HIIT--stands for "Help I'm In Trouble". Just kidding...
Torch fat with HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training). I thought this would be an especially good blog topic for the day after Thanksgiving because performing HIIT within 12-16 hours after a big feast will help reduce the amount of fat stored in your body from that feast.
Before I go into the science speak, I'll cover the main points of what HIIT is and how to perform it. Then if you want to know more, please check out "Part 2" which will be posted in my blog at a later time.
What is HIIT? It is alternating between very intense bouts of exercise and lower intensity exercise. Examples: sprinting 30 seconds alternated with a slow recovery jog or walk of 60-120 seconds. It can be performed on any cardio machine: elliptical, bike, treadmill, or the Marpo Rope Trainer. It could be performed outdoors or on a track. It does not have to be limited to cardio. It can be performed with weights too. For example: alternate 30 sec to 1 minute of Kettlebell swings with 30 sec to 1 minute of recovery. HIIT sessions should total 20-30 minutes with 5-10 cycles of intervals depending on your interval lengths. Always begin HIIT sessions with a 3-5 minute warm up and conclude with a 3-5 minute cool down.
How do you know you are working at a high intensity? If you feel that you could go longer or that it was easy after finishing 20-30 minutes, then you were not doing HIIT. The high intensity intervals should be very intense intervals followed by recovery intervals. You will know if you are "in the zone". HIIT it!