When it comes to getting the heart racing, a HIIT programme is the remedy required. Short bursts of high energy combined with little rest will have the body screaming, get the metabolism fired and will leave you feeling great after a rush of endorphins . But with endless ideas out there, how exactly do you know you’re working to ensure efficient and effective fat burn? Click image to view full infographic.
How to build your HIIT workout
This is where we step in with our ‘Perfect HIIT Programme’ helping you to build the workout that will test your body and get you physically prepared for any situation. Here are the steps to creating your own HIIT workout based on our T3 workouts covering mobility, recovery and relaxation as well as the all-important high intensity intervals.
1. General Mobilisation
First, we want to prepare the body for exercise. This part of the workout includes exercises with big movements using the major muscles of the body. Arm circles, hip circles, torso rotations all help loosen those stiff joints. • 5 minutes
2. Specific Mobilisation
Now the body feels loose, let’s get more specific by doing some of the exercises we are going to use in the main workout, but at a lower intensity. This helps teach our body how to do the exercises correctly, before we increase the load. • Constant Work • 5 minutes
3. Pre-HIIT Conditioning
True HIIT is working at 120% VO2Max – that is HIGH INTENSITY. So we need to get our body producing a lot more energy, faster. At this stage of the workout we increase the intensity of the exercises so that we are working just below anaerobic threshold (which is where lactic acid is building up faster than your body can clear it, meaning you couldn’t continue). • 3 second sets with no rest • 5 minutes
4. HIIT
It’s time to work – and work hard. Put everything into every repetition of every exercise, for just 20 seconds. Then it’s 10 seconds rest before we do it again. 8 rounds is all it takes to maximise the benefits. If you can still speak, then you need to put more effort in. • 20 Second Sets with 10 Second Rest • 4 minutes
5. Active Recovery
Congratulations, you did it! But keep moving, our heart has worked hard so we don’t want to just stop. We can use some of the exercises we did in the mobilisation to keep the blood flowing and allow the heart rate to gradually slow down. • 20 Second Sets with 10 Second Rest • 4 minutes
6. Stretching
Exercise has a tendency to cause our muscles to shorten in length. We therefore need to return them to their pre-workout length by stretching. The easiest way to decide on which stretches to do is to look at the muscles we worked and stretch them. • 5 minutes
7. Relaxation
HITT is hard work for our cardiovascular system, muscles and also our nervous system. So take the time to relax before finishing up. Lie on the floor, close your eyes and focus on your breath. It does wonders for both body and mind. • 5 minutes
So who’s ready to #TRAIN?
If you are interested in creating more HIIT workouts for your clients, have a look at our T3 HIIT Workouts page for more information.
