How To Get Fit Lifting Weights

Trends in training are always on the move, and HIIT training seems to be the current “in thing” with the likes of Grit from Les Mills, CrossFit and Metafit really making it a mainstream phenomenon!

However, in my opinion this is just a rehash of good old fashioned circuit training boxed up and marketed effectively. Old school as they say, works.

The move away from the traditional sets and reps formula to a more target or goal oriented format has shown to be successful. HIIT training can increase muscle mass and improve fitness as well as help adherence to training.

For most people fitness usually means increased stamina, better endurance and is usually associated with cardiovascular (cv) exercise, which some see as boring and time consuming. CV exercise is also used as a fat burner; the more time spent doing cv the more calories burnt. HIIT training can burn more calories during and after a workout than traditional cv exercise over a similar programme length.

Traditional cv workouts can be spiced up by following a HIIT style format that will be more time efficient for most, and less boring overall. The heart health benefits of including HIIT training as part of your workouts have also proven to be more than just beneficial. This can include helping to reduce blood pressure towards optimal levels, to increase arterial elasticity, and to increase cardiovascular and cardiorespiratory health.

Imagine then, how easy HIIT training is to market and sell with all the following attributes:

• Boosts metabolism during exercise
• Metabolism remains elevated long after exercise stops
• Burns calories at a higher rate than traditional cv exercise
• Increases aerobic and anaerobic fitness
• Can increase muscle strength and size
• Efficient way to exercise (less time training)
• Variety of exercises and equipment available
• Excellent health benefits

Training efficiently, getting the most from every workout and more are all reasons to follow a HIIT style training programme. There are also some very specific benefits to this training method.

Getting older leads to a progressive increase in arterial stiffness, especially in large (central) arteries, which is accelerated by high blood pressure.

Moreover, young healthy individuals with a family history of hypertension can have increased arterial stiffness before any increase in blood  pressure is seen.

Although regular aerobic exercise appears to reduce age-associated arterial stiffness continuous moderate-intensity training interventions have failed to show any benefit for individuals with high blood pressure.

However, there is some evidence to show that HIIT training can reduce arterial stiffness in people with high blood pressure.

Always check with your doctor before starting a HIIT training schedule even if you don't have any symptoms of high blood pressure.

For more information on HIIT training workouts and exercises please get in touch by email tsilvester@getcoached.net or Facebook @getcoached.net or register your email address at www.getcoached.net for your free HIIT workout sheet.