HIIT training

What is HIIT training?

HIIT is an abbreviation of the English term “High Intensity Interval Training”, i.e. high-intensity interval training, where high and low levels of heart work are used during the same training session. Very intense and easy exercises alternate during one workout.

The biggest advantages of interval training are efficiency, increases maximum oxygen consumption and enhances the so-called. the afterburn effect, i.e. the body continues to burn fat even after the end of the workout.

How often to do such training?

Since HIIT training puts a good load on the whole body and the nervous system, it is recommended to do it 2 times a week. 2 times a week does not mean on two consecutive days, but for example on Tuesdays and Saturdays.

Where to do HIIT training?

HIIT training is a universal method and there are no restrictions on the place. This can be done on a treadmill, bicycle or stepper, while exercising outdoors, or you can put together a circuit training of your favorite exercises instead.

Here are my 5 different favorite ways to challenge your body.

PS: before you start this kind of training, make sure that you are healthy and that the exercise technique is good.

1. Sprints

There are many different ways to perform sprints, such as in the gym on a treadmill, bike, cross trainer, rowing ergometer… or running, cycling, etc. outdoors.

Sprinting can be based on either time intervals or distance intervals. There are several different ways to do time intervals: I would recommend a beginner to do 30 seconds of intense work followed by 90 seconds of calm work. 1 cycle is 2 min, so 5 cycles and 10 minutes of interval training will be done.

More advanced people can do, for example, 20 seconds of intense work, then 40 seconds of light work, and one cycle is completed in 1 minute.

Cycles can be done somewhere between 5-8 pieces, depending on previous training, feeling, health.

If we calculate, we find that the workout itself doesn’t take that long (of course, it can be a little longer than 10 minutes), but the warm-up at the beginning of the workout and the stretching at the end take most of the time. It is important to prepare your body so that you can get the most out of yourself. The training doesn’t have to take a lot of time, but it has to be intense.

To explain the distance interval, I will give an example of a 100m run.

Training begins with a proper warm-up and running exercises. Then run 100m as fast as you can and walk back as slowly as you like. By performing 5-6 runs this way, the interval training is done. Same thing: interval training alone does not take a lot of time, but the whole training from warm-up to stretching can last 30 min.

If you have injuries or are overweight, you can do sprints on a stationary bike. Be sure to add a little resistance to the machine, otherwise you’ll be doing a lot of work by pedaling the feather-light pedals 😉

1. Jumping with a skipping rope

It’s a cheap way to do interval training. Practicing the jumping technique is also a good exercise. You can also perform jumps in series, for example 30 sec jumps + 30 sec rest.

Those who want to test themselves more can do 10 sec double jumps (with one jump the skipping rope makes two circles) and 20 sec singles.

1. walk-jog-run

This is a very good interval training method to do outdoors. The training starts with a light warm-up and a light walk. Then a light jog and finally running. After the run, start jogging and then walk. You can do this movement in the pyramid for as long as you want.

If you don’t want to run, you can alternate between walking and jogging.

1. Tabata

When you only have 4 minutes for a workout, dotabata 4 minutes is enough! What is tabata? Tabatait means – 20 sec exercise + 20 sec rest for 4 min without rest.

Perform exercises for the same muscle groups: for example, 20 sec push-ups + 20 sec rest and so on for 4 min.

However, if you only have 8 minutes, add 4 minutes for lower body exercises. For example, start with push-ups and then do squats, 20 sec work + 20 sec rest.

1. Kettle bell exercises

Kettlebells are excellent training tools for intensive training. With these tools, it is possible to do many different exciting exercises that work on more muscles at the same time.

Google “kettlebell workouts” and create your own routine 😉

These were 5 interval trainings If you didn’t find one you liked among them, next week I will post the next 5, including one of my most favorite ones. Check back in a week to find out my favorite method of incorporating HIIT into your workout routine.

Stay fit!