With the new year in full swing, the nation is a wash with people setting resolution and starting new adventures. My personal resolution is to be more consistent with my blogs! Anyway, many people will be looking to start their own fitness adventure or break from their current regime. With the ever increasing popularity of high intensity interval training, functional fitness, many of you are more than likely to have a go a CrossFit. The draw of high intensity, fat burning workouts that are over in a blink of an eye is obvious. However, if you want to get the most out of your new ball busting metcons, you may want to broaden your horizons a little.
The Benefits of HIIT
The Australian Family Physician Journal suggest the benefits of aerobic exercise, such as weightloss are amplified by HIIT. They suggest, benefits include increased cardiovascular and metabolic adaptations. Furthermore, The Journal of Strength & Conditioning discuss how HIIT can have the following improvements in:
- Blood pressure
- Insulin signalling
- Fat loss
- Increases in growth hormone
They also suggest as few as 6 x 15 minute sessions, across two weeks lead to an increase in the oxidative capacity of muscles and metabolic control during exercise. Despite this, recent research into specific CrossFit style workouts has suggested that strength plays an important role as well.
The Role of Strength
In a recent post by WODScience on Instagram, the role of strength within two typical CrossFit workouts was examined. The two workouts include a variety of weightlifting movements along with some gymnastics exercises. The study look at whether strength or endurance was a better predictor of performance.
The results found that strength was a better predictor in short, explosive workouts. The authors suggest that if you are searching to set a PR in one of these shorter “benchmark” workouts, becoming stronger is a recommended strategy.
At NK Fitness, our leading Personal trainers in Surrey will ensure you get foundational levels of, alongside a healthy dose of HIIT.
