Making the most of your workout is essential, especially if you're on a time budget. One of the benefits of incorporating high intensity interval training (HIIT) into your workouts is that you can maximize your fat loss, which leads to bigger results. HIIT workouts involve short bursts of high intensity cardio followed up by 1-2 minutes of low intensity work, alternating between the two levels for the duration of your workout.
A shorter, higher intensity session actually burns less calories, but it fires your metabolism into high gear. Post- workout, your body keeps burning calories at a higher rate for a much longer amount of time. A longer, moderate level workout may burn more calories during the session, but your metabolism doesn't have to work as hard to go back to normal, therefore leading to less calorie expenditure throughout the day.
If you are just starting a new workout regiment stick to lower intensity moves until your body gets used to exercising. Your risk of injury increases with the intensity of your training, and some of the high impact movements can be hard on your joints and muscles. Keep in mind there is plenty of time to work with intensity levels to maximize your gains.
Always start with a proper warm-up, then cool down and stretch at the end to prevent injuries. You'll not only ramp up results with your new HIIT workouts, you'll also get to enjoy less time training, and more time doing things that you want to do outside of the gym.
By Olivia Garrett