Life Intensity Training: The Right Workout When You’re Too Busy
We all get too busy from time to time. And when you’re on the lookout for a workout that fits into your busy lifestyle, it can be quite a challenge. Of course, eating healthily isn’t too difficult, because we all make time to sit down and have a meal, but we don’t place the same amount of importance on a workout. So, if you are too busy to hit the gym at least three times a week, are there options for you?
High-Intensity Interval Training
No doubt you’ve heard of this already, HIIT has taken the exercise world by storm because it’s a workout routine that has all the benefits of a typical session, but in half the time. Be warned, it’s in the name, it is very intense! But the benefits can be felt long after the workout has been completed. There are variations of high-intensity training, such as Tabata sprints, but there are so many different resources online to suit your lifestyle. But, it’s important that when embarking on a workout routine that is so intense, that you are knowledgeable of the form, but also that you are supporting your body adequately. With something like Tabata sprints, you are going to be placing a lot of pressure on your legs and your feet, and this is where insoles like Biopods can give you that support you need. But also, make sure that your workout clothes are comfortable and don’t cause chafing. With Tabata sprints, it’s all about pushing the intensity for a specific period of time, around 90% intensity, for a minute, and then going back to 60% intensity, before going back to that full intensity again.
Body By Science
While Tabata sprints and high-intensity training focuses on the running aspect, this type of workout focuses on weight training. The idea behind this and many similar “slow rep” workouts is that you’re putting your body under a lot of stress so that you don’t need to go back to the gym for at least 7 to 10 days after the workout. This was pioneered by a scientist, Dr. Doug McGuff, but the fundamentals behind it is that you lift machine weights at a very slow pace. By doing it slowly, you are focusing your entire strength on keeping this weight up in the air. So, on the lifting phase of a barbell press, you would normally rest at the top, but with this exercise, you stop before you reach the top, so you are putting yourself under constant tension. A lift and lower move would take roughly 40 to 60 seconds, accounting for 20 to 30 seconds on the lift portion, and the same again for the lowering. In the Body By Science protocol, you do just five moves, and they are all compound exercises. This is an incredibly intense workout because you’re not relying on the momentum to lift the weight, but your fundamental strength.
As far as gaining muscle and fitness when you have no time, these two workouts should be more than enough to keep your body healthy. It’s not recommended to do these together because they are too intense for beginners, but once you acquire a certain base level of fitness, there’s no reason to say you can’t do both alternately. So, if you really are too busy to workout, these are going to be the way forward for you.
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