Low-intensity interval training (LIIT) is a great way to burn fat while maintaining muscle mass and improving your cardiovascular system. Learn how to do it right here.
LIIT, or Low-Intensity Interval Training, is a cardio workout that alternates between periods of low-intensity exercise and short bursts of high-intensity activity. This exercise is becoming more popular among fitness enthusiasts since it is a more efficient and effective technique for improving cardiovascular health and burning calories. We will look at the benefits of LIIT, how to include it in your exercise regimen, and the research behind why it is so successful in this post. This post will give useful information on taking your fitness to the next level using LIIT, whether you are a novice or an experienced fitness lover.
Key benefits
The key benefits are the ability to increase metabolism without losing strength or endurance in muscles and improve cardio health by increasing blood flow throughout the body. It’s also an excellent option if you’re looking to lose weight since this training helps build lean muscle tissue, which burns more calories than fat.
In addition to burning fat, LIIT has been shown to help reduce stress levels, boost energy, and even decrease risk factors associated with heart diseases, such as cholesterol and triglycerides.
If you want to learn about low-intensity interval training, keep reading! We’ll cover everything from what it is, why people use it, and how to get started on your journey.
What Is Low-Intensity Interval Training?
As mentioned above, low-intensity interval training involves alternating between brief bouts of intense activity and rest or recovery intervals. The goal is to push yourself hard enough during these active phases, so you don’t feel like you’ve completely exhausted your available energy reserves.
This is different than traditional steady-state cardio, where you work out continuously until you reach exhaustion. Instead, HIIT builds aerobic capacity through repeated sprints over shorter workouts. These exercises have become increasingly popular among athletes who need to perform better under pressure but may not have access to specialized facilities.
Why Low-Intensity Interval Training Is The Smart Way To Exercise?
Low-intensity interval training is the best way to exercise. It’s an excellent workout for beginners, and it can be done at home or in your local gym. Suppose you are looking for an effective, efficient, and fun way to exercise. This article will help you understand why low-intensity interval training should become part of your fitness regime.
Low Impact Full Body LIIT Workout
How Does LIIT Work For You?
When performing low-intensity interval sessions, we don’t focus on the distance covered per unit of time. Instead, we concentrate more on the quality of work completed over a given period. We perform slow movements with little effort during the first few minutes of any interval session. As soon as we feel strong enough, we start pushing ourselves harder until we reach maximum capacity. After peak performance, we take some recovery breaks and repeat the process. This cycle continues until we complete the entire session.
Benefits Of Doing Low-Intensity Interval Sessions
Talking low-intensity interval workouts means pushing our bodies beyond their normal limits without causing damage. This method can improve muscle mass, endurance, speed, and agility while reducing body fat percentage. These are only a few reasons why low-intensity interval training is beneficial. Here are some other advantages of this form of exercise.
1) Improves Cardiovascular Health
One of the primary purposes behind low-intensity interval training is to improve cardiovascular health. Since we spend less time resting than in traditional cardio routines, we burn more energy overall. Our hearts beat faster and more robust due to increased blood flow. Also, our lungs function better thanks to higher oxygen intake. All these factors contribute to improved cardiorespiratory system functioning.
2) Increases Muscle Mass And Strength
Another benefit of low-intensity interval training is increasing muscular strength and size. Unlike steady-state cardio, where we maintain constant speeds, low-intensity interval training involves quick bursts of fast-paced movements. This allows us to build leaner muscles. At the same time, we strengthen our bones and connective tissues.
3) Helps Burn Fat Faster
The third advantage of low-intensity interval training is its ability to help you lose weight. The reason for this is simple – it burns calories acceleratedly. It does this by forcing your heart into a higher metabolic level which causes it to produce more heat. If you combine this with regular diet changes, you will be able to shed excess pounds within weeks.
4) Reduces Risk Of Injury
If you suffer from joint pain, arthritis, or tendinitis, then low-intensity interval training may be helpful. Because it requires minimal exertion, it helps prevent sprains, strains, and tendon tears.
