Not everyone's a fan of HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training). Some have never tried it, some may be scared of it, and some simply have other preferences for cardio. And that's okay.
Myself? It's totally changed my game as a runner and as an athlete.
As the name implies, there's some intensity involved. But, there's also some intervals (for recovery). The good news is, due to the intensity, most workouts are less than 30 minutes (typically, one's form suffers the longer they're at it). The bad news is that you will work hard during those 30 (or less) minutes. If you're big on energy, and short on time, a HIIT workout is a great fitness option.
Here's the latest, a Little Bit of Everything HIIT Workout:
*5 stair flights (double-stepped)
*10 burpees
*10 push-ups
*20 sets of mountain-climbers
*20 plank jacks
*10 jump squats
*50 rope jumps
*1-minute wall sit
***Complete four sets (with 20-30 second recovery between each circuit)***
When I write up a HIIT workout, I have a few favorite go-to's that I usually feature. These include stair climbs, burpees, jump squats, and (my newest obsession) jump-roping. Other favorites are mountain climbers, plank jacks, jumping jacks and split-jumps. I also include a couple of low-impact exercises, to act as recovery intervals. These are usually push-ups (done on a slight incline, to make them less intense), triceps dips, or wall sits. I usually take a 20-30 second break in between circuits as well. The recovery intervals (and breaks) are necessary since the other moves are done with max effort.
As mentioned, I have a few favorite exercises that I tend to use repeatedly. I try to mix up the sequence of moves, and number of reps, to keep the workouts fresh. Often times, I sneak in a few strength moves (usually upper-body, since the bulk of my usual HIIT moves are more lower-body focused) to vary the muscle groups.
Want a few more ideas on HIIT workouts? Checkout these posts:
What do you think? Have you done HIIT before? Care to give the Little Bit of Everything HIIT Workout a try?
I've always been a big fan of your HIIT workouts. I do all these moves but I tend to bunch them together instead of combining them to circuits. I think I should start doing that - it's more fun and you can get more repeats done!
ReplyDeleteThe more I learn about HIIT, I'm realizing there are so many variations of it. Myself, I like doing them in circuits...for me, it breaks up the monotony and makes them seem "shorter" (#mindgames LOL)
DeleteI have done HIIT, but I've found, and there is research to back it up, that it's not really all that great as we get older. Obviously everyone is different. As long as we're moving, it's all good!
ReplyDeleteYes, we all need to keep moving! The important thing is to find what works for us individually...and to keep doing it!
DeleteYou do love your stair climbs! I am glad to see that you are also digging the jump roping. That's on my agenda for today as well. I have done some more Hiit workouts the last few months and I really find them challenging always good to mix it up
ReplyDeleteOf course I love my stair climbs ;-) They combine cardio, strength and running...what's not to love ;-)
DeleteI love these HIIT workouts you post. I'm going to try this one and let you know how it goes. I will probably substitute something else for the stair climb, though. I'm afraid of falling.
ReplyDeleteI'd LOVE to hear what you think! You could easily substitute step-ups for the stairs, for a similar move, but any move that gets the heart pumping is great ;-)
DeleteNot a fan of any exercise. But I do walk a lot and run. At least I am active.
ReplyDeleteYes, you are very active! You've been waling a ton ;-)
DeleteI should really incorporate this into my life, haha. I hate cardio, but maybe if it's over quickly, I'll actually get it done? :D...
ReplyDeleteYes, the HIIT workouts are meant to be intense, but short ;-)
DeleteI just started to do something similar. I only do it for a few minutes an night but at least it's a start! Thanks for linking up with us. We appreciate it.
ReplyDeleteIt took me awhile to get into a routine of doing these workouts consistently. I just kind of did them on a whim from time-to-time. Now, I reserve Thursdays (most weeks, unless my Wednesday #5at5 gets moved due to weather, etc.) for HIIT or speedwork. Since I'm doing the 5K time trials on Mondays (for a few more weeks), I count those as speedwork, so HIIT it is LOL
DeleteWe do a lot of HIIT type workouts via CF. They are a lot of fun!
ReplyDeleteInteresting post. The HIIT workout is not for me after the incident on my shoulder. Before, as cross training I also went to the gym and to the swimming pool. Now my right arm is very limited.
ReplyDelete