HIIT, especially infrared sauna HIIT, is a calorie scorcher and a fat oxidizer! A great body of research exists to back this up. It has been proven that HIIT for 15 minutes can burn more calories than an hour of treadmill jogging.
HIIT, or high-intensity interval training, is perfect for the holidays. If you are like most, a quick HIIT workout may be all you have time for right now. Last Monday was the official publication date of my book, HOT EXERCISE,
and for the next few weeks you might see a few excerpts from it in the weekly blog posts. In the book there is a chapter on HIIT and how beneficial it is when combined with an infrared sauna environment. The excerpt below gives a good HIIT training overview to encourage you to try it for the holidays to conserve your time for family and still reap the benefits of fitness amidst the holiday madness.
HIGH-INTENSITY INTERVAL TRAINING, or HIIT, in normal outdoor climates or in air-conditioned indoor workout environments, when done properly, is an effective addition to any fitness routine. However, when HIIT is combined with infrared energy and heat, the human body responds with a supercharge to its metabolism and with the extra advantage of accelerated detox!
Studies have shown that HIIT training creates significant increases in muscle ability to oxidize fatty acid during exercise. The increasing body of research continues to prove the effectiveness of HIIT for fat burning and weight loss. One such study published in the Journal of Applied Physiology recorded data showing that HIIT can increase whole-body fat oxidation by 36 percent.” (1)
HIIT requires a burst of high-intensity sets or “intervals” that can shoot the heart rate to 80 percent of max or higher during those intervals. The high-intensity interval bursts are usually accomplished with increased speed from pedaling or rowing, for example, or from increased resistance levels, or from both increased speed combined with increased resistance.
I have consistently worked out at 90–95 percent of my HR max during the HOTWORX® 15-minute HIIT sessions. The infrared heat conditions the body to reach the target HR much faster than traditional weight rooms or fitness studios. Most trainers recommend that clients work hard enough to achieve 80 percent HR max during HIIT sessions. I would recommend that clients try to achieve a range of 75–85 percent of HR max to start before pushing it to higher percentages. By way of definition, the formula for HR max is as follows: take 220 and subtract your age. For example, as of the writing of this chapter, I am 56, so my calculation is 220 – 56 = 164 HR max.
Benefits of HIIT
HIIT is great for weight loss and is generally accepted as more effective for weight loss than traditional cardio or weight training. Logging just a few short HIIT sessions per week can greatly enhance any weight-loss effort. Studies have shown that HIIT improves body composition by decreasing fat mass and increasing lean body mass in both males and females.
HIIT Plus Infrared
Now, let’s take HIIT one step further. What about HIIT when combined with an infrared energy and heat environment such as that of the patented three-person, semi-private, HOTWORX® infrared fitness sauna? HOTWORX® introduced this type of workout in February of 2017, and since then, this HIIT form of 3D Training (infrared energy + heat + HIIT) has become wildly popular with studio members.
No doubt, HIIT creates a more effective workout in less time…but when combined with IR energy and heat, the results compound to create even more workout efficiency.
Inside the original HOTWORX® 24 Hour Infrared Fitness Studio in Oxford, Mississippi, the right side of the studio is all HIIT. It consists of a row of saunas dedicated to 15-minute HIIT routines equipped with either Schwinn cycles or Keiser Total Body Trainers. All HOTWORX® studios are equipped with these HIIT saunas.
With perfectly choreographed low-, medium-, and high-tension intervals throughout the 15-minute HIIT workouts, more can be accomplished in less time than ever before. Of course, this is another HOTWORX® original. The bike workout is called Hot Cycle, and the cross-row workout is known as Hot Row. The total-body trainer workout, appropriately named Hot Blast, is unique in that you’ll experience a chest press, rowing, and leg press all at once, and what an incredible full-body workout it is in just 15 minutes!
Give yourself just 15 minutes a day for HIIT during your holiday season this year and keep fitness ready as the new year approaches.
