Balancing HIIT Exercise with Steady-State Cardio

WHAT IS HIIT?

High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) is not new.  It has been used by athletic coaches for a long time.  In the late 1990’s, research including a study by Izimi Tabata, suggested that HIIT could produce results similar to “long slow distance” but in a much shorter time period.  HIIT involves alternating short but intense bursts of heart-pumping exercise with longer periods of rest, or very low-level work that allows your heart rate and breathing to return to normal in time for the next round of a high-level push.  The idea is to work at a level that is at 90-100% of your maximum capacity- that you could not continue doing past 30-90 seconds, and then resting for 90 seconds to 3 minutes.  Great examples of how to create HIIT programs are in the references below.

WHY THE SHIFT AWAY FROM “LONG SLOW DISTANCE” TRAINING?

Most of the recent research that supports the idea that this type of exercise is not optimal, or even healthy, applies specifically to those who engage in marathons, ultramarathons, ironman triathlons, and the like.  Many of these athletes have sustained literal damage to their hearts in the form of enlarged hearts, scarring, and plaque buildup.  They produce excessive amounts of cortisol, the “stress hormone” that instructs the brain to store fat and inhibit the body’s ability to process sugar.  General tissue breakdown, microtears in muscle fibers, a weakened immune system, insomnia, and higher levels of inflammation are all attributed to participation in extreme endurance sports.  But this is not true for those who engage in shorter duration steady-state cardio workouts.  Critics argue that you will not build much muscle mass, strength, or power doing “long slow distance”.  This is why the concept of cross-training, including HIIT and weightlifting, are part of a balanced workout program.  The argument that traditional cardio is not “sports specific” is most often not the case.  Most sports involve spurts of high-intensity work, but the participant needs to stay in the game for longer than a few minutes!  Most team sports are highly reliant on the aerobic energy system and the body needs these longer duration, lower intensity workouts too.

So, yes, if you do nothing else but long slow distance, it can be harder on weightbearing joints (hips, knees, ankles, feet) and can lead to adverse effects of overtraining which include chronic soreness, stiffness, poor concentration, insufficient rest for muscle growth, and overuse injuries.

WHY DO HIIT?

*   FAT LOSS   This is the biggest reason people jump onto the HIIT bandwagon. HIIT workouts trigger an Excess Post-Exercise Oxygen Deficit or EPOC effect.  This means that the body will burn fat calories after our workouts, and our metabolism remains elevated for several hours.

GOOD WAY TO TRAIN FOR SPORTS   How it all got started, with sprints and drills specific to athletic performance in individual and team sports.

LESS TIME, MORE FUN   People like to be able to get in a quick but effective workout and enjoy it more!

DRAWBACKS?    

Here’s where the idea of not completely abandoning steady-state cardio comes in.  Unless you are very deconditioned, HIIT does not improve our aerobic fitness.  Any initial gains will plateau as fitness level improves.  Claims of increased aerobic capacity  with HIIT are tied to the Tabata study mentioned above, but the subjects involved also did low-to-moderate exercise days in between their HIIT days. 

Another reason not to focus on HIIT exclusively; it stimulates our already over-stimulated Autonomic Nervous System (ANS), which has two components.  The Sympathetic system is our “flight or fight”, ramped up, anxious state.  Contrary to this is the Parasympathetic system, which is our chilled out, relaxed, rest and digest state.  Now, which do you think most of us operate in 90% of the time?  We work too many hours.  We stay up too late.  We don’t sleep enough, or very well.  We go, go, go all the time.  We are always stressed, from commuting, working, parenting, and now at the gym! Our workouts should be strenuous to produce the desired effects, but should not perpetuate this type of living.  We need to spend some time with our Parasympathetic selves. 

ENTER (ie: RE-ENTER) LONGER DURATION, STEADY STATE, LOWER INTENSITY CARDIO.

Exercising at 50-70% maximum capacity, for 30-90 minutes, one or two times a week has benefits that are complimentary to HIIT. It most certainly improves cardiovascular function, or heart efficiency.  Low intensity work allows a maximal amount of blood to profuse in the heart, stretching its muscular walls so that more blood goes in and out with each beat.  The result is a slower resting heart rate, and a faster return to baseline from an elevated heart rate.  A fit and healthy heart!

Having good cardiovascular fitness allows you to be able to sustain repeated high intensity bursts (such a sprinting in a soccer game or high-energy moves in basketball).   If, however, you are anaerobically fit from HIIT but aerobically weak, you can go hard for a little bit but gas out quickly.   There are a lot of elite athletes as well as just exercise enthusiasts out there with resting heart rates above 70 beats/minute, living almost perpetually in a sympathetic state.  Ideally our resting heart rates should be below 60 beats/minute and thus operating in a more parasympathetic state.

Shifting towards the parasympathetic ANS by incorporating steady-state cardio relieves stress and anxiety and improves sleep quality. It helps us recover more quickly from games and matches and in between training sessions.  HIIT depends on the aerobic system to restore the body to its neutral state after each interval during HIIT workouts, and after the workout itself.

THE BOTTOM LINE

There is not one, universal type of physical conditioning that covers all the bases.   Each end of the spectrum has benefits that together create a healthy, well-functioning body.  A smart program will build an aerobic foundation and incorporate HIIT and strength training to avoid injury, boredom, and interject some peace into our stressful lives.  Whether your goal is to improve your athletic performance, over just move and feel better, balancing your training is the way to go.

References:

Heffernan, Andrew. (2014). Steady State Cardio versus High Intensity Interval Training. Healthy Revolution Conference and published in Experience Life Magazine (Jan/Feb 2014)

Robertson, Mike. 2013.  Retrieved from http://robertsontrainingsystems.com

Jamieson, Joel. 2017.  Retrieved from www.8weeksout.com

Mercola, Joseph. 2014.  Retrieved from http://fitness.mercola.com

Axe, Josh. Retrieved from www.draxe.com/section/fitness/burst-hiit

www.mayoclinic.org/healthylifestylefitness

Ballantyne, Craig, and Ratcliff, Chelsea.  (2017). The Great Cardio Myth.  Beverly, MA. Fair Winds Press.

About the Author: Carolyn Miclean, MPT

Carolyn grew up in the Bay Area and has lived on the peninsula all of her adult life. As a founder member of the Bay Club in Redwood Shores, living and promoting a healthy lifestyle are values she holds personally and professionally. She received her Bachelor of Science degree in Kinesiology at UCLA, and a Masters of Physical Therapy from the University of the Pacific. She brings 20 years of clinical experience treating children, teens and adults with a one-on-one, hands-on approach to patient care.  She enjoys working to restore each patient to an optimal level of function and performance, whether it is after an acute injury, a need for post-operative rehabilitation, or to regain an active lifestyle from more complicated issues related to fibromyalgia and hypermobility.  Carolyn and her husband are parents of four grown sons.  Her interests outside of work include spending time working out at the Bay Club, snow and water skiing, gardening, and healthy cooking.

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