Many people have a love-hate relationship with exercise—often because they haven’t found a form of movement they truly enjoy or it takes too many precious hours out of the day.
If the treadmill makes you feel like you’re going nowhere fast, it’s time to try something different. High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) might be just what you need to get excited about working out again.
What Is HIIT?
High-Intensity Interval Training, or HIIT, combines short bursts of very intense exercise (around 80–95% of your maximum heart rate) with brief periods of low-intensity recovery. Sessions typically last 8–20 minutes and can be done on any cardio machine—treadmill, bike, pool—or with bodyweight and light-weight circuits, like F45 or 9Round.
6 Key Benefits of HIIT
1. Burn More Calories in Less Time
Because you’re pushing hard during each interval, you burn more calories in a short session than you would on a steady-state workout. Even better, your body continues to burn extra calories for up to 24 hours afterward as it recovers.
2. The Variety of HIIT Helps You Stick With It
Varied movements keep HIIT workouts engaging. When you’re not bored, you’re far more likely to make exercise a regular habit.
3. HIIT Boosts Heart Health
Your heart is a muscle—and HIIT challenges it. By raising your heart rate into high zones, you help maintain flexible, healthy blood vessels, lowering your risk of heart disease.
4. High Intensity Interval Training Can Increase Your Metabolism
HIIT often includes strength moves, which build lean muscle. Muscle tissue burns more calories than fat—even at rest—supercharging your metabolic rate.
5. HIIT Helps Preserve Muscle While Losing Fat
Traditional dieting can lead to muscle loss. The strength-focused intervals in HIIT protect and even build muscle, so your weight loss comes primarily from fat.
6. You Can Do HIIT Anywhere—Convenient and Challenging!
No gym? No problem. HIIT can be done anywhere, anytime, using just your bodyweight. The only requirement is that you push yourself—get your heart pumping faster, and you’ll reap the rewards.
Trying to get fit and lose weight? Blue Sky MD can help!
Whether your goals are weight loss, build muscle or overall get healthier, we can help you get there, either through our medical weight loss program or our hormone replacement therapy programs. Our providers can help you optimize your hormones to increase weight loss, muscle growth, and energy levels, and our wellness coaches can help you develop a foolproof nutrition & exercise plan, including HIIT training.
Take our free online health assessment to discover which programs might be best for your needs.
