Hitch Fit Living Magazine Volume 2 - September/October 2015 | Page 34

High Intensity Interval Training – also known as HIIT has been around for at last a century, but
research studies provided a major boost in popularity over the last decade as they demonstrated
the effectiveness and efficiency of this training style. HIIT involves doing higher intensity rounds
of exercise, that are anywhere from 5 seconds to 8 minutes in duration at 80 – 95% of maximum
heart rate, followed by a lower intensity recovered period, which can also vary in length. Let’s go
over a few of the benefits of HIIT training, and reasons why you should be incorporating this
effective training style into your regiment.
It improves both aerobic and anaerobic fitness levels and is beneficial for cardiovascular
1.
health.
2.
Great for people who are busy or who get bored with cardio since you will burn more
calories in a shorter time period.
3.
Studies show that HIIT training improves insulin resistance.
4.
Can do intervals with any exercise mode, traditional cardio machines, plyometric
movements and even strength training can all be performed HIIT style (Tabata training is an
example of high intensity interval strength training – 8 sets of 10 seconds of work followed by 20
seconds of rest).
5.
Intensity and duration of intervals is easily modified so it can be adapted for a beginner to
an advanced level exerciser. Extreme beginners who are starting from a sedentary lifestyle would
be better off building themselves up to doing 30 minutes of continuous, steady state cardio
activity prior to performing intervals.
6.
EPOC is higher with HIIT than with traditional steady state cardio. EPOC stands for the
Excess Post Exercise Consumption, so basically that means you burn MORE calories in the
period of time after a high intensity workout, than with steady state. That higher calorie burn
can last for up to two hours post workout.
7.
If you perform true high intensity intervals, then you do need a longer recovery period of
time. So at that level it doesn’t need to be performed daily. 3 days a week is a good guideline for
those who are able to do true high level intensity training.
8.
Excellent method of cardio for fat loss, and for preserving lean muscle tissue.
9.
You don’t need cardio equipment to do interval training.
10.
You don’t need a lot of space to do interval training and it can be done indoors or
outdoors.