High Intensity Interval Training is one of the best ways to lose weight. If you are feeling that you’re working out but not much is changing, then you need to up the intensity to get your heart rate up more. This type of training can be fun, because it can consist of many combinations. It is important to remember that variety is one of the best things to help lose weight and build muscle. You don’t need to do HIIT every day if you do not want to. You can do it two or three times a week, or throw it in randomly to confuse your body. But having it in your training program can be very beneficial for you.
HIIT can help reduce high blood pressure, increase endurance capacity, reduce cancers, reduce weight loss, reduce joint pain, gain muscle and bone strength. When it comes to how long you should be doing the high intensity training, usually all you need is about 30 to 45 minutes. But make sure that if you do it for 30 minutes you are having short rest periods. The rest periods should be about 30 seconds, one minute at most. You can also go back to back with no rest in-between workouts. If you are trying to burn a lot of calories in a short amount of time, this is what will really help.
Another great reason for HIIT is that you can make it into a group exercise. You can have each person start on different exercises and rotate through. This can be great for motivation and learning. You can help each other try new exercises, push each other, be accountable for each other, and more. Check out an example of one HIIT exercise below to go through.
One combination (out of many) that you can do for HIIT is listed below.
- This can be done for 2-3 rounds, or you can keep going through it for 30 minutes. Remember, you can add your own exercises and be creative to make it fun.
- The one below does have some weights included. You can do HIIT just with your body weight too.
Deadlifts – 15 repetitions (Enough weight to be able to do the reps)
Mountain climbers – 30 seconds
Dumbbell squats – 15 reps (dumbbells held at chest)
Pushups – 15 reps (or whatever number you can do if you cannot make it to 15)
Battle Ropes – 20 to 30 seconds
Jump squats – 15 reps
Jumping jacks – 60
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