For healthy young women, doing short, super-intense water workouts doesn’t burn more calories after exercise than steady, moderate water workouts — both burn about the same extra amount afterward.

After water workouts—whether intense bursts or steady-paced—the oxygen levels in healthy young women go back to normal within 15 minutes, meaning their bodies recover quickly and don’t burn extra oxygen for long afterward.

For young, healthy women doing water workouts, swimming at a steady, moderately hard pace for 30 minutes burns more total calories than doing short, super-intense bursts with rest in between—even though the bursts burn more per minute.

Doing intense bursts of exercise with rest in between can keep your body burning more calories for up to a whole day after your workout.

For fit guys, a tough but short workout leads to burning more calories after exercise compared to a longer, easier workout—even if both burn the same total calories. That’s because intense workouts keep your metabolism revved up longer.

When young guys with obesity do a tough workout with short bursts of fast running, their bodies burn more extra calories after the workout than if they jog steadily for the same total energy cost.