<i>&quot;[they] warmed up for two minutes on stationary bicycles, then pedaled as hard as possible for 20 seconds; rode at a very slow pace for two minutes, sprinted all-out again for 20 seconds; recovered with slow riding for another two minutes; pedaled all-out for a final 20 seconds; then cooled down for three minutes.&quot;</i><p>Sounds very similar to the Tabata interval protocol, with the difference being the extended rest period between the &quot;sprint&quot; sections.   I have done a variation of this in my own training in the past. It works really well on an elliptical trainer.   My subjective feeling is that training this way works pretty well for building endurance and burning fat.