Written by: Jeremiah O’Connor – Owner of BULLFROGFIT
Have you ever heard the phrase, ‘HIIT’ workout? If you haven’t heard of it,
chances are you’ve seen people using this technique of exercise in their training regimen. High Intensity Interval Training basically describes any workout that involves high intensity training for a specific period of time followed by a period of low intensity training or even a complete break for a short duration.
So, what does this have to do with you and why does it even matter? In this short article, we will go over the benefits and the drawbacks of HIIT workouts, we will find out if HIIT Training exercises are good for YOU as an individual, we will talk about the training equipment that can be used during HIIT, and finally we will compare HIIT workouts to resistance training tools like the ‘Gorilla Bow’, to determine how they relate and how they can be combined for the ultimate fat burning routine!
Why should you be doing MORE HIIT workouts than your same old routine?
In today’s busy world, so many of us ‘don’t have enough time’ to spend hours at the gym. That’s no problem at all for those of you that decide to focus more on HIIT training; research shows that you can achieve more progress in just 15 minutes of interval training (done 3 times per week) than the girl or guy jogging on the treadmill for an hour per day!
You’ll burn more calories during high intensity interval training than you will at a low to medium intensity jog or run! Not to mention, the effect of putting your body through so much exertion causes your muscles to need more repair time, putting the cycle into hyper drive! As a result, you’ll burn more calories and fat initially and you will continue to burn the calories and fat during the repair cycle! (24 hours post workout!!!)
Equipment is OPTIONAL! This is a major benefit that so many people sometimes forget. Having the option to exercise at any place, any time you want to, and STILL get just as good of a sweat as if you were at the gym; is a major advantage! ‘Not having a gym membership’ is OLD NEWS if that’s your excuse! All it takes is a few timed stations with minimal rests in between and ‘BAM’, just like that you’ve burned between 300-500 calories in under 20 minutes! Your body weight stations can consist of anything from pushups and mountain climbers to squats or burpees or anything plyometric really…the list goes on! That being said, choosing to use equipment will only better your results, since adding weight or resistance to any exercise will of course make it more challenging and in turn, you will burn more calories! A few examples of HIIT training exercises WITH equipment are cycling or rowing; making sure to interval train (high intensity for 1-2 minutes, low intensity for 1-2 minutes depending on your fitness level). Another example is something as simple as timed resistance training stations like the following:
Follow the 10 Minute HIIT Training exercise below, leaving 15 second breaks in between each station!
- Kettlebell Swings- 1 Minute
- Gorilla Bow Chest Press – 1 Minute
- Curl & Press with Dumbbells – 1 minute
- High Plank – 1 minute
- Squat Jumps – 1 minute
- Gorilla Bow Curls – 1 Minute
- Gorilla Bow Back Rows – 1 Minute
- Pushups – 1 Minute
Interested in learning more about what the heck a ‘Gorilla Bow’ is? Read on…
Weight loss as a result of HIIT training, resistance training and weight training comes from your FAT stores and NOT your hard earned muscle tissue! If you have ever dieted or tried to lose that stubborn fat that we all deem undesirable, you’ve probably wondered exactly how much of your weight loss is coming from actual fat, actual muscle and even water weight, right? Wonder no more… weight training and HIIT exercises are proven to INCREASE your metabolism and lean muscle tissue while ensuring most of the weight loss comes from that stubborn fat! As long as you are consuming an adequate amount of protein from low fat sources, you can rest easy that you won’t lose the muscle tissue you’ve worked so hard to achieve!
HIIT stimulates natural production of your human growth hormone (HGH), according to the ‘National Center for Biotechnology Information’ and the ‘U.S. National Library of Medicine’. Your HGH is increased by up to 450 percent during the 24 hours prior to finishing your workout! WOW! Who needs steroids when you can increase your HGH levels at that kind of rate! HGH slows the aging process and gives us more energy and increases our metabolism, and the best part, it’s ALL NATURAL! If you’re looking to pack on some muscle size or mass, maybe you should think about adding in some HIIT training to your STRONG MAN routine!
HIIT training IS NOT for everyone and SHOULD not be underestimated! While HIIT training sounds so desirable, it may seem like EVERYONE should be doing it right? Wrong. Everyone is different; physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. Each and every one of us reacts and responds differently to new stimuli, be it a new workout or a new car. We have to understand that HIIT training is NOT for everyone…that is NOT to say that it CAN be for YOU in time. Due to such high exertion levels with minimal breaks, individuals who have not exercised regularly or people with current or past injuries or health conditions, should take precautions and check with their GP before starting a HIIT training routine. That being said, with time, consistent practice and exercise on a daily basis, almost ANYONE can participate in a HIIT training exercise, as long as the exercise and/ or HIGH and LOW intervals are MODIFIED to each person’s fitness level.
How does HIIT Training compare to Resistance Training Equipment and can they be combined?
We talked about HIIT training; what it is, the benefit of this modern technique, whether or not it may be good for YOU, and we uncovered some examples of a typical HIIT routine. What’s left? The introduction of the MODERN resistance training tool; the ‘Gorilla Bow’, and how it can be used as a HIIT workout for the ultimate FAT BURNING routine! The Gorilla Bow is a total game changer for so many of us! From athletes to ‘stay at home’ moms, this resistance training tool will allow you to train at any time and at any place with little to no set up or clean up! The Gorilla Bow idea was derived from combining the ancient weapon, the ‘bow and arrow’ with modern resistance band technology for a total body workout.
The benefits of combining resistance training with HIIT training are simply endless. The major advantage of resistance training in using resistance bands in particular over stationary exercise machines, is that they allow a constant resistance over the full range of motion! Not many exercise tools can say they do the same. In combing resistance training with high intensity interval training, not only are you putting your body through intense exertion and minimal repair time, but you are LITERALLY allowing NO rest in between repetitions. Let us break this down for you even further…
Let’s compare 1 minute of resistance training on the Gorilla Bow with 1 minute of dumbbell curls. Like we just stated, the Gorilla Bow is going to give you no rest in between repetitions due to its CONSTANT RESISTANCE over the full range of motion, whereas most people will typically pause for a second or more at the bottom of the dumbbell curl. Those little ‘pauses’ or ‘mini breaks’ add up over the course of a minute, and so as you can see – resistance training will WIN every time when you are looking for constant resistance through an exercise.
So what’s better- weight training, static exercises, resistance training, plyometric, cardio, or stationary machines? How about combining all of them in ONE single HIIT exercise for the ULTIMATE FAT BURN? Give the Gorilla Bow a try! Resistance training and HIIT exercise is on its way back around to many of the gyms around the world, as its results are unparalleled to any other type of workout. www.GorillaBow.com
I hope this article will give you some new insight to your next workout, and don’t forget the MOST important part of your exercise – breathing!
Written by: Jeremiah O’Connor – Owner of BULLFROGFIT
