If you ask any fitness instructor for tips on how to lose weight you will likely find HIIT among the suggestions. But what is high intensity interval training and who should be performing it?
Just like resistance training, there are various ways to perform this style of workout and your overall fitness goal will determine which method is best suited for you. Most people don't learn these different methods and therefore don't see any results. Today we will teach them to you.
While many people are content to jog at a steady pace on a treadmill for hour after hour, there is a large amount of the fitness population who find this approach a little boring. As a result, they tend to put their efforts into resistance training and in many cases they completely neglect cardiovascular exercise.
High intensity interval training provides both groups with a stepping stone between their respective styles, offering the benefits of both methods in one workout.
Who should be exercising this way? Well, to a certain degree absolutely anybody can get results with the many variations of interval training which are out there. It has been proven to burn fat at an increased rate and also to increase lean muscle tissue, so regardless of your overall fitness goal there is undoubtedly a place for this in your workout routine.
One of the biggest plus sides of this training style is a phenomenon called Excess Post-Exercise Oxygen Consumption. You might have heard this called "The Afterburn Effect" by some trainers. When performing a resistance training session your body continues to burn off calories for up to sixteen hours after your session is over, this is also a benefit of interval training.
There are several variations on this style of training, so below we'll explain a few of the most established styles for you and you can apply the one you find fits your goals.
* The 4 minute workout developed in Japan, known as Tabata's.
* Performing intervals specifically to improve your performance in a sporting event.
* Interval training specifically to reduce body fat.
The Tabata method is designed for elite athletes or extremely fit individuals who are looking to increase an already high level of fitness. When you reach a level which is considered elite, you will notice gains are far harder to come by. For instance, think how hard a bodybuilder works to add an extra quarter of an inch to a muscle before a contest.
Originating from Japan, this style of workout has been proven to increase the VO2 Max in a group of highly trained athletes by a whopping 28%.
It consists of performing an interval session which runs a total of just four minutes. Load up on a bike, set the timer for four minutes and spend twenty seconds at maximum intensity followed by ten seconds recovery. Keep repeating this cycle until the timer runs out and that's one session. Naturally, most people are not at a sufficient level of fitness to get the most out of this type of workout.
If your goal is to improve performance for a sport then there is a slight variation on the Tabata method which will work well for you. This involves performing a longer workout, between 20 and 30 minutes in total, which combines a cardiovascular activity as your high intensity work and a resistance exercise as your recovery. One good example of this would be to combine a 400 meter sprint on a rowing machine with 30 seconds of push-ups. That particular session is used by many professional rowing clubs.
If you are looking to use high intensity interval training to improve your general fitness and get the fat loss benefits on offer then you should pay close attention to a recent study performed in Canada. Researchers found that the optimal interval workout for fat loss is a thirty minute session split up into sections of 4 minutes at a moderate intensity and 30 second bursts of maximum effort.
The physical benefits of performing high intensity interval training are clear to see. Thanks to the several variations available you can make the most of this training style whether you are trying to build lean muscle or trying to shed unwanted body fat.
Learning how to lose weight can be a tricky affair, with so much contradicting information in circulation. The three styles of HIIT given in today's post have the most scientific evidence to support their benefits and, depending upon which category you fit into, you will be able to fit one of these into your existing weights routine.
Just like resistance training, there are various ways to perform this style of workout and your overall fitness goal will determine which method is best suited for you. Most people don't learn these different methods and therefore don't see any results. Today we will teach them to you.
See the top 5 types of hiit sessions and what they are designed for.
While many people are content to jog at a steady pace on a treadmill for hour after hour, there is a large amount of the fitness population who find this approach a little boring. As a result, they tend to put their efforts into resistance training and in many cases they completely neglect cardiovascular exercise.
High intensity interval training provides both groups with a stepping stone between their respective styles, offering the benefits of both methods in one workout.
Who should be exercising this way? Well, to a certain degree absolutely anybody can get results with the many variations of interval training which are out there. It has been proven to burn fat at an increased rate and also to increase lean muscle tissue, so regardless of your overall fitness goal there is undoubtedly a place for this in your workout routine.
One of the biggest plus sides of this training style is a phenomenon called Excess Post-Exercise Oxygen Consumption. You might have heard this called "The Afterburn Effect" by some trainers. When performing a resistance training session your body continues to burn off calories for up to sixteen hours after your session is over, this is also a benefit of interval training.
There are several variations on this style of training, so below we'll explain a few of the most established styles for you and you can apply the one you find fits your goals.
* The 4 minute workout developed in Japan, known as Tabata's.
* Performing intervals specifically to improve your performance in a sporting event.
* Interval training specifically to reduce body fat.
The Tabata method is designed for elite athletes or extremely fit individuals who are looking to increase an already high level of fitness. When you reach a level which is considered elite, you will notice gains are far harder to come by. For instance, think how hard a bodybuilder works to add an extra quarter of an inch to a muscle before a contest.
Originating from Japan, this style of workout has been proven to increase the VO2 Max in a group of highly trained athletes by a whopping 28%.
It consists of performing an interval session which runs a total of just four minutes. Load up on a bike, set the timer for four minutes and spend twenty seconds at maximum intensity followed by ten seconds recovery. Keep repeating this cycle until the timer runs out and that's one session. Naturally, most people are not at a sufficient level of fitness to get the most out of this type of workout.
If your goal is to improve performance for a sport then there is a slight variation on the Tabata method which will work well for you. This involves performing a longer workout, between 20 and 30 minutes in total, which combines a cardiovascular activity as your high intensity work and a resistance exercise as your recovery. One good example of this would be to combine a 400 meter sprint on a rowing machine with 30 seconds of push-ups. That particular session is used by many professional rowing clubs.
If you are looking to use high intensity interval training to improve your general fitness and get the fat loss benefits on offer then you should pay close attention to a recent study performed in Canada. Researchers found that the optimal interval workout for fat loss is a thirty minute session split up into sections of 4 minutes at a moderate intensity and 30 second bursts of maximum effort.
The physical benefits of performing high intensity interval training are clear to see. Thanks to the several variations available you can make the most of this training style whether you are trying to build lean muscle or trying to shed unwanted body fat.
Learning how to lose weight can be a tricky affair, with so much contradicting information in circulation. The three styles of HIIT given in today's post have the most scientific evidence to support their benefits and, depending upon which category you fit into, you will be able to fit one of these into your existing weights routine.
About the Author:
About the author: Be sure to get your free report to effective hiit workouts. Russ Howe PTI is Great Britain's most popular personal trainer, teaching countless gym members how to lose weight online each day for free.