Consistency is a foundation of any fitness routine but doing the same thing day in and day out can get stale quickly. Add in lockdown restrictions and staying motivated can be really difficult. Changing up your training helps to keep your workout fresh and fun, which is more likely to keep you motivated and as a bonus it challenges your body in different ways.
High-intensity interval training (HIIT) sessions are popular because they give you exercise variation which is key for better muscle development and fat loss. But, what exactly do these techniques do for your body and how can HIIT help in your health and wellbeing journey?
There are many different types of HIIT methods, three that we work with are: Tabata (20 seconds on, 10 seconds off; four minutes); EMOM (Every Minute On the Minute); and AMRAP (As Many Rounds As Possible).
TABATA – Tabata is a type of HIIT which has the dial set at full intensity. Tabata is an interval exercise that follows eight rounds of movement — 20 seconds on, 10 seconds off for a total of four minutes. Since the rest time is so limited your endurance is really tested, and over time, you’ll see it build and you can gradually start adding in additional Tabata cycles! A Tabata workout should push you to maximum exertion and leave you exhausted.
AMRAP – As Many Reps As Possible – In AMRAP workouts everyone gets to work at their own pace, so you’re only ever competing against yourself to complete as many rounds or reps in the allotted time. It’s also a great way to measure your progress over time. As you work at your own pace, you may complete two rounds on your first session but after a few months, you might get through four.
EMOM – Every Minute On the Minute – This is a type of interval workout which involves doing a specific task at the start of every minute. For example, you may do ten push ups, which could take you 30 seconds to finish them, meaning that you’ve got another 30 seconds to recover before the next set. Sounds easy, right? As the rounds go on you might find yourself getting more tired so it gets harder to finish the set quickly in order to get that break. That’s when the real work starts, tapping into those reserves and teaching the body to recover quicker and to take in oxygen more efficiently.
The good thing about EMOM is that it’s an easy means of measuring progress. You might start off struggling to finish your exercise before having to start the next set but before too long, you’ll start to gain more recovery time as you get fitter, and you’ll find that you can go for more sets before you get tired.
HIIT training can be an efficient way to get your daily exercise, adding in variation and challenge to build your endurance and strength overtime. You can measure your progress and have some healthy competition with yourself to keep progressing, increasing your reps or speed.
All these techniques can be done at home, with very little equipment. We are having great fun working with our clients online to tailor sessions to their needs and to what equipment they have available at home to train with. There really is no excuse to let your fitness slip during lockdown.
We would love to connect with you if you need that extra bit of motivation and we can tailor an online session for you.