Do you know what anaerobic exercise is? Even if you don’t, chances are you’ve done anaerobic exercises without even realizing it.

Anaerobic means “without oxygen.” Being without oxygen doesn’t sound like a good thing, but anaerobic exercise is when you work out at such a high intensity that your heart and lungs can’t deliver oxygen to your muscles fast enough to fuel the movement. This can help you increase your muscle strength and endurance.

Read this blog to learn more about how anaerobic exercise works, its benefits, and examples of anaerobic exercises you can do at AFAC’s gym in Thornton, Colorado.

How Does Anaerobic Exercise Work at the Gym?

To explain how anaerobic exercise works, it helps to compare it to aerobic exercise.

Aerobic means “with oxygen.” You get energy for aerobic exercise from oxygen and your body’s storage of carbs, fats, and protein. This type of energy is usually in big supply, so it’s the system your body uses in long, steady-state exercises like walking, running, rowing, cycling, and so on.

Anaerobic exercise, on the other hand, involves short, fast, high-intensity exercises. When you do anaerobic exercises, your body gets quick energy from the glucose stored in your muscles. This energy is in short supply, so you can only repeat anaerobic exercises for 10-15 seconds before resting or moving onto a different form of movement.

There’s a gray area where anaerobic and aerobic exercises can overlap. That means your aerobic exercise may turn into an anaerobic exercise if you increase intensity. For example, if a runner increases their pace into a sprint, their aerobic workout will become an anaerobic one. If you’ve ever reached 90%-100% of your maximum heart rate, or become completely breathless during a workout, then you know what anaerobic exercise feels like.

Everyone from elite athletes to everyday gym members can benefit from anaerobic training. When you train at high intensity regularly, you’ll increase your anaerobic threshold. That means you can work at high intensity for longer periods of time — increasing your endurance, getting tired less quickly, and burning more calories.

What are the Benefits of Anaerobic Workouts at the Gym?

If you’re thinking that anaerobic exercise sounds like a lot of work, you’re correct — it is. The benefits of this intense workout regimen are many, though, making it worth your while and giving you motivation to power through.

Improved VO2 max: VO2 max is the maximum amount of oxygen that your body can utilize during intense exercise. This measurement is used to establish an athlete’s aerobic endurance before and during training. Athletes can have their VO2 max tested in a sports performance lab to determine their cardiovascular fitness. When your VO2 max improves, it means your body has learned how to use more oxygen to convert into energy, which allows you to exercise longer.
Better endurance: The more anaerobic training you do, the easier all your workouts will become. You’ll also be able to work out harder, for longer. That’s because anaerobic exercise increases your body’s ability to utilize lactate for energy. During anaerobic exercise, your body uses glucose in your muscles for energy first. Lactate is produced during this process. While lactate doesn’t cause fatigue, its production is the point at which you experience fatigue. Your body can clear lactate fairly quickly by metabolizing it for energy.
Better energy: Regular anaerobic exercise boosts your body’s ability to store glycogen in your muscles. This gives you more energy for your next intense workout session. It can also improve your athletic ability.
Stronger bones: Anaerobic exercise can improve bone strength and density. This can help reduce your risk of developing osteoporosis.
Stronger muscles: During anaerobic exercise, your body uses the energy stored in your muscles. Doing more anaerobic exercises encourages your body to maintain and build muscle mass so that you can store more fast-access energy there.
Protected joints: As anaerobic exercises build muscle strength and mass, your joints will be better protected from injury.
Fat loss and weight maintenance: One study found that anaerobic, high-intensity training was more effective at reducing subcutaneous and stomach fat when compared to aerobic exercise. Anaerobic exercise can also help you maintain a healthy weight.
Improved mood and mental health: Similar to aerobic exercise, anaerobic exercise has been shown to boost mental health by decreasing feelings of anxiety, tension, and depression.
Boosted metabolism: As anaerobic exercise builds and maintains your body’s lean muscle, you’ll naturally burn more calories, even at rest. Anaerobic exercise is also believed to increase the number of calories you burn after your workout is over.
Reduced risk of disease: Anaerobic training can reduce your risk of heart disease and diabetes.

What Are Some Examples of Anaerobic Exercises I Can Do at the Gym?

Anaerobic exercises can be added to both your cardiovascular and strength training workouts. Options of anaerobic exercises you can try are listed below.

Sprints

Sprint training can be mixed in with your regular cardio workout. For example, you can:

Walk on a treadmill for 5-10 minutes.
Sprint at about 60% of your maximum intensity for up to a minute.
Walk for another 4-5 minutes.
Perform a second sprint at about 80% max intensity for up to a minute.
Walk for another 4-5 minutes.
Sprint all-out at 100% intensity for 30 seconds.
Recover by walking for another 4-5 minutes (or until you can hold a conversation without gasping).
Repeat the sprint/recovery process 4-8 times depending on your fitness level and ability. You can start at 4 reps and work your way up to 8 as your endurance increases over time.

Fartlek Training

Similar to sprints, Fartlek running involves varying your pace throughout your regular runs, alternating between slow jogs and fast segments. Many joggers and runners enjoy Fartleks because they’re unstructured. Your work-rest intervals are based on how your body feels instead of a stopwatch. For example, you can jog at an easy pace for 10 minutes, run as fast as you can for as long as you can hold out (typically 30 seconds to a minute), and then repeat the Fartlek for the entire duration of your run.

High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT)

HIIT is a type of interval training where you alternate short, high-intensity bouts of exercise with longer, slower recovery workouts. An example of a HIIT workout would be cycling as fast as you can for a minute, followed by doing lunges for a minute, and then repeating those intervals for 20 minutes or so.

Tabata

Tabata training is a type of HIIT workout that involves 10 seconds of rest in between each 20-second bout of intense exercise, repeated 8 times for at total of 4 minutes.

Jumping Rope

Jumping rope is an easy way to add high-intensity exercise into your day. You can do it at home, work, or when traveling.

Weightlifting

Any type of weightlifting that challenges your body can be considered an anaerobic exercise. Powerlifting is a great example of this. It involves three attempts at the maximum weight you can lift on three lifts — squat, bench press, and deadlift. But your weightlifting workout doesn’t necessarily need to be that intense to classify as anaerobic exercise. The weights you choose should be heavy enough so that by the last repetition, your muscles are ready to stop.

Calisthenics

Very high-intensity bodyweight exercises like box squats, burpees, squat jumps, and plyometrics are examples of anaerobic exercises that you can weave into a regular, steady-state aerobic workout.

Go All Out with Anaerobic Exercises at AFAC Gym

Anaerobic workouts are a challenging and exciting way of exercising — but start slowly if you’re a beginner. If you go too hard, too fast, you could put yourself at risk of injury. Once you work up to incorporating anaerobic exercises into your workouts, make sure to get a full recovery in between them. A day of rest, active recovery, foam roller use, and/or cryotherapy can help aid in recouperation after workouts.

The personal trainers at AFAC gym — the best gym in Thornton, Colorado — can be immensely helpful in showing you how to safely and effectively add anaerobic workouts into your regimen. Plus, our gym has the equipment, classes, and supportive environment you need to achieve the results you’re striving for.

If you’re not a member of AFAC gym but would like more information, please stop by and speak to our team. For more information and assistance, you can also contact our gym owner, Susan, at 720-849-0245 or susan@adventurefitness.club.