HIIT me

High intensity interval training or HIIT is a bit of a buzz work right now in the fitness world, as it is claimed that it gets you fit faster and melts fat off your body in a short time. So I decided to look into it.

It really does work. I joined the gym three weeks ago so that I could get access to equipment that meant I could exercise harder without further damaging my back or knees. At that point I could just about manage 40 minutes brisk walking. My first workout on the cross trainer totaled 40 minutes at a low intensity. Three weeks on after incorporating HIIT on the cross trainer I now routinely complete a 90 minute workout four times a week in addition to my walking.

So here is how to do it. Find a cardio exercise you enjoy and get up to speed, you should be working at about  75% of your capacity for about 3 minutes, then for 30-45 seconds, go as far and hard as you can. At the end of the sprint, drop back down to your 75% for a couple of minutes, then repeat the sprint / active rest cycle for about 20 minutes.

Here is a quick bit of advice though, if you are new to fitness, then make sure you wear a heart monitor, learn your maximum heart rate and don't overdo it. This is a stressful way to work out, but you will improve quickly.

It works by creating an oxygen deficit in your muscles during the short bursts of high intensity work, this oxygen is replaced during the active rest periods. It keeps your heart rate up and both these actions require large amounts of energy. If you have reduced your calorific intake, your body has to burn up fat to provide the energy. A second way your body burns even more fat is through an effect called post-exercise oxygen consumption, or to give it it's nickname, Afterburn. This afterburn continues to burn fat for up to 48 hours as your muscles replace the missing oxygen and glycogen energy stores.

For those of you who don't have the time to spend hours in the gym, 20 minutes of HIIT 5 times a week, providing it's combined with healthy eating, is all you need to do. You can really burn through that lard, as you can burn more calories with a 20 minute HIIT workout, than you can by spending an hour on a treadmill. If you combine it with weights / resistance training, you will get even better results.