What is the best method to burn fat and calories: a high-intensity workout or a lower-intensity workout that lasts longer?

Proportionately, you'll burn more fat by exercising at a slower pace fora  longer time.  However,  the total amount of fat and calories you burn will be lower in a lesss intense workout.  To effectively burn fat and calories, you need to combine time and intensity to your workout routine.  Remember, it takes a deficit of 3,500 calories to burn one pound of fat!  Here are a few tips to incorporate greater intensity to your workouts:

• Use interval training.  Run hard for 1 minute and easily for 2.
• Use hills and steps.  Push your intensity up the hill annd recover on the return trip down.
• Use your local track.  Sprint the straighaways and jog or walk the turns. 

This doesn't mean you should forsake low-intensity workouts.  Far from it.  Mix up your workouts throughout the week: One day is a slow-jog session, and another day is a stair-training workout.

September 12 (Day 135)

I went to bed extremely early last night, because I was bored and because it got dark very early because of the rain. I was probably in bed by 6:30. It rained all night long as far as I could tell.

Because I went to bed so early, I was also up very early, but sat around until it was light enough to see. I got going on the trail and had some miles to make up because I had stopped walking early yesterday.

First, I went up and over Nesuntabunt Mountain, probably the last climb of any significance before Katahdin. After that, the trail winds around a few lakes.

September 9 (Day 132)

Somehow I have managed to stay in this bubble between the large groups of people ahead of me and those behind me. I had the shelter to myself again last night.

With not much else to do last night, I went to bed very early and so was up early this morning also.

Back on the trail, it continued very much as it had yesterday at the end. The path looks as though it must have been some old forest road at some point, though it certainly hasn't had any vehicles on it in decades at least. Some portions are well cleared, and some sections are still quite rocky and swampy.

September 7 (Day 130)

It was a pretty full house at the shelter last night. Lots of people showed up. There were five of us in the shelter, which was a little tight, but not terrible, and there were four others tenting.

I would have slept in a bit, but everyone in the shelter started moving around early, so I got up too. I took my time getting ready, but I was still the first one to leave camp.

Barren Mountain was just ahead of us, and it was steep climbing in places as usual. It was extremely humid and hazy today. I sweated like I did in New York, and the views were not very great from the top because of the haze.

September 4 (Day 127)

Last evening I walked up the road another mile from the hostel to a lodge, which had a restaurant. The food was definitely worth the walk, but I think I ate too much. I had already eaten quite a bit at the hostel, and then I had a bacon and Swiss cheeseburger with fries, a couple beers, and some sort of chocolate chip pie for dessert. I felt completely stuffed, and that feeling stayed with me through most of this morning. I need to get used to eating in moderation again.

I was the only one to stay at the hostel, so I had the bunkroom to myself. But, I know there were a few hikers staying up at the lodge.

September 2 (Day 125)

I slept very comfortably in my tent last night, and there was no one else who chose to stay at the same campsite.

It was chilly this morning, so I got moving quickly to warm up. There was a shelter just over 3 miles ahead and uphill. The climb was easier than I expected to the shelter, but after that, the climbing was harder than I expected.

The first peak was the South Horn, from which I could see my real destinations of Bigelow Mountain and Avery Peak. After walking down and back up, I got onto Bigelow, and the weather this morning was perfect. I could see forever in every direction. I knew that one of the mountains that I was looking at to the northeast was Katahdin, but I couldn't be sure which peak it was. Either way, it was my first glimpse of the finish line. I took a few pictures and then took a few more when I got over to Avery Peak.

August 31 (Day 123)

It was a comfortable evening, and I was glad not to spend it in the rain. The hostel was pretty crowded, but I still slept well. Breakfast was complimentary, and I had a lot of cereal and orange juice.

The morning was very leisurely. Everyone got up late and sat around watching TV until 11 a.m. Then people started moving, and four of us got ready to go out to the trail and the rest decided to stay at the hostel for the day.

We got started on the trail about noon, so it was going to be a short day. It was rainy this morning, and this weather was supposed to last all day.

August 29 (Day 121)

I knew it was going to be a pretty warm day when I got up at 5 a.m. and it was already hotter than I expected.

I wanted to do a little over 20 miles today, and the hardest parts were right at the beginning. From the shelter I climbed straight down to a stream, then straight up Moody Mountain, then straight down to another stream, and then straight up to a ridgeline. During this second climb I passed four northbound hikers. All of them were slackpacking north to Route 17, where they would pick up their packs and then continue on to this shelter where I've stopped.