HIIT Training on Treadmills Results In Faster Weight Loss
There is a way for you to lose weight fast on a treadmill. It's called HIIT. HIIT stands for High Intensity Interval Training. The great thing about HIIT is that your workouts are shorter, but the weight falls off faster. HIIT is also fun to do on a treadmill because it's interesting and you can change up your workout routine.
HIIT really became popular for treadmill owners when a study came out about a decade ago. The study involved test subjects who were put on exercise programs for five months. The subjects were put into two groups. The first group did steady pace cardio for 45 minutes. They started out at 60% of their maximum heart rate and by the time the study was over they were working out to 85% of their maximum heart rate.
The second group only did HIIT training for half an hour segments during the entire five months. Their exercise program consisted of warming up to 70% of their maximum heart rate, followed by an interval of ten seconds of exercise which lowered their heart rates. Then, the group did a 90 second intense interval of exercise that elevated their heart rates back up, followed by a less intense interval that brought their heart rates down. The entire 30 minutes of the workout, this was repeated over and over.
After the study was done experts concluded that the second group that had been doing HIIT used less energy and time working out during the five months. It was also found that the second group lost three times more fat than the other group, and the fat group two lost was primarily the fat that many people find so hard to get rid of, subcutaneous fat, or the fat that is directly beneath the skin.
HIIT is so effective because it makes your body need more oxygen. This is referred to as EPOC, or Excess Post-exercise Oxygen Consumption. After a HIIT workout your body needs more oxygen to get back to a resting state. This means your body will still be burning calories hours and hours after your workout is over. One study that was completed in 2002 reported that the resting metabolic rate of the individuals they monitored was still increased two days later. HIIT lets you say goodbye to slow metabolism and hello to weight loss!
Treadmill owners love doing HIIT because it works for so many of them. The added bonus is doing HIIT on a treadmill lets people have a fun workout quickly. HIIT routines are intense, but they should last no more than 20 to 30 minutes. Start your workout warming up to your maximum heart rate range, then cycle in and out of lower heart rate zones and then raise your heart rate back up to it maximum rate, again. Repeat this throughout your workout doing as many, or as few, intervals as you like.
The results you see doing HIIT may make you want to do it every day. But, it is recommended that you don't. HIIT should only be done two or three times per week because it is intense and it does put the body under stress. Experts recommend putting a day or two in between your HIIT routines so your body has time to adjust. Yet, you can relax knowing that while you may not be doing HIIT every day, you are still burning extra fat and calories!