5) Boosts Mood & Energy Levels
Lastly, low-intensity interval training improves mood and increases energy levels. This is mainly because it boosts endorphin production. Endorphins are hormones produced naturally in the brain that give people happiness and well-being. They also reduce stress and anxiety levels.
So What Are You Waiting For? Start Your Journey To Fitness Today!
You might think starting a new fitness routine would require lots of preparation. However, things become easier once you know strictly what workout program you should follow. You won’t struggle to stick to your goals with the proper guidance. So make sure to check out our guide below before getting started.
Do A Low-Intensity Interval Training In The House
“Not everyone has the moment or can make it to a normal class, individual training session, and even the health club,” says Wong, that has developed a resistance, core, and also pose residence workout that needs only mini elasticated resistance bands as well as gliders (little rounded pads put under your hands as well as feet). Has your mini-bar set beside your couch to target those struggling areas in three minutes instead of scrolling through your phone when the TV adverts come on?
LIIT for Strong Core
Many of us dream of having perfect abs, but most of us fail miserably to attain this ideal physique. There are some basic steps that you can take to improve your abdominal muscles. Here are five tips that could help you build strong core muscles.
1. Lie flat on the floor and place your hands behind your head.
Now lift your legs straight above your head until you reach full extension. Hold this position for 10 seconds. Lower back down slowly and repeat five times.
2. Sit upright on an exercise ball or chair and raise one leg over your knee.
Keeping both feet together, bend forward, and touch your toes. Repeat 20 times. This exercise helps strengthen your obliques located along the sides of your abdomen.
3. Stand facing away from a wall and hold onto its surface.
Lean against it by placing your right elbow on your left forearm. Your arms should form a 90-degree angle. Slowly pull your torso toward the wall using only your upper abdominals. Then push your hips back into a squatting motion. Return to standing posture and repeat 15 times. Do not let go of the wall during any part of this move.
4. Start lying face up on the ground.
Raise your knees towards your chest and extend your elbows. Keep your shoulders directly below your ears. Squeeze your glutes hard and tighten your stomach muscles. You may need to use your forearms to support your weight. Lift your head slightly and look upward. Continue holding this pose for 30 seconds. Release and relax completely. Repeat three times.
5. Lie facedown on the floor and put your palms underneath your forehead.
Push your pelvis downward and squeeze your buttocks tightly. Inhale deeply through your nose and exhale forcefully through your mouth. Breathe generally throughout this entire process. After inhaling, contract your rectus abdominus muscle and gently press your belly button inward. Exhale and release.
Repeat eight times.
To tone the bottom and also hips:
Lie on your back, position the tiny band around your knees, and drive your hips backward and forward.
For arms:
Position your mini band around your hands and get into a push-up placement. Carry out a push-up and afterward a row (where you simultaneously bring one arm up to your upper body, with or without a pinhead), aiming for 2 mins.
For legs:
Use gliders as well as consist of the lunge to hip hugs. An excellent workout for the legs, the stretch is optimal for hip flexors for a more powerful, toned base, and lateral portion stretches work the inner thighs.
Slow Reps for Muscular Tissue Development: Does Super Slow Training Work?
- The effectiveness of super slow training (performing reps at a very slow pace) for muscle development is a topic of debate in the fitness and exercise science communities.
- Some studies have shown that performing reps slowly can increase muscle activation and lead to greater muscle growth. However, other studies have found that traditional, faster rep speeds are just as effective or even more effective for muscle growth.
- It is also crucial to remember that different forms of training have different particular aims, and the style of training must be matched to the desired outcome. Slow reps can help with muscular endurance, while quick reps can help with muscle power and explosive strength.
- Ultimately, it’s important to consult a qualified professional, such as a personal trainer or exercise physiologist, to determine the best training approach for your individual goals and needs.
Super Slow Training: The Research
Here are a few trustworthy publications discussing the efficacy of extremely slow training for muscle development:
A 2014 research published in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning: Research discovered that super slow training produced muscle development comparable to standard resistance training in untrained people.
