If you have read my story then you know I love strength training, and I focus on Powerlifting. Cardio isn’t and never has been my favorite things to do but it does have positive effects on cardiovascular health and can helpful to aid in fat loss efforts if implemented properly and in the right amounts. Cardio in itself isn’t horrible, but I absolutely detest long, boring cardio. You know, running or walking on the treadmill for an entire hour. Like seriously, who has an hour a day for cardio? And who doesn’t get bored doing cardio for an entire 60 minutes?
If you’re not familiar with HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training), it’s basically cardio that alternates between intense bursts of activity and periods of less-intense activity, or it could even be a complete rest period.
There’s lots of positives to performing HIIT cardio. For one, it’s extremely time efficient. If you have 15 to 20 minutes, you have enough to time for an incredibly effective, fat burning sweat session. Another benefits of HIIT cardio is that studies show that you burn more calories during a high intensity workout versus just jogging or walking on the treadmill, and you burn more fat and calories in the 24 hours after a HIIT workout than you would doing steady state cardio.
Combining weight training with HIIT cardio is a win! HIIT cardio is extremely effective at reducing body fat without muscle loss. The combination of strength training and HIIT allows you reduce your body fat while preserving your hard earned muscles. That is exactly what we are after.
Lastly, I find steady state cardio extremely boring. I used to be a cardio queen but I literally hated it. I would seriously dread going to the gym to put myself through hours of cardio. This may not be the case for you at all. However, one thing I can guarantee you is that HIIT cardio is not boring! You will be working extremely hard the entire time, sucking wind, and working with such intensity, I promise you will not be bored.
I would recommend doing HIIT cardio two to three times a week maximum. I usually perform it after strength training or on a day I don’t strength train at all. I never do it before working out because it will likely leave you super winded and spent.
HIIT cardio is great for endurance, cardio vascular health, fat burning, and a great way to challenge yourself. There’s plenty of reasons to give it a try.
Sprints are one of my absolute favorites for HIIT cardio. Here’s an example of how you can implement sprints for an effective, high intensity cardio session:
Sprints
Outdoor version
- Sprint as fast as you can for 200 meters (half of the track)
- Walk for 200 meters
Alternate between these two for 5-10 rounds.
Treadmill version
- 20 seconds all out sprinting
- 2 minute recovery between sprints (either a light jog or walking on an incline)
Repeat for 5-10 rounds.
You are also in luck because I have created a free HIIT Cardio Crusher guide to get you started with HIIT. It contains 5 unique HIIT workouts. Some of which require gym equipment and others that don’t.
Grab your free copy here—–>>>>>> http://bit.ly/cardiocrusher
Xo,
Chrissy
