This week I want to talk about another form of interval training called High Intensity Interval Training, HIIT for short.
What sets HIIT training apart from other forms of interval training is shorter recovery time between intervals. Last week I talked about Peak 8 which is intense exercise for 30 seconds and then recovery for 90 seconds. HIIT allows you to burn more calories and get an even better work out because you prevent the body from recovering completely like you do in general interval training by keeping the heart rate high for the duration of the workout. In HIIT you move at a moderate pace during the recovery or active rest period, continuing the movement from the high intensity interval but at a little slower of a pace or doing something like a light jog or jump rope. You can work into this type of exercising by shortening the high intensity and lengthening active rest period until you get to the recommended time below. Some examples of exercises to include in your routine: burpees, tricep dips, jumping jacks, push-ups, jump squats, sprinting and jumping lunges. You can also search HIIT online to get some more ideas.
I love using the app Seconds to create a HIIT timer. It lets you put in warm-up, cool down and the amount of time for your intervals.
I do not recommend doing this every day, you need at least 1 rest day in between.
Example HIIT Routine:
Warm-Up (at least 3 minutes)
20 seconds of high intensity exercise (ex: jumping jacks)
10 seconds active rest (ex: boxer shuffle, jog in place)
Repeat exercise and active rest 3 more times for a total of 4, this will equal 1 round
Now Repeat with 7 different high intensity exercises
Cool down and stretch (at least 5 minutes)
TOTAL TIME: 24 minute
Katelyn’s HIIT Routine:
I hope you like this great version of interval training, I know I do. This specific type of training goes by so fast for me because you are never doing the same thing for longer than 20 seconds.