A 2002 research published in the Journal of Applied Physiology discovered that super slow training produced muscle development comparable to standard resistance training in older persons.
A 2005 research published in the Journal of Sports Science and Medicine discovered that super slow training produced muscle gain comparable to standard resistance training in trained individuals.
While these studies imply that ultra slow training may be useful for muscle growth, they also emphasize that it is not always superior to regular training approaches. More study is needed to corroborate these findings, and individual factors such as genetics, exercise experience, and diet all play a role in muscle growth.
To establish the optimal training strategy for your specific objectives and circumstances, always consult with a competent specialist, such as a personal trainer or exercise physiologist.
Super Low-Intensity Interval Training and Muscular Tissue Development
If you might take a closer look at a piece of muscle cells, you’d see that it’s made up of much smaller muscle fibers.
Your muscle mass gets bigger when those specific fibers become thicker, a procedure called hypertrophy.
For that to occur, your muscle mass fibers need to be both turned on and stimulated for enough time when you educate.
Nonetheless, the study shows that muscular tissue activation is lowered instead of boosted with slow (10 secs per rep) training speeds, which knock on muscle mass development.
In one University of New England study, scientists compared traditional (1-2 seconds to lift and reduce the weight) with slow-rate training (10 seconds to raise the weight and 4 seconds to decrease it).
In the standard rate team, muscle mass fiber was enhanced by an average of 39%, contrasted with an increase of just 11% in the slow speed group.
To put it simply, despite the huge difference in time under tension, the sluggish rate group gained much less muscle mass than the group using a typical lifting rate.
Follow-Up research also shows that satellite cell and myonuclear domain adjustments – both of which play a crucial duty in muscle mass development – were considerably higher with conventional contrasted to slow speed training.
Muscular Tissue Development
In 2015, a team of US researchers published a meta-analysis on associate speed and muscular tissue development.
A meta-analysis entails pooling the rise of multiple tests on the same topic. Instead of lots of little experiments, you end up with one great experiment, carried out on great deals of people.
Therefore, you’re entrusted to a verdict that’s more reliable than anything that might have been drawn from each of the smaller-sized research studies.
The scientists located no proof to support the suggestion that slower representatives will undoubtedly boost your outcomes, concluding that “training at very slow-moving rates is suboptimal for taking full advantage of gains in muscle hypertrophy.”
A study in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research also shows that very slow-moving training has a lower metabolic rate than standard training rates.
Topics finished two workouts developed to educate all the significant muscular tissue teams, one using traditional training speed and the second using the very sluggish technique.
The super-slow workout involved one collection of eight reps of each exercise, with each rep enduring 15 seconds (10 secs to lift the weight and 5 secs to lower it).
In the regular workout, subjects took around 2 seconds to finish each rep. Both exercises lasted 29 mins.
The result?
Throughout and quickly after the very slow-moving exercise, topics shed an average of 116 calories. That’s 56 calories less than they burned during a regular workout.
When it was determined almost a day later, the resting metabolic rate was no higher adhering to the super sluggish exercise than after the traditional exercise.
Substitute for Aerobics?
Some experts do not agree with the idea that a day of slow resistance is enough. Charles J. Ruotolo, MD, supervisor of sporting activities medicine at Nassau University Medical Center in East Meadow, N.Y., says he has become aware of holding resistance exercises much longer yet does not think a one-day training every week suffices. “It relies on your objectives,” he states. “For cardio wellness, you require 3 to 4 workouts a week. For muscle fortifying, I promote working out each muscular tissues group concerning every fifth day. So, say you do chest and arms, the next day you would do your back, then the following, shoulders, perhaps a day of rest, start over.
“Exercising more than someday a week,” keeps in mind Ruotolo, “is a lot more sensible as well as aids you enter a regular. Three or 4 days are a regular, not one.”
McGuff and Westcott both claim it’s OK to do various other forms of exercise during the week. “I make a difference between a workout and also recreation,” McGuff claims. “Distilled, pure exercise like SuperSlow does not give much tension relief as well as socialization.”
