What is the “Afterburn Effect”?

20 Mar What is the “Afterburn Effect”?

Did you know it’s possible to continue to torch those dreaded calories even after your workout is complete? Well, it’s possible alright.

This magical calorie killer is called Excess Post-Exercise Oxygen Consumption (EPOC) and is more commonly referred to as the “Afterburn effect”.

The afterburn effect is achieved 15 minutes to 48 hours post workout and is the result of your body working extra hard to restore oxygen, nutrients and enzymes depleted during your workout. Your body is trying to pay back its oxygen debt.

EPOC is used to restore the body to a resting state and helps your body adapt. Because of EPOC, your metabolism is increased and your body is working hard to rebuild lost oxygen stores, remove lactate, increase ventilation of your blood, improve circulation and restore body temperature.

During a mild to intense workout, your muscles are working extra hard, depleting your body’s oxygen stores. Once you step off that treadmill, hop off of that bike or complete that HIIT workout, your body continues to consume oxygen at an elevated rate, which takes a lot of energy. The afterburn effect describes how your body works to restore itself to its pre-workout state.

That energy your body utilizes to restore itself to a normal state comes from calories, meaning you burn calories at rest! How great is that?

High Intensity Interval Training or HIIT has been shown to be the most efficient exercise to achieve the afterburn effect, mainly because of the intensity. A close second to HIIT in terms of achieving that afterburn is strength training.

Basically, the more intense your workout, emphasis on intense, the stronger the afterburn effect and the more calories you will burn post-workout. The amount of afterburn depends on the intensity of your workout, not necessarily the duration.

The best way to obtain the afterburn effect is to get your heart rate up! The afterburn effect is easy to reach if you are getting your heart rate up to 70-85 percent of your maximum heart rate during your workout.

In short, the more intense the workout, the greater the afterburn effect. The greater the afterburn effect, the more calories you burn after your workout is complete.

Here at RiPT, you can count on getting that afterburn effect from all of our intense workouts. From RiPT CORE, to RiPT Spot Reduction Training and RiPT HIIT, the intensity is up, and calories are being torched before and after your workout. With RiPT Body, you get HIIT training and strength training combined.

So, not only are you getting that initial calorie burn during your workout, you are getting an added bonus with the afterburn effect. Raise your water bottles to your next intense workout and getting your very own afterburn on!