Melt Fat With HIIT

High intensity vs. low intensity cardio

Are you one of those hardcore cardio people who spend an hour or more running on the treadmill, or gliding on the elliptical? Do you want to increase your cardiovascular and muscular strength and endurance, and cut fat without compromising lean muscle tissue to reveal your best physique ever? Have you been asking yourself why your physique isn’t changing? If this is you, then you should start training smarter, and not longer, by incorporating HIIT training right now into your training routine.

I have been tirelessly watching these people for years, like guinea pigs, endlessly pedaling and strolling in their hopes of creating that lean, muscular and fit physique they dream of. Sorry to be blunt, but it may never work! I’m definitely not going to say that it is easy; it is not for the faint of heart, but for those of you who dare to push yourself to that next level!

Long slow distance (LSD) and High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) have been an on-going cardio debate among fitness professionals for years. As an athlete we are trained to work at high intensities for ultimate performance and results and as a bonus, we had the muscular lean physiques to reflect the high intensity training. Even long distance runners train at high intensity levels to help improve their long distance performance.

So, it makes no sense that you should not be doing the same to help achieve your personal best performance and physique. Obviously, do it at your own fitness level. So, you’re thinking that all this cardio that I have been doing is not healthy, or beneficial? Yes, to some extent it is beneficial to your health in the sense that you are training your heart muscle. However, the question is, are you really improving your heart’s health and strength to its full potential? As well, with hours of endless cardio you are also compromising your knees, hips, ankles and low back due to the repetitive impact, which can lead to overuse injuries. Secondly, when you perform long-duration, moderate-intensity exercise, you can actually put yourself in a catabolic state in which you may start losing muscle mass. That's right - some of that hard-earned muscle may start degrading itself in your quest to get lean! HIIT training has a number of heart healthy benefits (similar to regular cardio) in addition to the reduction in training time. First of all, this type of training is far superior to steady-state exercises when it comes to increasing your VO2 max, which is the maximum amount of oxygen you can uptake during exercise. This means that you will actually see steady improvement in your strength, speed, stamina, agility and the way you look!

What is this HIIT training and how can I incorporate it into my daily routine? HIIT is cardio performed at such an intense level that your body will spend the rest of the day expending energy just to recover from the butt-kicking you gave it. This is commonly referred to as EPOC (excess post-exercise oxygen consumption) and it means that you consume a great deal more oxygen recovering from the exercise bout than you would have if you'd just done a steady-state workout. With this being said, your body may burn up to 9 times more calories at rest later in the day than if you were to stroll for an hour on the treadmill. Obviously, you will have to push yourself beyond your comfort zone that you have gotten used to over the years and really challenge yourself. It is not easy, but that may be what your body has been craving for years!

HIIT training is short and intense and potentially may burn hundreds more calories and dramatically changes the shape of your physique. I find HIIT training works best by consistently changing the speed, distance, time and intensity to shock your body into burning up extra fat calories. This routine can be done using any type of cardiovascular workout (my favorites are running, ARC and step mill). A basic HIIT routine might consist of a five to ten minute warm-up at a moderate pace, followed by the highest increase in intensity you feel you can exert between 20 seconds to 1 minute, and a return to a moderate pace for another minute of recovery.

I typically encourage to repeat this pattern for the remainder of the workout, which can continue anywhere from six to ten repetitions or 15 to 30 minutes depending on your fitness level. Starting out, you will likely find that a one-minute rest period is too little. If this is the case, it is ok to increase your recovery time, just until you feel you can go full intensity again. As with most cardio workout routines, HIIT should be performed about three times a week and you should gradually work up your intensity, time and repetitions over a period of several weeks.

HIIT cardio interval training method is an intense and quick workout routine but very effective. If you are looking to shorten your workouts, improve your cardiovascular conditioning, improve muscular strength endurance, maintain hard earned fat burning muscle and to look and feel your best then HIIT will ensure that you will meet all your fitness goals! Here are a couple of my favorite HIIT routines that I would like to share with you. You may incorporate these into your routine 3-5 times/ week depending on your fitness level. If you are a beginner, then I would suggest starting at 1-2 times/week and then working up as your fitness level improves. Just like any other program, you will see best results with a clean healthy diet consisting of 5-6 small meals per day. Let me know how you make out!

HIIT ARC

Time Minutes Level/Speed

10 minutes ARC Manual Program

10 Incline Starting resistance @ 25-30

Steps per minute @ 130 plus (approx)

1 minute Resistance @ 40 keeping pace

1 minute Resistance @ 25-30 keeping pace

1 minute Resistance @ 45 keeping pace

1 minute Resistance @ 25-30 keeping pace

1 minute Resistance @ 50 keeping pace

Repeat sequence until you reach 25 – 30 minutes then finish with 5 minute cool down @ a resistance of 25-30.

HIIT Running

Time minutes Level/Speed (Run/Sprint)

1-10 minutes Warm-up at 5.5 speed @ 1% incline

20 seconds Incline 1% Speed 11.0

10 seconds Incline 1% Speed 6.0 or hop off

20 seconds Incline 1% Speed 11.0

10 seconds Incline 1% Speed 6.0 or hop off

Repeat sequence for a total of 8-12 repetitions. Finish with a 5-10 minute cool down jog.

Karen’s Weekly Routine ***Summer time I will do hills, stairs and sprints outdoors

Monday Shoulders/Triceps/Abs HIIT Sprints

Tuesday Legs Boxing LSD – Jog or ARC with hill walk

Wednesday Back/Biceps/Abs HIIT Sprints HIIT step mill

Thursday Chest/Shoulders/Triceps Boxing HIIT Hill Sprints

Friday Back/Hamstrings/Abs LSD - Jog or ARC with hill walk

Saturday Choose one: HIIT Sprints or HIIT step mill or HIIT ARC

Sunday Hot Yoga Active Rest

Written by: Karen Gallagher

Model: Natalie Jill Photographer: LGHFX