Getty HIIT workouts
It’s not crucial news that exercise is good for you – the benefits range from strengthening your energy to adding years to your life. But many of us fall into the trap of exercising when there is no time to do enough exercise. You can not commit to a 30 minute Peloton session, let alone an hour long jog with friends, so why bother?
This is especially true now, when a global pandemic (at best) has overwhelmed many of us, and a workout feels as impossible as discussing a Mediterranean voyage enthusiastically.
However, the overload can create courage. A recent study in the British medical journal suggests that although moderate workouts and short bursts of high-intensity exercise have health benefits, the latter have increased life expectancy slightly more, helped participants get fit, and increased their quality of life.
The long-term standard for exercise is ‘150 minutes a week of moderate intensity, which is basically fast-paced,’ says Dr. Edward Phillips, assistant professor of physical medicine and rehabilitation at Harvard Medical School. Or based on the standards listed in the CDC’s 2008 guidelines for physical activity for Americans, you can do vigorous exercise and reduce your time by half.
But while the time targets remained the same, the agency’s 2018 update eliminated the requirement that physical activity should take at least ten minutes to count toward the weekly movement target. In the most recent update, any amount of physical activity counts as the weekly goal. This, together with the BMJ study findings that short bursts of high-intensity exercise can lead to better health and well-being are good news for those of us who already wear 24-7 atleisure: at least when we find those extra few minutes, we are already dressed to start sweating.
The obvious bonus to doing high-intensity interval exercises, or HIIT, is that you can break four minutes of fitness sessions during your day and get practically the same results as with much longer but less intense workouts. That means you do not have to save a quick workout during the ads on Hulu for long slaps on the treadmill, and can go back to couch.
Getty Images
How do you know if your exercise is so intense enough to get the benefits? Dr. Phillips recommends the “speaking test”: “If you can speak and you can sing, it’s light exercise. With moderate practice you can speak but not sing, and if you work powerfully, you can not complete your sentence. So to reap the benefits of a short, high-intensity workout, you need to push hard so that you are not able to have a conversation or sing along to your Lizzo playlist in a row.
Dr. Phillips notes that the risk of premature death is reduced by 72% if you are inactive to even moderately active. “Can you think of a drug or an operation, anything on the market, that is more powerful than that?” he says. “And along the way, it makes you feel better, sleep better, have more patience, improve your zest for life, your function, your sex life and your sleep.”
In addition to the physical benefits of high-intensity workouts – including overall health and weight control – the benefits to mental health are just as powerful. (As we are in the midst of a national mental health crisis, any low-commitment activity that has stress relief is a good thing.)
Getty Images
“During this time, the benefit to mental health is so important,” says Dr. Stephen Thomas, Chair of the Department of Exercise Science at Thomas Jefferson University. “It’s such a great way to release the endorphin.”
“You don’t have to take an hour-plus run,” he says. “You can do some quick sprints, do some plyometry, squat or push-ups, it can burst and really change your mood.”
That “runner height” you often hear about tends to come first before you run, says Thomas, which means you could maximize your time and the endorphin surge through a sprint to go the block, or stand in its place and do burpees, squats and lungs. The endorphins come faster and also last a little longer.
“There is a bit of a transfer effect, more so than with a lower or moderate exercise, that can lead to a boost in mood,” says Thomas. “It can increase focus, and help you be more effective.”
To sum up: it is 15 minutes a day that can increase your lifespan, improve your mental health and give you much needed energy and focus. Still convinced?
Getty Images
How to incorporate HIIT into your life
Remember to only consult with your doctor during your new workout. “Your heart is also a muscle, and if it’s not in a healthy state, it will not be able to handle a sudden high intensity,” says Thomas. He also advises to make sure you are properly warmed up, even with just a few simple stretches, before you start. Try an on-demand fitness platform, such as Obé, which includes HIIT and dance HIIT programs, or a YouTube class, such as those taught by fitness maker Toni Mitchell.
Mickey Myvett, a certified trainer from the National Academy of Sports Medicine who coaches clients in the spa at Four Seasons Hotel New York Downtown, suggests sneaking a morning, lunch or late afternoon session into an energy session. sink without caffeine.
She gave exercise suggestions for each time of the day; each 15-minute session calls for 30 seconds of exercises such as push ups, mountain climbers, high knees, lungs and invisible jump ropes, with 30 seconds of rest between each set. You can confuse the schedule of exercises, but just try to work as hard as possible during the 30 seconds (remember: you will not be able to sing or speak during the set).
Getty Images
———————
Wake up and work: One to three sets, 30 seconds each: glute bridge, reverse crunch, mountaineers, push-ups, back extensions, with 30 seconds of rest in between.
Lunch: One to three sets, 30 seconds each of: squats (shoot up heartbeat), buttocks, high knees, invisible jump rope, alternating lungs, with 30 seconds rest in between.
Dinner Pick-Me-Up: One to three sets, 30 seconds each: Thumbworm, the largest rack in the world, bird dog, rotation of the T-spine, fire hydrant, with 30 seconds rest between each other.
And if you just can’t sweat in the afternoon, Myvett says to find time to move in any way. “A five-minute step-up workout – up and down stairs at home or work – or even a five-minute walk to get lunch helps your central nervous system perform,” says Myvett. “Remember: Anything counts as long as you move!”