The Workouts for Fat Loss

The title of the last post "Time to 'HIIT' the Gym!" Why did I spell "hit" like that? If you research any kind of intense cardio workout you'll find a great number of experts that recommend High Intensity Interval Training, or HIIT. What an HIIT workout generally consists of is breaking the workout into short intervals done at your maximum intensity followed by an interval of almost complete motionless rest.

For example, the cardio workouts for monday's and tuesday's are both examples of HIIT Cardio workouts.

When I do the hill sprints, I get on a treadmill and I raise the incline to 10.5 and I put the speed up to 8.8. I then sprint for a period of 20 seconds then I will jump off and rest for 20 seconds and I keep repeating this for 10 minutes. This is probably one of the highest intensity workouts you could ever do but remember it is only 10 minutes.

When I do the jump rope routine I will jump rope for 2 minutes straight, then I will rest for a minute. I will continue this until I have completed 10 sets of 2 minutes.

The reason HIIT is so good for fat loss is because it creates spikes in your heart rate which, in a sense, shocks the body making it release fat from all over your body utilizing it for energy. In layman's terms it makes your body say OH SHIT I AM ABOUT TO FALL OFF A TREADMILL!!!!! GIVE ME SOME FAT FOR FUEL SO I CAN KEEP UP WITH THIS DUDE!!

These are perfect examples of High Intensity "Interval" workouts. The 2 mile run and treading water are simply High Intensity Workouts. NOW in the world of fitness jargon, a high intensity workout is characterized as any workout where your heart rate is above 65% of your maximum heart rate for over 10 minutes.

A good way to figure your maximum heart rate is to take 220 and subtract your age. I am 22 so my max heart rate is 198. So theoretically if my heart rate goes to 199 it will explode, but clearly this is not what we want. I have figured out that in order for me to do any kind of High Intensity Workout-a workout that forces your body to utilize fat for energy, I need to keep my heart rate above 148 for a little over 10 minutes.

So remember, if your heart rate is above 65% of your maximum heart rate, there is a really good chance you are burning fat for energy and saving muscle.

Do a workout like this after about 20-25 minutes of lifting free weights and your metabolism will soar. Do this 3-5 times a week, coupled with a diet filled with fibrous carbohydrates, lean meats, fruits, and vegetables and BAM!!!! You are losing fat and you are looking and feeling straight SEXY!!\

Enjoy