HIIT training stands for High-Intensity Interval Training. This form of training consists of a combination of short bursts of a verity of exercises, usually paired to target all areas of the body with limited rest periods. Pushing your body to go harder in a shorter period of time has a multitude of benefits compared to your conventional training session or a steady state workout.
Improve Fitness
HIIT is a form of cardiovascular training and implementing a HIIT workout into your training regime will improve your fitness and stamina levels.
Burn More Fat
The result of training at high intensity in a shorter period of time challenges your body to work harder. Burning fat requires oxygen and the more oxygen you intake, which is increased with a HIIT workout, the more fat your body burns. This form of training also impacts the recovering and repairing of fatigued muscles, resulting in burning more body fat and calories post workout than you would from a steady state workout. Pushing your body’s repair cycle means you will burn fat for 24-48 hours after interval training.
Retain Muscle
Studies have shown that in the 24 hours after a HIIT workout, the body produces more human growth hormone than a steady state workout, encouraging your body to build and reserve muscle mass whilst targeting the removal of fat.
Fit for all
HIIT workouts can be adapted to all kinds of fitness levels. This can be done by reducing the number of exercises within the workout or extending the rest period to allow for optimal performance. HIIT workouts are also extremely versatile compared to your standard training session. You can change and modify these types of workouts to remain motivated as you are ultimately not getting bored of a repetitive routine.
Train at home
You don’t need gym equipment to achieve a successful HIIT workout. Yes, adding in some weighted elements is suited to some individuals, but body weight exercises such as burpees, squats, press-ups and more weight orientated exercises are perfect for HIIT.
Time Efficient
HIIT enables you to achieve a more intense workout in less time than a conventional training session. We suggest HIIT workouts take from 15-30 minutes depending on your fitness level. It’s therefore perfect for those who have a busy working day and can’t allocate a substantial amount of time for a session in the gym, or at home, but want to achieve workout.
Overall Wellbeing
It’s no secret that a successful training session can boost your mood and overall wellbeing. Linked to the time efficiency point above, being able to slip a short HIIT session into your daily routine will improve your mood and mindset. The time it takes to achieve a steady state workout can ultimately put people off achieving their daily/weekly targets and can end up causing a demotivated mindset and hindering their already achieved results and fitness objectives.
Boost your metabolism
Studies have shown that your metabolic rate is increased for hours after your finish HIIT significantly longer than a steady workout. As HIIT aids the retention of muscle cells and burning calories, this has a direct correlation with increasing your metabolism. Increasing your metabolism not only enhances weight loss, it improves the overall health of your body.