High-intensity interval training is a special kind of exercise that may offer health benefits, especially in reducing blood sugar levels and insulin sensitivity in less time as compared to other exercises.
Everyone nowadays knows that exercise is the most important part of the daily routine of any individual, but even then, most of them don’t participate in any kind of exercise or physical activity. In most Western countries, 80% of the population doesn’t engage in any exercise.
The best way to stay active all day long is only possible if you devote yourself to the exercises, even if your job doesn't demand any major body movements the whole day. But even knowing all the benefits of doing workouts, individuals believe they don’t have enough time to do a workout, but they have time just to scroll their phone the whole day. HIIT workouts for fat loss are the one that attracts and motivates most individuals.
High-intensity interval training HIIT includes intensive workouts for a short period with proper rest intervals.
The major HIIT workout benefit is that it can provide maximum health advantages in a minimum amount of time.
What is High-intensity Interval Training?
HIIT training is defined as a workout that is done with full intensity for Short bursts, which include some rest intervals for a short period. HIIT training mostly lasts for 10 to 30 minutes. Most people perform HIIT exercises for weight loss.
Even though HIIT for weight loss is performed for a short duration, it is still beneficial for weight loss and other health advantages, which are almost double as compared to moderate exercise.
The best HIIT workout includes exercises like sprinting, cycling, jumping, or other bodyweight activities. The time you exercise mostly depends upon the activity as well as the intensity by which you are doing your workout.
It doesn’t matter which exercise you are doing or which technique you are using; the only thing which matters in high-intensity interval training is the brief burst of intensity which can increase your heart rate.
In the following paragraph, the various benefits of HIIT are mentioned.
HIIT Workout Benefits
1. HIIT Burns a Large Number of Calories Quickly.
HIIT training is a rapid way to lose fat and burn calories.
A study was done on the exercises which are included in HIIT workouts for weight loss, like cycling, sprinting, jumping and many more, in which it was clear that HIIT for weight loss burns almost 30% more calories as compared to other moderate exercises.
HIIT workouts for weight loss mostly last for less time as compared to moderate exercises. Even then, it is beneficial in burning more calories. It is because HIIT exercises for weight loss enable you to work out for less time while burning roughly the same amount of calories.
2. Improves Metabolic Rate.
It is proven in the studies that even after hours of finishing your High-intensity interval training, your metabolic rates still rise. The same study discovered that in HIIT training, your body uses its fat as fuel instead of carbohydrates.
3. HIIT Can Aid in Fat Loss.
According to a survey, most people in the gym perform HIIT workouts for fat loss.
In a study, it was discovered that HIIT training can decrease some inches from your waist and can lower your body fat. That’s why one of the major benefits of HIIT is that it aids in fat loss, especially in obese and overweight individuals.
4. HIIT May Help You Gain Muscle.
HIIT training is mostly performed in the gym by individuals to increase their muscle mass and reduce body fat. However, even in the best HIIT workouts, the muscles that grow the most muscle mass are the ones in the trunk and legs.
5. HIIT Can Increase Oxygen Intake
The capacity of muscles to utilize the O2 is called O2 consumption. Mostly the exercises are performed to increase the muscle’s oxygen consumption. It includes a steady pace of exercises like cycling and running.
However, with High-intensity interval training HIIT, this target can be achieved in a short period.
6. HIIT Can Control Bp and Heart Rate
HIIT training also provides health benefits, like it decreases the heart rate, especially in obese persons and is also very beneficial in hypertensive patients to decrease their blood pressure. High-intensity interval training is usually more beneficial in controlling heart rate than regular exercises.
7. HIIT Can Lower Blood Sugar Levels.
HIIT workouts are not only beneficial for heart patients but also beneficial in diabetic patients as during highly intense exercise, the sugar directly goes towards the cells for use in the blood, and thus, it reduces the blood sugar levels.
According to the study, during the first few weeks of exercise, high blood sugar can be controlled.
Most high-intensity interval exercises HIIT are performed by an individual who is at risk for type 2 diabetes or patients having insulin resistance.
What Exercises Are HIIT-Compatible?
You generally know HIIT training best as a cardio workout, and whether you're jogging, riding a bike, or using a rowing machine, it does lend itself nicely to cardio-based sprints.
Choose activities that allow you to be explosive, advises Tamir, like push-ups, squats, or kettlebell swings rather than static ones like bench presses or lat pull-downs.
What Errors or Safety Concerns Should Be Avoided?
Speaking of workout selection, one error frequently observed is people trying to push themselves above their comfort zones when performing certain routines.
More bodyweight movements will be the safer ones. The technique is crucial while adding weight. As if you don’t know the correct technique, you can put a lot of pressure on specific muscles and injure them. Therefore, before increasing the intensity of an activity, make sure you can perform it with good form at a slow pace.
Regardless of whether you'll be performing cardio- or strength-based HIIT training, a solid warm-up is as essential. This should consist of slower-tempo repetitions of the exercise you intend to utilize during High-intensity interval training, such as squats, as well as mobility exercises.
The warm-up is more crucial the harder the workout. It resembles preparing your nervous system in certain ways. Injury or decreased performance could result if your body is not prepared for that work.
When discussing actual HIIT, if the time of workout is lengthy, it would be a fault. It is claimed that if you're going all-out, you won't be able to maintain that level of effort for a 45-minute class. An actual HIIT workout would consist of eight full-throttle sprints lasting 20 seconds each, followed by a minute of rest. That indicates that your HIIT routine would last slightly over 10 minutes (warm-up and cool-down excluded).
This brings us to our next error: No rule says you have to perform traditional HIIT to engage in challenging interval training.
Don't undervalue the value of recuperation, whether you're engaging in pure HIIT or modified interval training: According to a recent article in SELF, prioritizing frequent, hard workouts while ignoring rest days might not only result in decreased performance returns with your fitness but also leave you vulnerable to injury, exhaustion, or burnout. You should only perform one or two HIIT workouts per week, and you should balance them out with plenty of easy workouts and at least one straight rest day per week.
