By Garrett Dunagan

Not everyone likes to spend an hour or more each day working out; running, jogging, swimming, lifting, etc. What if I told you there was another way? There has been a recent surge in popularity in a type of exercise called high-intensity interval training (HIIT), but why has it become so popular in the past few years? In the past weight loss and improving one’s health has been associated with aerobic training which usually requires you to exercise at low to moderate intensity an hour or more 3-5 days a week. Through HIIT routines you can achieve an equal amount of cardiorespiratory and weight loss improvements, but over a shorter period of time.

So how can three minutes of exercise a week be beneficial? A group of European researchers discovered that completing a short-term interval training (SIT) session on a stationary bike just once a day three times a week can have phenomenal physiological benefits. These benefits included improvements in cardiorespiratory health, cardio-metabolic health, and insulin activity all which benefit everyday living. While this exercise routine has proven benefits for those wanting to improve their physiological health, I would not recommend it to those who are new to exercise, solely using this routine to gain large improvements in body composition, or individuals that have any cardiovascular diseases, due to the high intensity intervals.

Stationary Bike SIT Routine (3 times a week):
(Warm-up)
Adjust the seat of the bike to where it is most comfortable.
Start with performing a 2 minute warm up; peddling at moderate-intensity (50km).
(Intervals)
At the end two minutes began peddling at max intensity for 20 seconds.
Between each 20 second interval you will bring your pace back down to moderate or low-intensity and pedal for 25-30 seconds (this will keep your heart rate from dropping, and allow you to slightly recover).
You will repeat this until you’ve completed one full minute of max-intensity intervals.
(Cool down)
2-3 minutes of low-intensity pedaling combined with lower body static stretches of your choice.

Buddy Broncho

Buddy Broncho made his first appearance in UCO's own newspaper The Vista. It was the October 3, 1932, issue where a Broncho appears wearing a UCO football uniform. He has appeared numerous times throughout the years from local Edmond papers in the 60's to state-wide papers in the 80's. The commissioning of the first ever live mascot appears in UCO's 1979 Bronze Book where Buddy Broncho made his first public appearance at Homecoming. Since that time, Buddy has been a fixture at UCO events and in the hearts of UCO students.