Losing Steam? Rev Up Your Workout with HIIT Training
Proper nutrition is a great start to boosting your energy pre-workout, but there are also tricks you can use during your workout that can help you maximize your efforts. Practicing high intensity interval training, or HIIT is an efficient use of your body. It cycles through longer stages of low-intensity activity (like jogging) and shorter bursts of high-energy activity (for example, sprinting as fast as you can). The low-intensity activity provides active recovery for the higher-intensity aspects of the workout. One cycle might look like this: Warmup: 5 minutes HIIT: 30 seconds to 1 minute LIT (recovery): 1 to 1.5 minutes Repeat (alternating HI and LI): 2 to 5 times Cool-down: 5 minutes Total time: 20 to 40 minutes HIIT helps to get both your aerobic and anaerobic energy systems moving. As you alternate between intensity levels, you’ll push your body past the higher end of your aerobic exercise zone. This stimulates and slows your heart, the opposite of traditional steady-state exercise, in which the heart rate remains steady. Keep these easy, quick tips in mind during your workouts: Less is more. Schedule a HIIT training session 3 days a week —consistency is crucial to transformation. HIIT sessions 3 times a week can be an efficient strategy to gradually improve your physical fitness. Try this sample schedule: Monday, 30 seconds HII, 1 minute LII; Wednesday, 45 seconds HII, 75 sec. LII; Friday, 1 minute HII, 90 seconds LII. Build up to your training program over time so you don’t overwork your body . Starting out too strong can do more harm than good. Each person’s body is built to handle different physical demands. Begin with shorter intervals of high activity (i.e. 30 seconds to 1 minute) and gradually lengthen your intervals (1 to 1.5 minutes); you can also try and add in more repetitions. Always check with your doctor to make sure you’re working out at a pace and schedule that’s safe and effective for you. Keep a watch pedometer on hand throughout the week to monitor activity levels. Keep the pedometer going (without resetting) to gauge the total amount of steps you’ve walked. (2,000 steps equals one mile.) References & Resources Fitbit Tracking Keeping Exercise Fun Playground Workout Routine Short Bouts of High Intensity Workouts are Effective for Inactive Men Minutes of Hard Exercise Can Lead to All-Day Calorie Burn Optimal Workout Partner Encourages Less to Motivate More 10,000 Steps Per Day & Diabetes Prevention About the Author // <![CDATA[ var url = ‘/get_cme_cached/www.demandstudios.com/contributor/5034c2bf-f9eb-4388-83dc-ef05729de2b1’; $.ajax({ url: url, success: function(data, textStatus, jqXHR) { var writer = $.parseJSON(data); $(‘#byline’).text(‘by ‘ + writer.display_name + ‘, Demand Media’); $(‘#author’).text(writer.display_name); if (writer.about){ $(‘#authorAbout p’).text(writer.about); $(‘#authorAbout’).show(); } }}); // ]]>
Source: Complete Nutrition