Cardio benefits of Super Low Intensity Interval Training
Nonetheless, Hutchins is entirely down on so-called “aerobics” and has composed numerous books on the topic, including Aerobic exercises Is Dead. (He likewise disdains the term “cardio.”) He relies upon biochemistry and biology to clarify the cardio benefits of SuperSlow. “People who push so-called aerobics,” he scoffs, “assume you can reduce the heart and put it on a treadmill. The heart is an uncontrolled muscular tissue: It will pump more challenging when there is even more blood to pump, and also some informal research have revealed that Super Low returns a lot more blood to the heart.”
One more advantage, according to Hutchins, involves cholesterol. “When you stop to consider it – what cells have one of the most cells, blood, nerves, as well as chemistry? Skeletal muscles.” He says that emphasizing the muscle mass to the point of failing induces a growth system to construct even more muscular tissue. That isn’t all. He claims that a physician in Texas is locating that the metabolic of muscular tissue failure is raising HDL, the “good” cholesterol, and might lower the negative things, LDL. One more scientist, Hutchins states, finds that SuperSlow boosts bone thickness 1% a month: No other workout is known to come close to this result.
Lots of people find SuperSlow also challenging. Others state it’s not only challenging, but boring. But is it really boring? This is like claiming that you do not want to comb and floss because it is not fun.
Do The Hefty Lifting
LEKFIT founder Lauren Kleban has spent the last three years teaching now-cult cardio and body shaping course to the similarity Michelle Williams and Busy Philipps from her garage in LA. Along with upgrading to a 6,000-square-foot flagship workshop this spring, she’s also upping the hefty training. “Over a previous couple of months, we have put much focus on raising much heavier weights,” Kleban – who also streams courses on-demand.
“Over the past 10 years, women were ripped off right into believing training anything over 3 extra pounds would certainly create them to bulk up. We have lately presented 10lb barbells as well as 6lb ankle joint weights.” In your home, begin by increasing the extra pounds in increments. “If you are beginning with 3lb, transfer to 5lb, then 8lb and also ultimately 10lb,” she tells Vogue. “Beginning with typical bicep curls as well as tricep rows plus expansion. Do 10-20 repeatings on each side and raise the weight when the reps become as well very easy.”
Many people don’t realize that LIIT offers great advantages over traditional cardio exercises such as running or cycling for weight loss and fitness goals. Creating a LIIT workout plan can be simple if you follow some basic steps.
The first step to creating your own LIIT routine is determining what exercises will best help you achieve your desired results. Consider incorporating bodyweight movements like squats, lunges, push-ups and mountain climbers into your plan as these require little equipment but still provide effective workouts with high intensity bursts which increase calorie burn while helping tone muscle mass throughout the entire body.
How to create a LIIT workout plan?
When deciding on specific moves, try using shorter rest times between sets, so the heart rate stays elevated to maximize fat-burning potential during each session.
Next, it’s important to structure each workout so they are both efficient and safe while considering any existing injuries or limitations that prevent certain activities from being completed without experiencing discomfort or pain when doing them.
One way this can be done is by building two different day designs: one focusing mainly on strength training elements targeting all major muscle groups through various compound lifts followed by optional isolation exercises. Then another consisting primarily of HIITT-style circuits utilizing cardiovascular workouts for increased sweat production resulting in greater caloric expenditure at higher than normal intensities.
Stay with A Schedule
The professionals settle on the importance of allowing the body time to recoup in between exercises. Mullins recommends novices educate one day, rest the following and also repeat. “Intermediates can practice a 2:1 training timetable, train for two days, rest on the third, and then repeat. If you’re experienced, train for 3 days, take a rest day on the fourth, then repeat.”
What Kind Of Exercise Should I Do?
The first step towards achieving any goal is deciding whether you want to work on physical activity or nutrition. While both have their benefits, they do not go together. You need to focus on one aspect to get fit fast.
For example, if you start working out regularly, you must eat healthy foods daily. On the other hand, if you choose to change your eating habits, you don’t have to worry too much about exercising. You should see results soon enough if you keep up with your daily calorie consumption.
