It’s time to face reality, and acknowledge that aerobic exercises such as long distance running, cycling, and swimming are simply not effective ways to build lean muscle. Yes, these exercises may decrease fat levels, but are unlikely to give you any lasting long-term results.

This why you must focus on anaerobic exercises if you’re serious about not only losing weight, but building lean muscle at the same time.

So what workouts should you utilize? It’s time to find out.

Sprints

All you need to do is take a look at professional sprinter, and you will be able to understand why sprints are incredible. Sprints are one of the best cardio techniques for rapidly reducing body fat, and building lean muscle in the legs and core.

A complete sprinting routine can be finished in about 15-20 minutes, and will twice as many calories as 60-minute low intensity regime.

Yes, I will be the first to admit, sprints are very challenging. But don’t be afraid of the challenge! Once you transition into using this exercise on a routinely basis, it will very difficult for you to go back to your old-fashioned techniques.

Interval Training

To challenge yourself even further, you can try to use an interval training circuit. Interval training will train both the anaerobic and aerobic energy systems in combination.

An example interval training routine would be track intervals. Go to your local track, and you will jog or walk the straight side of the track, and sprint the curved portion or vice versa. Try to complete 4-6 laps if you’re just starting out. This simple exercise is very challenging, so don’t underestimate it.

Once you feel like your cardio has advanced even further, you can increase the difficulty by increasing the pace of your jog and by adding additional laps. Interval training is a great method for permanent fat loss, and a desired technique among athletes involved in stop-and-go based sports such as baseball or football.

Plyometrics

If you didn’t know, plyometrics are an incredibly effective cardio exercise. Plyometrics utilize various explosive movements that are designed to increase overall explosiveness and athleticism. Due to the high-intensity of these exercises, plyos are also a great option for burning fat and building lean muscle.

Some of the most effective exercises include side-to-side box jumps, platform jumps, depth jumps, and weighted explosions, but there are many to choose from.

These are only a few of the many cardio exercises you can use to achieve your weight loss or muscle building goals. Stay away from boring aerobic training, and transition over to high-intensity cardio exercises that will give you long-term results.