HIIT Workouts

 Exercise is an essential aspect of keeping your body healthy. But it can be hard, and expensive, to keep going to the gym every week to fit in a workout. This is why most people do not get the right amount of exercise they need. This can be changed by the super effective, time-efficient HIIT workout that will help you lose weight and lead a healthier lifestyle in minutes!

HIIT stands for “High Intensity, Interval Training” and is an interval-based workout that alternates between short, intense periods of exercise and recovery—which could either be rest or low-intensity activities. These workouts usually vary from anywhere to 10 to 30 minutes and aim at getting your heart rate up to 80 percent of its maximum capacity for 1-5 minutes at a time. HIIT has become a sensation over the last decade because it is easy for the everyday person to adopt into their busy lifestyle and has maximal benefits for a minimal amount of time.

 In the short amount of time it requires, this workout burns a great number of calories, increases your metabolic rate to ensure that you burn fat even after you work out, and can help you gain muscle. It was even shown, in studies published by PubMed, that HIIT workouts produce almost twice as many health benefits to moderate-intensity exercise. It can help improve heart health, oxygen consumption, insulin resistance, and lower blood sugar.  So how do you start incorporating HIIT workouts into your daily routine?

The easiest way to adopt this new workout trend into your lifestyle is to sign up for a HIIT class, as this will teach you the basics of a HIIT workout. However, if you don’t have time to go to the gym and take classes, there are simple routines that you can look up online. The great thing about HIIT workouts is that they can be applied to any workout you want to do and can be performed anywhere! There are routines for biking, swimming, running, weights, and much more.

Here are a few beginner HIIT workouts to get you started:

      1. 10-minute workout!

                 5-minute dynamic warmup

                 1 round, 45 seconds of work, 15 seconds of rest.

• Jumping jacks
• Squats
• Push-ups
• Wall sit
•  Tricep dips
• Lunges
• Plank
• Chair step ups
• Crunches
• Mountain climbers

           2. 20-minute workout!

                      5-minute dynamic warmup

                      3 rounds, 45 seconds of work, 15 seconds of rest.

• Push-ups
• Squats
• Butt kicks
• Tricep dips
• Side lunges

                        5-minute dynamic warmup

                        3 rounds, 40 seconds of work, 20 seconds of rest.

• Burpees
• Dumbbell thrusters
• Burpees
• Kettlebell swings
• Burpees
• Kettlebell swings
• Alternating dumbbell forward lunges
• Burpees
• V crunches

Since HIIT is a high impact workout, it can be hard for those with joint or muscle issues to adopt this new trend into their lifestyle. However, there is an alternative to this very popular workout that won’t damage your body! It is called HILIT and stands for “High Intensity, Low Impact Training”.  This workout takes the basic framework and benefits of a HIIT workout but applies it to activities that aren’t hard on the body. A basic HIIT routine can be found below!

                 1. 24-minute workout!

                            8 rounds, 20 seconds of work, 10 seconds of rest.

• March in place with high knees
• Pushups
• Lateral Shuffle
• Triceps dips
• Sumo squat burpee
•  Frog pushups

Let us know how HIIT (or HIIT) has changed your life in the comments below!