Merdeka.com – Even though most people understand that exercise is important for health, sometimes they also find it difficult to do it regularly. Not having enough time is a common reason why it is difficult to exercise.
If you feel that way, then you might want to try high intensity interval training. High-Intensity Interval Training, or HIIT for short, is a term that refers to exercises that involve short periods of intense exercise interspersed with periods of recovery.
This can be the most time efficient way of exercising. Typically, the duration for HIIT workouts ranges from 10 to 30 minutes. Regardless of how short the exercise is, HIIT can produce health benefits similar to twice as much moderate intensity exercise.
Activities undertaken vary, including sprinting, cycling, jumping rope, or other weight training. But, regardless of how it is applied, high-intensity interval training should involve intense training for a short period of time that gets your heart rate up.
Apart from providing the benefits of exercise, HIIT also provides other health benefits for the body. Some of the health benefits of HIIT will be conveyed by merdeka.com in this article, which was quoted from Healthline.
Burn a lot of calories in a short time
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The first benefit of HIIT is that it can burn a lot of calories in a short time. One study compared calories burned for 30 minutes from HIIT, weight training, running and cycling respectively. Researchers found that HIIT can burn 25-30% more calories than other forms of exercise.
In this study, HIIT repetitions consisted of a maximum effort of 20 seconds, followed by a rest of 40 seconds. This means that the participants actually only exercise 1/3 of the time the running and cycling group does. Although in this study each training session was 30 minutes long, generally HIIT workouts were much shorter.
Higher Metabolic Rate after Exercise
The second benefit of HIIT is that it can increase your metabolism. One of the ways HIIT helps burn calories actually comes after you’ve finished exercising.
Several studies have shown HIIT’s impressive ability to increase your metabolic rate for hours after exercise. Some researchers have even found that HIIT can boost your metabolism after exercise more than jogging and weight training.
Helps Lose Fat
The third benefit of HIIT is that it helps you lose fat. Research has shown that HIIT can help you lose fat. One review looked at 13 trials and 424 adults who were overweight and obese. Interestingly, HIIT and traditional moderate intensity exercise can reduce body fat and waist circumference.
Additionally, one study found that people who took HIIT three times a week for 20 minutes per session lost 4.4 pounds, or 2 kg, of body fat in 12 weeks, without changing their diet.
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Increase Muscle
The fourth benefit of HIIT is to increase muscle tone. Apart from helping to lose fat, HIIT can help increase muscle mass in certain individuals. However, the increase in muscle mass will occur in the muscles that are used most often, such as in the trunk and legs. In addition, it is important to note that increased muscle mass is more likely in individuals who are initially less active.
Increase Oxygen Consumption
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The fifth benefit of HIIT is that it can increase oxygen consumption. Oxygen consumption refers to the ability of muscles to use oxygen, and resistance training is usually used to increase your oxygen consumption.
One study found that five weeks of HIIT training performed four days per week for 20 minutes each session increased oxygen consumption by 9%. Another study found that eight weeks of exercising on a stationary bike using traditional exercises or HIIT increased oxygen consumption by about 25%.
Reduces Heart Rate and Blood Pressure
The last benefit of HIIT is that it can reduce heart rate and blood pressure. A large number of studies have shown that HIIT can reduce heart rate and blood pressure in overweight and obese individuals, who often have high blood pressure.
Some researchers have also found that HIIT can reduce blood pressure more than the moderate-intensity exercise that is often recommended. However, high-intensity exercise usually does not change blood pressure in normal-weight individuals who have normal blood pressure.
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