HIIT Training = High Intensity Interval Training. Also can be called Serge training or Tobata Style workouts. These types of workouts are fantastic for losing weight, burning fat, or improving your metabolism while still building muscle. They’re also perfect for those who don’t have time to run to the gym everyday, because you don’t need much equipment or time. This workout is based on the principle of very high intensity intervals of work, followed by very low intensity intervals of work. That heart rate variability is responsible for the spiking and improving of your metabolism, and burning calories long after the workout is done. This is called EPOC, otherwise known as ‘Excess Post Oxygen Consumption’. This ‘after-burn’ effect is when you really see your improvements, again, because of getting your heart rate up in a very short amount of time followed by bringing it right back down.
What I typically recommend for people who are starting out, is that you start with 20- second intervals. As you do it more often and get in better shape, you can start to increase the duration of your intervals from 30, 40, 50, building up to a full minute of sustained, hard work. Consist of a dynamic warmup, where you’re stretching and holding those stretches for 2-3 seconds at the most. We usually recommend starting with some type of upper body exercise such as push-ups, followed by lower body exercises such as squats, sit-ups, or lunges. From here, move to total-body exercises such as burpees, mountain climbers, or simply even running in place. Then, follow it up with some type of core exercise; such as planks, crunches, etc. Do this in 20 seconds of work, followed by 20 seconds of rest with a 1-minute break in between with a total of 2-3 sets. In total, you’re looking at a workout of about 14-18 minutes long! Once again, this is perfect for raising your metabolism, burning fat as fuel, and helping prevent chronic illnesses through weight control and only 15 minutes of your daily routine. If you want to learn more on how to do this, we do complimentary HIIT workouts in our office to show you how to accomplish this safely at home, and send you with online resources to help get you started. Give us a call!