes warm-up cycling

• 20 seconds of high intensity cycling

• 2 minutes "recovery" cycling

• 20 seconds of high intensity cycling

• 2 minutes "recovery" cycling

• 20 seconds of high intensity cycling

• 3 minutes cool-down

... produced the same results as a regular 45-minute moderately-intense workout.

The "60-seconds" tease, of course, refers to the the total amount of "high-intensity" exertion including in the 10-minute interval workout.

How can this be? The scientist behind the study, Dr. Martin Gibala, Professor and Chair of the Dept. of Kinesiology at McMaster University joined me Sunday, May 1, 2016 on Newstalk1010 to explain.