3 ms·

I love the example of HIIT. I discovered it inadvertently 10 years ago when I switched to recreational sprinting as a primary form of exercise. It results in ex

I love the example of HIIT. I discovered it inadvertently 10 years ago when I switched to recreational sprinting as a primary form of exercise. It results in excellent physical conditioning with a minimal time investment (about one hour per week total). Establishing habits is difficult and complex. Finding highly efficient (in time, energy, drudgery, money, etc) ways to achieve a desired outcome is a critically important cornerstone of that process, in my experience.

TurkishPoptart 7y ago
Any way for lazy people to get started with HIIT without going to a gym?
- codingmess 7y ago
  There is an app by the people who invented it, afaik. And other apps, too. (7 Minute Workout, I think that's the same thing?)
- 52-6F-62 7y ago
  There is so much information available these days! Try this on—all you need is a little space: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q20pLhdoEoY https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q20pLhdoEoY
- realtalk_sp 7y ago
  Depending on how lazy you are, you could try running in place with the Tabata protocol. For me, one beautiful thing about sprinting is that you can do it anywhere you have a sufficiently lengthy stretch of open, flat ground. You can also shorten the sprint and do more of them to accommodate less permissive situations. I've even done wind sprints in my basement!
- Someone1234 7y ago
  I'd check out YouTube, there are tons of HIIT "classes" that you can do at home for zero or minimal cost. But there are also more specialised classes if you have some equipment or are a certain body composition (e.g. easier on the knees).
- 1e-9 7y ago
  Yes! One set of jump squats as high and as rapidly as you can do them without pause, until fatigued. Rest two to three days afterwards. Once you get into a habit where you hate to miss a workout, switch to doing burpees instead. You can do this anywhere, including a hotel room, so it minimizes reasons to skip. It is surprising how much this works your cardio as well as strength. You can get super-fit doing this one thing and you only need to do one set per workout. In each workout, focus on doing a few reps more and doing them a bit faster than the previous workout. Just be sure to start slow (maybe 6 reps on your first workout) and never increase by more than 10% of what you did on the previous workout. Never do this two days in a row. You get stronger on your rest days, not your workout days. For high intensity workouts, I find that two days of rest is better than one.
  - nradov 7y ago
    The guests in the room below would appreciate it if you utilized the hotel fitness center instead of doing burpees in your room.
    - 1e-9 7y ago
      This is a valid issue. If you aren't in a fitness center, you can exercise near a load-bearing wall or pillar to attenuate the floor impact harmonics, which always seems to work well for me.
- josephg 7y ago
  I've been playing Ring Fit Adventures on the nintendo switch, which takes you through a lot of different short exercise routines. I'm not sure if it technically counts as HIIT, but I do about 20 minutes every couple of days and work up a massive sweat in the process. Also because its a game I can play from my own lounge room, I'm finding I keep it up much more regularly than I have with a gym membership.
- switchbak 7y ago
  I find the biggest barrier to doing anything like this is the laziness itself. Thinking clearly about the choices I'm (not) making, and the trade offs I'm choosing helps me decide what I'd prefer to do. Reminding myself that activity makes me feel much better helps a lot too. I hate gyms as well (I see them as a necessary evil these days). Personally I grab my bike and go mountain biking a lot. Not HIIT per-se, but very spikey bursts of effort. You could accomplish some high quality interval work with a simple road bike (a hill helps) and a good attitude. The benefit to this being far less impact compared to sprints. Just be a little careful starting with high intensity stuff - you want to slowly ramp this up over a handful of weeks or more. True high intensity work with insufficient muscle conditioning is a quick way to get injured (think ham/glute/calf pulls, tears, etc), and you do need to be careful when ramping up the cardio side - heart issues aren't fun.

TurkishPoptart 7y ago

Any way for lazy people to get started with HIIT without going to a gym?

codingmess 7y ago
There is an app by the people who invented it, afaik. And other apps, too. (7 Minute Workout, I think that's the same thing?)
52-6F-62 7y ago
There is so much information available these days! Try this on—all you need is a little space: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q20pLhdoEoY https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q20pLhdoEoY
realtalk_sp 7y ago
Depending on how lazy you are, you could try running in place with the Tabata protocol. For me, one beautiful thing about sprinting is that you can do it anywhere you have a sufficiently lengthy stretch of open, flat ground. You can also shorten the sprint and do more of them to accommodate less permissive situations. I've even done wind sprints in my basement!
Someone1234 7y ago
I'd check out YouTube, there are tons of HIIT "classes" that you can do at home for zero or minimal cost. But there are also more specialised classes if you have some equipment or are a certain body composition (e.g. easier on the knees).
1e-9 7y ago
Yes! One set of jump squats as high and as rapidly as you can do them without pause, until fatigued. Rest two to three days afterwards. Once you get into a habit where you hate to miss a workout, switch to doing burpees instead. You can do this anywhere, including a hotel room, so it minimizes reasons to skip. It is surprising how much this works your cardio as well as strength. You can get super-fit doing this one thing and you only need to do one set per workout. In each workout, focus on doing a few reps more and doing them a bit faster than the previous workout. Just be sure to start slow (maybe 6 reps on your first workout) and never increase by more than 10% of what you did on the previous workout. Never do this two days in a row. You get stronger on your rest days, not your workout days. For high intensity workouts, I find that two days of rest is better than one.
- nradov 7y ago
  The guests in the room below would appreciate it if you utilized the hotel fitness center instead of doing burpees in your room.
  - 1e-9 7y ago
    This is a valid issue. If you aren't in a fitness center, you can exercise near a load-bearing wall or pillar to attenuate the floor impact harmonics, which always seems to work well for me.
josephg 7y ago
I've been playing Ring Fit Adventures on the nintendo switch, which takes you through a lot of different short exercise routines. I'm not sure if it technically counts as HIIT, but I do about 20 minutes every couple of days and work up a massive sweat in the process. Also because its a game I can play from my own lounge room, I'm finding I keep it up much more regularly than I have with a gym membership.
switchbak 7y ago
I find the biggest barrier to doing anything like this is the laziness itself. Thinking clearly about the choices I'm (not) making, and the trade offs I'm choosing helps me decide what I'd prefer to do. Reminding myself that activity makes me feel much better helps a lot too. I hate gyms as well (I see them as a necessary evil these days). Personally I grab my bike and go mountain biking a lot. Not HIIT per-se, but very spikey bursts of effort. You could accomplish some high quality interval work with a simple road bike (a hill helps) and a good attitude. The benefit to this being far less impact compared to sprints. Just be a little careful starting with high intensity stuff - you want to slowly ramp this up over a handful of weeks or more. True high intensity work with insufficient muscle conditioning is a quick way to get injured (think ham/glute/calf pulls, tears, etc), and you do need to be careful when ramping up the cardio side - heart issues aren't fun.