Why You Should Start HIIT Workouts

Since a lot of people in Malaysia are now hitting the gym for their workout, it comes as no surprise that the HIIT workout is now gaining a lot of limelight. The people in Malaysia are now going to the gym on a regular basis in order to maintain their physique. While most people out there realize that physical activity is healthy, it is estimated that about 30% of the people worldwide do not get enough of it. Unless you have a job that is physically demanding, a dedicated fitness routine is most likely your best bet for getting active. Unfortunately, many people tend to feel that they do not have enough time to exercise.

If this maybe sounds like you, maybe it is time for you to try high intensity interval training or more commonly known as HIIT. HIIT is a broad term for the workouts that will involve short periods of intense exercise alternated with recovery periods. Probably the biggest advantage of HIIT is that you will be able to gain maximal health benefits in a minimal amount of time. In this article, we will be covering what HIIT is and why should you start this particular workout, in terms of its benefits.

WHAT IS HIIT?
HIIT will tend to involve short bursts of intense exercises that are alternated with low intensity recovery periods. Interestingly, it is perhaps the most time efficient way to exercise out there. Typically, a HIIT workout will range anywhere from 10 to 30 minutes in its duration. Despite the fact that how short the workout is, it can actually produce health benefits similar to twice as much moderate intensity exercise. The actual activity that is being performed varies but may include sprinting, biking, jump rope or even other body weight exercises. For instance, a HIIT workout which is using a stationary exercise bike could consist of 30 seconds of cycling as fast as you possibly can against high resistance, which is then followed by several minutes of slow, easy cycling with low resistance.

This would then be considered one round or repetition of HIIT, and you would normally complete around 4 to 6 repetitions in one workout. The specific amount of time that you will exercise and recover will vary based on the activity that you have chosen and how intensely you are going to be exercising. Regardless of how it may be implemented, high intensity intervals should consist of short periods of vigorous exercise that will make your heart rate speed up. Not only does HIIT provide the benefits of longer duration exercise in a much shorter amount of time, but it may also provide you with some unique health benefits.

HIIT CAN BURN A LOT OF CALORIES IN A SHORTER PERIOD OF TIME.
You could potentially burn calories quickly when using HIIT. One study has compared the calories that were burned during 30 minutes each of HIIT, weight training, running and even biking. The researchers found out that HIIT burned 25 to 30% more calories in comparison to the other forms of exercise. And in this study, a HIIT repetition consisted of about 20 seconds of maximal effort, which was then followed by 40 seconds of rest. This means that the participants in this study were actually only exercising for a quarter of the time that the running and biking groups were. Although each workout session was at least 30 minutes long in this study, it is normal for the HIIT workouts to be much shorter than the traditional exercise sessions. This is because HIIT will allow you to burn around the same amount of calories, but you will be spending lesser time exercising.

YOUR METABOLIC RATE WILL REMAIN HIGH FOR HOURS AFTER THE EXERCISE.
One of the ways that HIIT will help you in burning calories actually comes after you are done with exercising. Several studies conducted have demonstrated HIIT's impressive ability to be able to increase your metabolic rate for hours after you are done with your exercise. Some researchers have even found that HIIT will increase your metabolism after your exercise even more so than jogging and also weight training. In the same exact study, HIIT was also found to be able to shift the body's metabolism towards using fat for energy rather than carbs. Another study also showed that just two minutes of HIIT in the form of sprints will increase your metabolism for over 24 hours as much as 30 minutes of running.

HIIT CAN HELP YOU LOSE FAT.
Studies have actually shown that HIIT can help you in losing fat. One review looked at about 13 experiments and 424 overweight and also obese adults. Interestingly, it found that both HIIT and traditional moderate intensity exercises can help in reducing body fat and your waist circumference. Additionally, one study also found out that the people performing HIIT three times per week for at least 20 minutes per session lost about 4.4 pounds, or 2 kilograms, of body fat in 12 weeks, and this is without any dietary changes. Perhaps more important was the 17% reduction in visceral fat, or the disease promoting fat which surrounds your internal organs. Several other studies out there have also indicated that body fat can be reduced with HIIT, in spite of the relatively low time commitment. However, just like other forms of exercise, HIIT may be most effective for fat loss in the people who are either overweight or obese.

YOU MAY GAIN MUSCLE USING HIIT.
In addition to helping you with fat loss, HIIT could also help in increasing the muscle mass in certain individuals. However, the gain achieved in muscle mass is primarily in the muscles that are being used the most, which are often the trunk and legs. Additionally, it is important to note that the increase in muscle mass is more likely to occur in individuals who were not very active to begin with. Some research in active individuals has actually failed to show any higher muscle mass after HIIT programs. Weight training does continue to be the gold standard form of exercise in order to increase muscle mass, but high intensity intervals could actually support a small amount of muscle growth.

HIIT MAY IMPROVE YOUR OXYGEN CONSUMPTION.
Oxygen consumption refers to your muscles' ability to be able to use oxygen, and endurance training is normally used in order to improve your oxygen consumption. Traditionally, this will consist of long sessions of continuous running or even cycling at a steady rate. However, it appears that HIIT can actually produce the same benefits in a much shorter amount of time. One study found out that five weeks of HIIT workouts performed four days per week for at least 20 minutes each session helped in improving their oxygen consumption by 9%.

This was nearly identical to the improvement in the oxygen consumption in the other group in the study, the ones who cycled continuously for around 40 minutes per day, and four days per week. Another study also found out that eight weeks of exercising on the stationary bike using the traditional exercise or HIIT increased the oxygen consumption by around 25%. Once again, the total time exercising was very much different between the groups. 120 minutes per week was for the traditional exercise versus only 60 minutes per week of HIIT workouts. Additional studies have also demonstrated that HIIT may improve your oxygen consumption.

HIIT CAN REDUCE BLOOD SUGAR.
Blood sugar can be reduced by HIIT programs which last less than 12 weeks. A summary of about 50 different studies has found out that not only does HIIT help in reducing blood sugar, but it can also improve their insulin resistance more than the traditional continuous exercise. Based on this information, it is possible to say that high intensity exercise is particularly beneficial for those at risk for type 2 diabetes. As a matter of fact, some experiments specifically in individuals who have type 2 diabetes have demonstrated the effectiveness of HIIT for improving their blood sugar. However, research in healthy individuals have indicated that HIIT may be able to improve insulin resistance even more than the traditional continuous exercise.

HIIT MAY REDUCE BLOOD PRESSURE.
A large amount of research indicates that it may reduce heart rate and even blood pressure in both overweight and obese individuals, who often tend to have high blood pressure. One study conducted has found out that about eight weeks of HIIT on a stationary bike helps lower blood pressure as much as the traditional continuous endurance training in adults with higher blood pressure. In this study, the endurance training group exercised four days per week for at least 30 minutes per day, but the HIIT group only exercised three times per week for around 20 minutes per day. Some researchers have found out that HIIT may even lower blood pressure more than the frequently recommended moderate intensity exercise.

Thank you.