How to Easily Overcome the 2 Most Common Barriers to Exercising.
One of the biggest reasons patients tell me they cant work out is that they do not have enough time. In the fast paced world we live in this can be a very valid argument.When many people think of working out they think of driving to the gym, parking, finding open equipmentand laboring over “how” to workout to get the most out of their time that day. Not only can this be time consuming but it can be intimidating as well. Luckily, there are many was to get around these barriers. One way is through High Intensity Interval Training or HIIT. HIIT is a training technique in which you give all-out, one hundred percent effort through quick, intense bursts of exercise, followed by short, sometimes active, recovery periods. This type of training gets and keeps your heart rate up and burns more fat in less time. Here are some good reasons to consider HIIT:1. Increases Your MetabolismCombing high intensity with interval training results in EPOC (Excess Post-exercise Oxygen Consumption) which speeds your metabolic rate and translates into a metabolism boost for up to 48 hours after a complete HIIT routine. This means you’ll still be burning fat even after you’ve completed the workout2. Its quick and ConvenientLong gone are the days of not having enough time for exercise. HIIT workouts can be done anywhere: at home, in a hotel room, in a park, at a gym, etc. And most are 30 minutes or less! Who can’t spare that?3. No Equipment NecessaryNo dumbbells? No problem! HIIT workouts generally use only your body weight, since the focus is on getting your heart rate up and keeping it there.Now there are several things to keep in mind when considering using HIIT as a form of training and the first and foremost is injury prevention. Although HIIT can be very effective in little amounts of time it may not be the best choice for those without at least some baseline level of fitness. A good example of this is CrossFit training. I am a participant and a supporter of this type of training but if not done properly and scaled to your level of fitness it can easily lead to serious injuries. An awesome resource I have recently discovered is a website and YouTube channel called Fitness Blender. It is a husband and wife combo who put together HITT style fitness videos out of the garage and the best thing about it is the vast majority of their videos are FREE for anyone who wants to use them. The videos are well put together and provide excellent instruction and guidance on how to properly do the moves without being overly annoying. The videos are anywhere from 5 to 90 minutes long and incorporate full body training. Some of the workouts require dumbbells however the majority of the workouts are body weight only and can be completed in a small space in your home. Not only does this solve the “I don’t have time to workout” scenario but also the “I don’t know what I am doing” concern many people have. They have an awesome series called 5 Day Workout Challenge which features 45-60 min workouts or the 5 Day Workout Challenge For Busy People which features 20-30 min workouts. You can find them at www.fitnessblender.com or go to YouTube and type in fitness blender. Click here to check out Day 1 of the 5 Day Workout Challenge for Busy People.Check it out and let me know what you think in the comments section below!!
Dr. Dyer, IntegrativeDO
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