Tuesday 22 October 2013

High Intensity Interval Trainings (HIIT) or Why you should quit long-lasting gym workouts?

A few years ago I used to spend around an hour and a half in the gym working out. That was sometimes without the time for going there and coming back. Now my workouts rarely take more than 30 minutes of my time. I do them at home or in the nearby park (so I save money) and I am loving the results. Read more about High Intensity Interval Training and its benefits...

What is HIIT?

High Intensity Interval Trainings are short workouts, that might last from 4 to 30 minutes. It is a form of
workout that alternates high intensity anaerobic exercises with lower intensity (or recovery) periods. A warm up is required before the workout and is recommended to be followed up by some stretching to cool down. 





The Tabata method

Probably the most famous kind of HIIT is the Tabata method. After a study, Izumi Tabata found, according to him, the most effective regime of training. The Tabata method alternates 20 seconds of a maximum- intensity exercise with 10 seconds of rest for 4 minutes, or 8 cycles in total. According to the study, this method performed 4 times a week produces the same results as a steady state training performed 5 days a week.











Benefits from HIIT

1. Fat burner cardio effect

Actually HIIT trainings burn more calories than regular cardio exercises such as jogging ! Apart from being a great fat burner during the workout, this regimen kicks off your metabolism so good that you burn more calories also in the 24 hours after the workout!

2. Metabolic kick

The fact that you keep on burning calories up to 24 hours after the workouts, means your metabolism is constantly working like a Swiss watch. It keeps on burning calories from fat and you do not lose any muscle unlike regular cardio activities! Moreover, it stimulates your body to produce more of the human growth hormone, which is an awesome anti-ageing effect.

3. Aerobic / Anaerobic benefits

Most of the people find it hard to keep up when they are in the anaerobic zone. This is the moment when you feel like your heart is going to jump out any moment and you are gasping for breath. With a few weeks of an intensive interval training, you can improve your anaerobic abilities and your sport performance in general raises to higher levels - also when it comes to aerobic exercises. 

4. Efficient

Apart from being very effective, HIIT workouts are the best regimen for a busy schedule that most of us have. The workouts are short - they take between 4 - 30 minutes -  and you can perform them anywhere you want - in the gym, in the park, at home. This means you can do it Anytime and Anywhere! 

4. Cheap - No gym equipment needed

To do HIIT you do not really need any equipment. Many variations of HIIT use only the weight of the body. So, you basically need to get some comfortable shoes and sweaty pants and you are ready for an awesome workout. If you do want to add some weight, you can equip yourself with a set of dumbbells or a bar at home, which is still quite cheaper than a regular visitation at the gym. 

Example of a HIIT workout


An example of an awesome HIIT workout that uses the Tabata regimen will show you the super cardio effect of interval trainings. 


Now enjoy sweating and getting lean! 

 Sweat is fat crying :)


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