Everyone Should ‘HIIT It!’

Going through the motions in life generally does not lead to improvement.  Lots of things you do in your day can seem tedious.

Often you drive somewhere and hardly remember anything about the drive. You’ve done it so many times in the past.

Or you read a page or two in a book about something really boring and you wonder what you just read.

That can be the case with exercise as well. You go for a jog, headset in, following the same route you always go.

You’re ‘in the zone’ and don’t think about what is going on around you.

Many people workout to check a box. Then they wonder why they are not seeing a lot of improvement.

As with many things in life, you have to push yourself a bit.

High-intensity interval training (HIIT) does that. You won’t find yourself ‘in the zone’ when you’re working out this way.

HIIT consists of exercising close to your best effort for a short period of time, followed by a rest period. Then lather, rinse repeat.

I try to do HIIT at least once a week. I go out to a local trail up a mountain and sprint. I run for 30 seconds as hard as I can. Then I take about 1.5 minutes to walk back down and rest.

Then I repeat 7 more times.

In 15 minutes I can get a pretty intense workout. And I’m breathing really hard. And I’m definitely not zoning out.

I also try to encourage my caregivers to put our residents through HIIT by using our Exercise with Oxygen Therapy (EWOT) machines.

HIIT doesn’t have to be running. It can be walking, swimming, weight training, cycling or any other exercise you can do intensely for 20 seconds to a minute at a time.

For some residents, we have them just stand up and sit down in their chair as quick as they can for 30 seconds to a minute at a time.

How do you know how intense to go? Well first talk to your doctor before starting any exercise program - especially if you have diabetes or heart disease. Then your intense sessions should be to the point where you can barely talk.

There are a lot of benefits to HIIT:

• Improved VO2 max and fitness levels

• Better cardiovascular health

• Metabolism functions better - you know - those mitochondria everyone talks about

• Builds muscle - especially if you do weightlifting or resistance training - so important for elderly people

• Increases fast-twitch muscle power - these decline rapidly as we age

• HIIT can improve all these areas much faster than regular workouts. And in a shorter period of time

Some research shows that HIIT can improve your heart function to the point where it works like it did 20 years ago:

HIIT is not easy to do. If you’re trying to help an elderly loved one, I suggest you do it with them. They are going to need some motivation to do it on a regular basis.

Why not try it? I feel REALLY good after the workout. And so do my residents. Better energy. Better sleep. And in some cases, better cognition.