HIIT vs LISS

High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) has gained popularity over the past few years for numerous reasons:

1.     shorter workouts 

2.     lose abdominal fat+body weight

3.     improve blood pressure, cardiovascular health+insulin sensitivity

4.     can be done with minimal or no equipment

Even though this workout style shows promising results it might hurting you more than it’s helping you. Wait, what?

HIIT can be highly stressful to the body. If you are only doing HIIT without taking rest days and not letting your body recover you’re going to start experiencing negative results. In order for our muscles to grow they tear. When they repair themselves they get stronger/denser/bigger. If you are constantly tearing that muscle and not allowing proper repair time you’re stuck in limbo – not repairing, not growing. You may experience more fatigue or a plateau in weight loss or gains in the gym. 

How do we avoid this? Incorporate other forms of training. Like?

Low Impact Steady State (LISS) training. Tell me about it: 

1.     Keep heart rate at consistent level, minimal variability

2.     Gentler on the body

3.     Can be done anywhere

4.     Lose body weight

What do LISS workouts look like?

Longer cardio sessions (50+min) – walking, biking, jogging – or restorative yoga or Pilates. 

So, which one is better?

Personally, I think this is a shit question. “Better” looks different for everyone, you must establish what “better” means to you. How??

Think back to your original goal. What are you working to achieve? That’s how you define what “better” looks like for yourself. A general rule of thumb is to incorporate both LISS and HIIT/strength training in your routine. This allows your body time to recover so you can keep pushing harder. 

Still have questions about HIIT and LISS or goal setting or picking workouts? Let’s chat so you can feel confident moving forward!