ShareThis could be the most powerful cardio tool ever created to strip fat off your entire body…. that no one ever talks about!
Vertical climbing.
You might have seen it at the gym…The Versa Climber machine is that tall piece of equipment lurking in the corner that resembles the Leaning Tower of Pisa.
And it’s unpopular.
Why?
It’s a total body killer!
You’re basically climbing up and down a vertical wall.
Here’s a little back story for you…
The Versa Climber and I had a horrible first date… At my very first personal training job in New York, my hardcore boss was “training” me before I started taking on new clients…
…and he told me to sprint 1000 feet.
If you’ve ever been on this machine, you know that’s no joke!
So I did it.
And let me tell you… after 200 feet I was completely done. My lungs were on fire and my arms were about to fall off.
Quite a memorable experience. I’m pretty sure I was burning calories for 3 years after that!
Wondering how it works…?
You use your arms and legs to climb, which makes your heart rate skyrocket. You can decrease the tension on the machine’s gearing forces to use more upper body… or you can increase the tension to work your legs.
I always felt it more in the quads than my hamstrings, but don’t worry, your arms will still be feeling it. Note: I don’t recommend trying it if you have bad knees or a bad back.
Why is it such a powerful fat loss tool?
A recent study from the Washington State University found that subjects’ maximal heart rates were higher when doing Versa Climber intervals compared to running intervals on the treadmill or rowing machine.
You’re cranking up your calorie burning furnace!
And just the other day I reluctantly went to try a new “Versa Climber” class in West Hollywood. But I didn’t realize it was a whole 30 minutes on the climber.
Ouch.
Here’s the thing…
If I were running this class, I would have set it up differently.
I believe it’s more effective to do short Versa Climber sprints at full speed (like 30 seconds or climb 200 ft) and pepper in an ab workout or bodyweight exercises with the intervals. This gives your body a chance to recover, so you can go all in the next interval.
So while this is a kick ass workout, and I highly recommend Versa Climber sprints…
There’s one slight problem…
It’s very rare to find a good quality Versa Climber in your regular gym.
Why?
They are SUPER expensive.
If you fancy getting one for your home gym, a half decent one will cost you at least $2,000.
YIKES!
But don’t despair… you can get the next best thing right here:
=> Use these bodyweight cardio workouts for rapid fat loss
Have an awesome day!
Kate Vidulich
