by Bob Choat
Back when I was in high school, part of my training involved
sprinting the straightaways of the track and walking/jogging the
curves. I would go around the track for a total of four times which
equaled 8 sprints and 8 walks. I did not know this at the time, but it
was a form of high intensity interval training (HIIT). I can tell you
that it was one of the best trainings I had and helped with the other
areas of training I engaged in for the various sports I played.
Today, we have a large body of research that shows the power of
HIIT. Laursen and Jenkins (2002) discovered that “submaximal endurance
training” (aerobic) in recreational athletes helped them, it didn’t do
the same with those that are more elite. It seems that the harder you
train in long aerobic exercise, the less the return you get. The study
went further and stated that HIIT increased endurance performance in
elite athletes.
Fat Burning in Women
Talanian, et. al (2006) showed that HIIT helped increase fat
oxidation in women. In fit, recreational athletic women, their fat
burning went into overdrive as did their aerobic capacity versus
traditional aerobic training. And this was only after 7 sessions over 2
weeks. As with male athletes, women showed an increase in endurance as
well.
While the study focused on fit women, even those that are not so fit
will gain benefits. I would suggest working your way up to HIIT in
ensuring that you learn about proper form. This is important with any
exercise and especially true with HIIT.
Have you ever watched Olympic Sprinters? Look at their bodies and
compare them to marathon runners. Sprinters are more muscular and
fitter. Marathon runners are thinner and suffer from metaflammation
when they engage in numerous long distance runs. Doing sprint interval
training will help preserve muscles and even build them in the
thighs/glutes versus long distance training. Sprint intervals also
helps with endurance as well.
Many people believe that one should go for the longer aerobic running
versus high intensity if you start out sedentary. A study by Cocks, et
al. (2012) out of the Liverpool John Moores University in the UK took
16 young sedentary males and split them into two groups. One group did
standard endurance training over 6 weeks (5 times per week) via
cycling. The other group did sprint interval training (SIT) over the
same period of time (3 times per week). Both groups increased their
endurance at nearly the same capacity with the SIT group doing slightly
better.
Want it Fun?
Bartlett, et al. (2011) showed that those that engaged in HIIT were
more likely to stick with it due to the “fun factor” in the short
bursts. As someone that regularly does HIIT, I can attest that my
mindset is more in the present with short, high intense workouts.
Though, I do them in addition to doing more of the natural
movement/Parkour stuff as well.
The Afterburn Effect or EPOC
Here’s where a lot of confusion lies in HIIT for the “Afterburn
Effect” also known as “excess post-exercise oxygen consumption” (EPOC)
in that the higher the intensity, the more calories burned afterwards.
While this is true according to Vella and Kravitz (n.d.), it is not as
high as was reported by Bill Philips in his book, “Body For Life.”
Here’s my take on exercise intensity, EPOC and everything else: The
higher the intensity, the more calories you’re going to burn. When you
stand, you’ll burn more than sitting. If you walk, you’ll burn more
than standing. And every increase of intensity simply take
calorie-burning even higher.
HIIT is great for the mindset, fat burning, cardiovascular and
muscular endurance training. You’ll get a whole of host of health
benefits as well. When you go too long (over 45 minutes) of physical
training, metaflammation comes into play and it hurts health. By
breaking up your day with HIIT and other types of exercise, you’ll do
your body and brain good. I would suggest working your way up to high
intensity training. And do it only about 3 days per week. The other
days, engage in other activities. Again, I do muscle building
exercises, natural movement and hiking/walking in addition to HIIT. It
all counts towards overall fitness. Have fun in all forms of exercise.
JUST DO IT REGULARLY!
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