What Are HIIT Workouts?

HIIT workouts also known as High Intensity Interval Training workouts have turned into a very popular type of exercise over the last few years.  HIIT workouts have been around for quite awhile but only recently have they gained popularity in the gyms as well as with professional athletes.  These HIIT workouts can allow you to burn fat faster and improve your athletic condition and capacity the more you do them.  I am a very big fan of HIIT workouts and a lot of the training I do revolves around high intensity interval training workouts.  HIIT workouts are all about doing high intense exercise for a short amount of time followed by a short recovery period.  It could be something as simple as sprinting the straight portion on a track and then slowly jogging the turns and repeating that for an extended period of time such as 20 minutes.  When you do HIIT workouts you are actually putting your body in an anaerobic state which is when you are pushing yourself to 80-90% of your maximum heart rate. Trying to have a conversation in this anaerobic state is next to impossible.  You are increasing your endurance and training your body to take in more oxygen.  Something called VO2 maximum.  I talk about your different target heart rate areas in my blog heart rate zones.  One of the greatest perks to HIIT workouts is it causes your body to burn a lot more calories and fat.

Why Do HIIT Workouts Work?

HIIT workouts are very different than you standard everyday workout.  Most people when they workout will break a good sweat and then reap some of the physical and mental benefits such as positive outlook, increased self esteem etc.  But what they don’t get are the extreme body transformation results because they stay within their comfort zone.  HIIT workouts cause you to get out of your comfort zone and ultimately this is where the magic happens.  There are HIIT workouts for beginners as well as advanced athletes.  When your body is put in a state that isn’t comfortable it will then immediately adapt to the situation so the next time around it performs better.  But for this to happen your body will have to adapt which will cause the extreme physical transformation results.  So instead of getting on a treadmill or simply going for a run and staying within your comfort zone HIIT workouts will push you over the edge and make you work even harder.  Remember this will cause an increase level of calorie and fat burn which leads to extreme results.  In addition, HIIT workouts have become very popular because if you are looking for a quick workout but also want maximum results then these type of workouts are the way to go.  But remember these exercises do involve very intense bursts of exercise so therefore your body cannot do this type of workout consistently for an extended period of time.  Hence shorter workouts.

My Favorite HIIT Workouts!

So for the past two years I have become a big fan of HIIT workouts.  I used to go to the gym for years but found after having kids and such a busy schedule I have become a huge fan of home based workouts all through a company called Beachbody.  I have had great results using their programs such as P9oX, Insanity, Turbo Fire etc and decided to never really go back to the gym again.  No more driving to the gym and wasting time and no more having to try to figure what to do.  One of my favorite HIIT workouts is Insanity.  I put a clip of this workout in this blog for you.  Insanity is all about doing approximately 2-3 minutes of very intense cardiovascular and plyometric type moves followed by a very short rest usually 30 seconds.  You repeat this interval throughout the workout and hence this is one of those HIIT workouts.

Another great workout is Turbo Fire.  This is also one of the HIIT workouts that has become every so popular.  In this program they have what they called Fire drills aka HIIT training.  During the one minute fire drills you increase the intensity of your workout to your maximum potential thus creating high intensity interval training.  Here’s a sneak peek at this workout.

Last but not least if you are really looking for one of the most intense HIIT workouts there is a program called Insanity The Asylum.  This is harder than Insanity (hard to imagine) and truly is a mental test.  I have simply learned that if you increase the intensity and truly push yourself out of its comfort zone in of these HIIT workouts you will get awesome results.  Check out Insanity The Asylum.

Any of these programs above are a great HIIT workout for weight loss as well as a way to get some of the lean strong muscle that most people would love to have.

Try One Of These HIIT Workouts?

So if you are looking for something different and want quicker results then HIIT workouts are a great option.  Beachbody has many top fitness programs taught by world class trainers such as Shaun T, Tony Horton and Chalene Johnson that will take you to the next level through high intensity interval training.  Feel free to Contact Me  if you have any questions.  I would love to help you get started on anyone of this HIIT workouts!!

Your Coach,

DAVE