What is high intensity training?

What is HIT anyway?

If you’re anything like us, you want maximum exercise results, in minimum time. Enter the latest trend to sweep the fitness world: high intensity training (aka HIT). Beloved by trainers everywhere, it made international headlines recently thanks to research by scientists at Nottingham and Birmingham Universities. Their theory? Just three minutes of HIT training, three times a week, was enough to deliver health benefits. And while that might sound impossible, it’s music to the ears of busy women everywhere, who’ve taken to super-speedy workouts like CrossFit (based on intense 15-20 minute sessions) and Tabata (designed by Japanese Professor Izumi Tabata and involving eight rounds of 20-second bouts) in droves.

But how does it work?
While there’s no “set in stone” procedure for HIT (also called high intensity interval training or HIIT), according to fitness trainer Natalie Carter from New Outlook Fitness, it can involve anywhere from 3 to 12 anaerobic activites such as sprinting or hill running – “exercises that require a big kilojoule and effort output”. HIT can span up to 30 minutes per session and involves rest periods between each burst of activity. So why does it work so well? In the case of Tabata, you’ll be improving your aerobic and anaerobic system mush more than traditional cardio training. It’ll also fire up your metabolism which will lead to an after-effect – meaning post-workout you’ll still be burning fat and kilojoules. Bonus!

Can you get fit in 3 minutes?
You better believe it. But first, “It’s essential to start off with longer rest periods and short high intensity bursts”, says Carter. Experts recommend three to four sessions per week maximum of HIT, with rest days to give your body time to recharge. Research published in The Journal of Physiology found that, instead of long stints in the gym or outdoor running, the same health and fitness results could be achieved in less than a third of the time thanks to HIT. Get more for doing less? Sounds like a winner to us.