Hollywood’s new answer to cardio: High Intensity Interval training (HITT)
If you are bored of the stubborn padding on your tummy and the never-ending 30 minute-or-so torture on the treadmill…then you need to read on. Cardio, as you know by now, can be repetitive and uneventful. If your cardio doesn’t turn you on, it won’t make much difference on your physique. Fortunately, there is an answer to cranking up your workout in a shorter period of time! The High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) method is the hottest new thing in Hollywood and it can certainly become your answer to weight loss and athletic performance.
HIIT is an exercise strategy that is intended to improve performance with short training sessions and exercise bouts. It can even burn fat 9 times faster because its performed at such an intense level that your body will spend the rest of the day expending energy to recover from the ass-kicking you gave it. This means that you consume a great deal more oxygen recovering from the exercise than you would from a steady-state workout. This intense workout is meant to be done in a focused 20 minute time period, 2-3 times a week and can work in with your regular program. Basta!
Firstly, I am talking about intense training. The downfall: no TV watching or ipod listening. This is serious business! You will need to push yourself out of your comfort zone. If you are willing to do this, I can guarantee that you will spend less than half the time you usually do on those machines. HIIT training has a number of benefits in addition to the reduction in training time. This type of training is far superior to steady-state exercises when it comes to increasing your VO2 max, which is the maximum amount of oxygen you can uptake during exercise. This means that you’ll be in much better shape when it comes to playing football with the guys.
Secondly, when you perform long-duration, moderate-intensity exercise, you can actually put yourself in a catabolic state in which you will start losing muscle mass. That’s right: Some of that hard-earned muscle will start degrading itself in your quest to get lean.
There is a range of activities that you can do with HIIT. However, you should not do HITT if you have major injuries or a heart disorder. It’s not for the faint of heart!
When choosing an activity try to pick one that safely uses the largest muscle groups in your body. HITT will try and tap the energy sources found inside the muscle. The absolute best for HIIT is sprinting. If however you have injuries or other problems, that prevent you from sprinting, by all means, pick something else you can manage safely. The second best would probably be a stationery bike.
HITT explained:
Start with a 5-minute steady state warm up at a moderate speed. After completing the warm-up, stretch the major muscle groups, to prepare for hardcore training. For the next 10 minutes engage in an interval training consisting of two different bouts. A 90-second moderately hard run and a 30-second full-out sprint. It’s important that the sprint is all out. Give it all you got! Repeat those bouts until you hit the 10-minute mark (you will need a stop watch to make this easier). By the end of the 15 minutes already engaged, you should be completely exhausted. For a cool down, walk it out for another 5 minutes. Do this 2-3 times weekly, and you will see what it does for you. Wonders!
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