Benefits of High Intensity Training

If you casually read about fitness and exercise, you probably have seen the term “high intensity training” commonly used. Let’s first start with a few definitions:

- Frequency: the number of exercise sessions completed during a week, month, or year

- Volume: how many exercises you perform during one session, or over a certain period of time

- Intensity: in cardio, this means how fast you run, walk or move on the elliptical. In weight training this means how heavy you lift, or how difficult it is to perform each rep or set.

When you hear about “high intensity training”, this doesn’t mean you need to overwork yourself and add to your frequency or volume. High intensity training (HIT) simply means to increase the difficulty, or intensity, of each individual workout. HIT means doing a number of short bursts of intense exercise with short breaks in between. Whether you’re looking to run a marathon, or get stronger and gain muscle mass – HIT will help you get there if done properly.

So, now that we’ve covered the basics, what are the benefits of HIT?

Benefits of HIT include:

- Revving up your metabolism so you burn more calories after the workout when you’re at rest.

- Workouts are short, no need to spend hours at the gym. Studies show that 2.5 hours of sprint interval training produced similar biomechanical muscular changes as 10.5 hours of endurance training.

- Burn fat more effectively than longer, less intense workouts.

Try these workouts:

- Cycle as fast as possible for one minute, then rest one minute. Repeat for a total of ten rounds.

- Run 400 meters as fast as possible, then rest for 3 minutes. Repeat for a total of five rounds.

- Circuit training – choose 5 different exercises (pushups, situps, squats, pull-ups, thrusters, burpees, etc.) Complete as many reps as possible in one minute of the first exercise, then immediately move to the next exercise and perform as many reps as possible in one minute. Move through all 5 exercises, then rest for one minute. Repeat for a total of three cycles.

As with all forms of exercise, consult with a doctor if you have any health issues that may interfere. HIT will cause you to sweat more than traditional low intensity workouts, so be sure to drink lots of water and stay hydrated. It is also important to consult with a trainer to ensure proper form and mechanics. The trainers at Cosmic CrossFit in Pearland, TX would love to offer their help.