How Much Time Will My New Routine Take Up?
Once you figure out how often you plan to train each week, you can determine how many minutes per session you will devote to each type of exercise. Remember that there is no set rule when it comes to intervals. Some experts recommend doing them three times a week while others prefer four sessions. Whatever works best for you, try to stay consistent.
Is Low Intensity Interval Workout Right For Me?
Before embarking on a new fitness journey, it pays to ask yourself certain questions. One of those concerns is whether you can perform high-intensity exercises. If you lack stamina, you shouldn’t expect to achieve great results after completing short bouts of intense movement. Instead, opt for lower impact activities that allow you to recover quickly between sets. Another question relates to your age. Most adults who begin a new fitness regimen usually target younger individuals because they believe older folks cannot benefit from HIIT workouts. But the truth is that even seniors can reap significant health benefits from these types of routines. Just remember to consult your doctor before beginning a new fitness regime. They will be able to tell you whether you are ready to perform strenuous movements.
Conclusion
LIIT is a new exercise trend that claims to provide similar fitness results as high-intensity interval training (HIIT) while posing a lesser risk of injury. LIIT’s usefulness is backed by research studies such as the one done in 2016 by Ross LM, Porter RR, and Durstine JL, who discovered that HIIT could benefit individuals with chronic conditions. Another study, conducted by Costigan SA, Eather N, Plotnikoff RC, Taaffe DR, and Lubans DR, discovered that HIIT could increase health-related fitness in teenagers.
All in all, we hope that you found this article helpful. We wish you good luck in reaching your fitness goals!
It is crucial to remember that, like any new workout plan, it is always preferable to get medical advice before beginning.
Supporting Documentation
According to the information in web search results, “low-intensity interval training (LIIT) has become a recent exercise phenomenon that claims you can still achieve similar fitness results to HIIT, but with lower risk of injury.
Though there is” from the source Low-intensity interval training can be as effective as HIIT – but only if you spend more time working out (theconversation.com), suggests that low-intensity interval training can be as effective as high-intensity interval training (HIIT), with lower risk of injury. This claim is supported by the study conducted by the source. It’s important to note that the study may have limitations, and other sources may provide different results. It’s always good to consult with a medical professional before starting any new exercise regimen.
References
The study “The effects of high-intensity intermittent exercise training on fat reduction and fasting insulin levels in young women” by Trapp EG, Chisholm DJ, Freund J, and Boutcher SH (2008) found that LIIT was more effective than steady-state cardio for reducing body fat in young women.
“Short-term high-intensity interval training metabolic adaptations: a little pain for a lot of gain?” LIIT can lead to equivalent or larger increases in cardiovascular fitness and muscle endurance than standard endurance training, according to a study by Gibala MJ, Little JP, van Essen M, Wilkin GP, Burgomaster KA, Safdar A, Raha S, Tarnopolsky MA (2006).
Gist NH, et al (2014) reported in “A randomized controlled trial of high-intensity interval training versus moderate-intensity continuous training on body composition in overweight and obese adults” that LIIT resulted in greater reductions in body fat and improvements in body composition compared to moderate-intensity continuous training.
According to Laursen PB and Jenkins DG (2002), “The effects of low-volume high-intensity interval training (HIT) on endurance running performance,” LIIT can be a time-efficient strategy to increase endurance running performance.
“Acute high-intensity interval exercise increases the nuclear abundance of PGC-1alpha in human skeletal muscle” by Gibala MJ, et al (2010) shown that LIIT can result in favorable changes in muscle metabolism, including an increase in the quantity of PGC-1alpha, a protein implicated in the control of muscle development and endurance.
These studies demonstrate that LIIT can increase cardiovascular fitness, muscular endurance, body composition, and endurance running performance while also causing favorable changes in muscle metabolism.
Alex is a fitness aficionado, empowers others towards healthier, active lives through small, sustainable changes for lasting results. Visit Gearuptofit.com for insightful tips and resources to enrich a balanced lifestyle.