How many hiit workouts a week

But how often do we need to do it to reap the rewards of miles logged on the treadmill or an hour of high intensity interval training HIIT in a group fitness class? And why? What is cardio? And what is the difference between cardio and high intensity interval training? And why is there a place for both? Cardio refers to any exercise that raises your heart rate. Your heart is a muscle, and just like all the other muscles in your body every time you use it gets stronger. In short, the stronger your heart the more fresh oxygen it sends to the cells in your muscles.

High-intensity interval training on the other hand is short spurts of…well…high intensity work where you push your body to at least 90 per cent of its ability. Unlike sustained cardio where you find a pace you can go at for a continuous period, HIIT is short bursts all out followed by active or non-active recovery.

The results come from going as hard as you can for a short period of time, resting, and then repeating. There are a ton of benefits to high intensity interval training, or HIIT as it is commonly referred to.

But they warn you can have too much of a good thing. We all want the fastest, most efficient way to get in shape so we can do other awesome things with our lives.

So the idea of being able to work out for such a short amount of time and get results, rather than slogging away on the treadmill for a longer time, sounds like a no-brainer. The first benefit everyone talks about is, of course, the fat burning. This is a phenomenon known as EPOC, or excess post-exercise oxygen consumption. One minute, two minutes, three minutes? Getty Images. Find out why you should try interval running:. This content is created and maintained by a third party, and imported onto this page to help users provide their email addresses.

You may be able to find more information about this and similar content at piano. Advertisement - Continue Reading Below.