Science
Shutterstock/Jacob Lund
You can get in a great high intensity interval circuit with a heavy bag.
- High-intensity workouts are some of the best ways to improve health and athletic performance.
- With a short, intense interval workout, researchers have found that some people see benefits equal to or better than those from conventional exercise routines.
- Here's how to get started.
If you want to make the most of a short span of time for working out, consider a high-intensity workout.
With brief bouts of high-intensity interval training, it's possible to achieve or even exceed the physical benefits that people get from spending much longer periods of time working out.
"Time is everything for people," Jason Barone, a clinical director at an organization called Professional Physical Therapy, previously told Business Insider. "High-intensity training is kind of perfect for the busy schedule - you don't need a gym, you can do it at your home, you're looking at about a 20- to 30-minute workout."
When Barone and other trainers talk about high-intensity workouts, a number of activities qualify. The basic idea is that people work out at close to full-on intensity for short periods of time instead of doing longer workouts at more moderate, 50-70% exertion levels. Some of these workouts include short sprints, some involve circuits of body-weight exercises, and others use weights or kettlebells.
High-intensity training is not always better than a more traditional exercise routine. There are good reasons to do longer workouts - they can help your body adapt to achieve certain fitness goals, such as preparing your joints and muscles for the strain of a long race like a marathon. But intense workouts are often the best way for athletes to improve performance.
They can have powerful effects on health too, helping people rev up metabolism to burn fat, lower blood pressure, and more.
Here's why you might want to give high-intensity training a try - and what you can do to get started.