Nowadays a lot of people are looking for easier ways to exercise, and HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) is gaining more popularity. You can do short bursts of activity at home and start feeling much better.

4 minutes of high intensity exercise per session can significantly improve your health

According to sciencedaily.com, researchers found that the current World Health Organisation (WHO) physical activity guidelines may be hard to attain. In high income countries a lot of citizens are time-poor due to family and work commitments, which leads to increasing rates of physical inactivity amongst adults.

Recent research shows that low-volume HIIT (typically involving less than 20 mins total exercise time, inclusive of warm up and cool down) leads to lasting improvements to people’s health.

4 minutes of high intensity exercise per session can significantly improve your health.

What is low-volume HIIT?

Low-volume HIIT is defined as interventions including less than 15 minutes of high intensity exercise per session (recovery periods excluded). A recent study published in Diabetes Care showed that as little as 4-min of HIIT 3 times per week for 12 weeks significantly improved blood sugar levels, fat in the liver, and cardiorespiratory fitness in adults with type 2 diabetes.

The new review also reported that low-volume HIIT leads to more effective heart function and better arterial health. The majority of the participants in the study admitted that they first doubted the effectiveness of short training and were very much surprised how great they felt after HIIT.

The majority of the participants in the study admitted that they first doubted the effectiveness of short training and were very much surprised how great they felt after HIIT.

Individualised low-volume HIIT is the safest way to exercise

Overall, low-volume HIIT is a safe way to exercise, including  populations with metabolic and heart problems. Nevertheless, people should always determine their individual suitability for such programs with their health care professionals.

Dr. Angelo Sabag, the author of the study said,”Tailored low-volume HIIT interventions delivered by appropriately trained exercise professionals may be more effective at an individual level, especially for time-poor individuals”.

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