Effective High Intensity Interval Training Variations
If you have hit a plateau with your weight loss and are finding it difficult to shed pounds now, you can mix things up with fifteen to thirty minutes of your time and High Intensity Interval Training. And there are several options for your HIIT session.
Standard HIIT workouts break the intervals into periods of high-intensity exercise and recovery periods. Throughout the entire workout these interval periods are repeated, and the routines include both a warm-up before the workout and a cool-down after the workout.
As with any workout routine it’s good to mix things up so that you don’t get bored and wind up avoiding the workouts. HIIT is similar in this manner, and to avoid that dreaded boredom there are variations that can be incorporated.
The Ladder: Throughout the workout, you use a recovery period of 30 seconds between each sprint time. You begin with a short sprint time of like 15 seconds. Then after each complete interval (or “rung”) you increase your sprint period by 5 seconds until you are at the halfway point of your workout, this may equal to be around 45 seconds. After reaching the midway point, you begin to decrease your sprint periods by 5 seconds until you reach your starting sprint time.
Short Ladder: this follows the same premise, but there will be fewer increases and then decreases.
Recovery Ladder: Instead of changing the sprint period, gradually decrease the recovery period by 10 seconds at a time until you are only resting 10 seconds in between sets. Then gradually increase the rest periods again until you have reached the starting point.
Set Distance: Rather than timing the periods of intensity, this method uses a predetermined distance. This is most useful when you are doing a workout where distance can actually be determined such as swimming in a pool, running on a track, or using a treadmill, elliptical machine, or stationary bike that can measure distance. Setting a time limit is still required. To illustrate, let’s say you set the interval at one minute. Sprint one length of the predetermined distance. Take your recovery until the minute is over, then repeat.
If you complete the sprint portion quickly, you will have a longer rest period. However, you will find that as you repeat the intervals, it will take you longer to do the sprint and your rest period will be decreased.
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