Why Isolations Burn Incredible Calories

You’re in the middle of class, sprinting down a mountain, then the Instructor calls for a round of isolations. You look around as the entire class freezes instantly. Even though your legs couldn’t move any slower, you find yourself sweating harder than ever. But why is that?

It may seem counter-intuitive that the less we move, the harder we sweat. In this case, it’s a combination of elements that spike our heart rate and keep that calorie burn strong.

By mixing different spin patterns (climbing one minute, sprinting the other, then frozen in isolation) our body burns more calories struggling to catch up. Though, there’s something specific about isolations that keep our calorie burn strong.

For us, it’s all about proper form. Consider isolations to be similar to kind of squat where most of the work is coming from your glute, core, and leg muscles keeping your pedal-stroke smooth as you keep your upper-body frozen.

When you isolate, you contract these muscles more than when you’re just pedaling. This provides a kind of “power boost” to your calorie burn, spiking your heart rate higher and burning more calories.

Make the most of your isolations, by keeping your body posture hovering over the back of the saddle with your arms outstretched with a slight bend. Make sure you don’t let your knees come over your handlebars and don’t forget about tightening that core!

See You on the Bike!

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