Why HIIT Can Do More Than Improve Just Endurance

It’s no surprise that high-intensity interval training (HIIT) has become a popular form of cardio. Fitness enthusiasts and professionals all around the world are promoting this type of interval training due to its fitness potential. HIIT requires maximum effort in a short time frame with minimal rest in between. This type of exercise is ideal for increasing endurance as it allows you to exercise for longer time periods. While HIIT is an effective type of a cardiovascular exercise that boosts endurance, it can also improve a person’s health in other ways. Here are three compelling reasons why you should start doing more HIIT workouts into your routine.

HIIT Can Make You Lose Weight Faster

The fitness industry has always continued to develop new types of exercises and approaches to health, resulting in more refined approaches to keeping fit. The same applies to HIIT and how it may contribute to your campaign of trimming that gut. The American College of Sports Medicine reports that HIIT as a workout can burn more calories compared to more traditional training programs.

EPOC Help Burn Calories Post Workout

After you exert effort in any strenuous physical activity, your body experiences a period that is called the excess post-exercise oxygen consumption (EPOC) and it lasts for approximately a few hours. Your HIIT-activated EPOC will see an increased caloric burn by up to 6-15 percent. This boost to the metabolism will get rid of fat much faster than more conventional cardio exercises.

HIIT Can Protect Your Heart

With HIIT, you don’t need to go outdoors or run on a treadmill for an extended period of time to achieve the benefits to your cardiovascular system. Nutrition Advance notes that HIIT can not only improve your heart rate, but also your blood pressure, aerobic and functional capacity. Health IQ states that HIIT athletes are able to cut down their cardiovascular risk by a significant 39 percent. The best part of reaping these heart-friendly benefits is that you don’t have to use dumbbells or other gym implements for your HIIT workouts. You have that convenient option to challenge your fitness levels with body-weight exercises in the comfort of your living room. There is no excuse to not protect your heart and health.

HIIT Can Make You Stronger

HIIT can improve the functions of your cardiovascular system to help you achieve the best shape of your life. New York Times explains that by making blood vessels better able to expand, HIIT can improve the cardiovascular system’s ability to respond to added exertion. Oxygen-carrying blood can flow more smoothly through arteries that are wide open. This reduces the risk of a vessel-blocking clot. This increased oxygen will allow you to work harder during your next workout. As your body gets use to more flow of oxygen, you will become a stronger and fitter athlete.

Stay Strong Together

Jefit, named best strength app by Sports Illustrated, Esquire, GQ, Men’s Health, Greatest, Forbes Health, and many others. It offers a community responsible for 92,000,000 workouts to date! The app, which recently passed 10 million downloads, comes equipped with a customizable workout planner and training log. The app has ability to track data, offer audio coaching cues, and can share workouts with friends. Visit our members-only Facebook group. Connect with like-minded people, share tips, and advice to help get closer to reaching your fitness goals.

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Michael Wood, CSCS

Michael Wood, CSCS, is a Certified Strength & Conditioning Specialist and Content Manager for JeFit app. Michael is a former Assistant Strength & Conditioning Coach at the University of Connecticut and Exercise Physiologist at the USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University. He is the Founder of Michael Wood Fitness, named twice to "Top 100 Trainers in America" by Men's Journal and voted Best of Boston by Boston Magazine. Michael previously taught at the University of Connecticut and Boston University. He is the author of TBC30: 6 Steps to a Stronger, Healthier You.