Cameron Diaz swears her 5-minute cardio workout is better than a long run

THE Hollywood star swears her five-minute cardio workout burns more fat than running for an hour.

CAMERON Diaz radiates good health. At 43-years-old she is giving women half her age a run for their money in the good-skin/great-body stakes.

So it’s little wonder people are keen to hear what she has to say about living a healthy lifestyle. Hence the interest in her new offering, The Longevity Book, which she is currently spruiking on the media circuit.

While filming a piece at the Oprah Winfrey Network offices in LA, she took the opportunity to sing the praises of her five-minute workout, that she swears is better than an hour-long run.

“It’s the best thing you can do,” she says in the clip.

According to Diaz, the one way to measure the effectiveness of your cardio workout is through one key indicator: Sweat.

“Some people can get on the cardio machine and go for two hours at the same pace — it’s the same sweat, just a nice little glisten,” she says.

“You want to be a fire hydrant in New York City that just got busted open, and you’re pouring out after and everybody gets wet! That’s the kind of cardio you want to do.”

According to the actor, the key is quick short bursts of cardio.

“I just get on my elliptical and I do intervals,” she explains. “You sprint ... for a minute. A whole minute. Then, you stop for a minute; you just kind of [jog to] bring your heart rate down. Let it come down, then a minute later ... [sprint] for another minute.”

Diaz continues, “Do that five times and you are bursting with sweat ... That cardio only takes five-minutes”.

So that’s good news! No one needs to be killing themselves on an hour-long run. Thank you Cameron Diaz!

She goes on to point out that it’s not just good for your heart, there are a variety of physical benefits.

“You’re burning more fat than if you stayed on it for an hour, because what you’re doing is you’re making your body use this energy super-quickly,” she says. “It’s a jet engine [compared to] a car. It’s just firing up everything — and you’re using all your muscles.”