What is a hiit workout, how to do it and what are its benefits?

Hiit is considered an energetic and dynamic workout, whose training aims at a quick performance, with efficient results perceived in a short time, without being harmful. For this, hiit training combines a sequence of intensity exercises followed by short periods of rest.

This type of exercise provides countless benefits to the practitioner and, in addition, we can consider it democratic. After all, it is a quick, effective and versatile workout, and can be done anywhere, just with your own body weight, like calisthenics workouts .

In the course of this article, we will break down the hiit acronym and understand what it means, as well as learn about some of the benefits offered by the practice and learn how to do high-performance interval training at home.

Good reading!

What is hiit training?

Hiit is the acronym used for “High Intensity Interval Training”. In practice, a workout consisting of a sequence of activities alternating between high-intensity exercises and rest intervals (active and passive).

As this type of training demands a lot from the cardiorespiratory system and the practitioner’s physical strength, high-performance interval training is short, requiring less time than other types of training.

Hiit is a workout that can be done in a few minutes, excellent for people who don’t have the availability to attend a gym or perform other physical activity that involves a lot of time.

In addition, most of the time, a hiit training plan requires no other tool than the practitioner’s body, that is, an exercise sequence that is easy to insert into everyday life.

What are the benefits of hiit training?

We list eight of the many benefits that hiit exercises offer to their practitioners. Were you curious?

See the following list:

1. Significant results in a short time of practice;
2. Decreases blood pressure;
3. Improves body awareness;
4. Burns more calories than other types of workouts;
5. Accelerates metabolism for up to 24 hours after training;
6. Favors the growth of muscle mass;
7. Improves insulin sensitivity;
8. Stimulates the production of hormones that cause feelings of satiety, reducing appetite; and
9. Optimizes the practitioner’s routine.

Still not convinced of the benefits of this type of training and don’t feel like doing it?

Check out!

How to do a hiit workout?

1. Choose one of the training modalities

After receiving your doctor’s clearance, it’s time to choose one of the hiit training modalities. There are many of them, however, the best known are:

tabata

The tabata method features 8 sets of 20 seconds of high-intensity exercise, followed by 10 seconds of complete or active rest – with anaerobic exercises , sit-ups, squats, among others.

Little or Gibala method

This workout is a little longer, totaling 30 minutes, including 3 minutes of warm-up and 27 minutes of hiit. It features 12 intense 1-minute series, followed by 75 seconds of active rest, that is, interspersed with less intense exercises.

Timmons

Timmons features 3 sets of 2 minutes of low-intensity pedaling, followed by 10 seconds of high-intensity activity.

You can switch between one model and another, ok? Feel free to try them out and choose what works best for you.

After all, the most important thing is to intersperse high-intensity exercises, such as jumping rope , running and climbing stairs, with periods of rest – whether active or passive.

2. Get ready – proper clothing, shoes and movement

Although one of the main characteristics of the workouts is their speed, they tend to be very intense. For this reason, it is necessary to prepare to start them.

First of all, seek professional guidance and medical clearance, after that, learn how to properly perform the movements, avoiding injuries.

Speaking of injuries, make sure you wear sports clothes and comfortable shoes, because even though the training period is short, hiit exercises are intense. A suitable shoe will make all the difference in this process and, more than that, it will ensure the health of your knees and spine.

3. Have consistency in practice

To have all the benefits mentioned in the previous topic, maintaining a training routine is essential. In this way, high-intensity interval training achieves its main objective: burning calories and stimulating metabolism in a short time.

But it’s important to remember that one of the main benefits of hiit is being versatile and adapting to the routine. This characteristic facilitates the consistency of the practice and, consequently, the implicit advantages in it. So enjoy it, okay?

What are the exercises that are part of hiit training?

Now that you’ve learned how to be a high-intensity interval training practitioner, how about getting to know the main exercises that make up this type of training?

Are they:

• jumping jacks
• Jump rope
• squats
• Push ups
• sit-ups
• Board
• race in place
• Running
• Bicycle
• climb stairs
• Bodybuilding

Finally, it is worth remembering that hiit training should be inserted into your routine slowly, so, as your body adapts to the practice, it is possible to gradually evolve the intensity of the exercises that make up the training, agreed?