My favorite HIIT exercise for Grappling
High intensity interval training is one of the most beneficial forms of exercise for your heart. It’s also known to improve your overall health while making you more fit. This specific form of training consists of intense aerobics with brief breaks that keep building up until you are too exhausted to continue. One of my favorite high intensity interval training techniques are uphill sprints.
What Is High Intensity Interval Training and what Is it Used for?
Although I briefly described high intensity interval training above, there’s a lot more to it. Some folks have a hard time understanding why you would commit to such an intense form of exercise.
When you see someone panting heavily and sweating profusely, there’s a good chance that it’s because they have just done some kind of high intensity interval training. If you find yourself in a similar condition after an uphill sprint, don’t be alarmed, it’s pretty typical for anyone who does high intensity interval training exercises.
So why exactly should you willingly decide to do high intensity interval training and get all sweaty and out of breath? Athletes and health-conscious individuals prefer high intensity interval training because it’s one of the fastest and most effective ways to reach their fitness goals.
If you just to low-impact aerobics a few times a week, it’s going to take a while to lose weight, let alone build any muscle. For those of you who are serious about fitness and either want to burn fat or pump up those guns that you don’t have yet, high intensity interval training is the way to go.
Before diving straight into any kind of high intensity interval training, you have to remember that each exercise isn’t for everyone. Some of you will prefer various exercises and techniques over others. My personal favorite high intensity interval training exercise is an uphill sprint. It’s simple and effective, a killer combo in my book.
What are uphill Sprints and Why Should You Incorporate Them Into Your Regimen?
One of the best things about uphill sprinting is that it’s extremely easy, in concept at least. The actual physical act of uphill sprinting is actually quite difficult which is actually a good thing because that means that it will help you build more muscle. All you need for an uphill sprint is an incline and a passion for fitness. When you approach the hill, don’t look all the way up to the top, just do some quick stretches and bolt as fast as you can until you either reach the top of the hill or legitimately need to stop from exhaustion.
Uphill sprints are my favorite form of high intensity interval training for a reason. Compared to other high intensity interval training exercises, uphill sprints present a lower risk on your knees so that you don’t sustain any serious damage while doing the exercise. They are also comparatively more difficult than some of the other high intensity interval training techniques so which means it can help build muscle.
Once you’ve made the decision to try out uphill sprints, it’s important to start slow and gradually build up to it. It’s also important that you don’t do uphill sprints too frequently. If you want to get the most value out of this exercise you should try to do an uphill sprint a few times a week, but not necessarily every single day.
If you’re going to do an uphill sprint in the Summer, be sure to drink plenty of water and either Powerade, Gatorade, or whichever sports drink you prefer so that you will replenish your electrolytes.
There are many reasons why you should incorporate uphill sprinting into your exercise regimen, even if you’re not focusing on high intensity interval training. Let’s take a closer look at teh benefits of uphill sprinting.
The Biggest Advantages of Uphill Sprinting
Uphill sprinting has some truly spectacular health benefits, and not all of them are physical which makes this form of exercise rather unique. An uphill sprint will increase your both physical and mental stamina. That means that you’ll be sharper, smarter, stronger, and able to go longer. Not bad for a super simple exercise right? That’s why I love it so much and you should too!
You will also notice that you’ll be able to run faster and have improved acceleration. The more uphill sprinting you do, the faster you’ll be able to run. Just keep raising that bar and building up your threshold, you’d never know how fast you can run until you’ve been doing uphill sprints!
Your legs will develop some righteous rock hard muscle as each uphill sprint makes them stronger and stronger.
Another major health benefit of uphill sprinting is that the exercise will increase your bone density, making your bones stronger and more robust. This can be especially helpful for those who are middle-aged or in their 60s. By increasing your bone density ahead of time, you can save yourself a lot of trouble when you’re older.
Finally, uphill sprinting is one of the single most effective ways to burn fat. By doing uphill sprints every other day, you’ll burn through fat like crazy. If you’ve got a wedding or special event coming up and you want to look your best on the quick, sprint the extra fat off your bones, literally!
A Word of Encouragement
Now that you know more about the benefits of uphill sprinting you might be all fired up and ready to go. That’s great! Keep it up! It’s absolutely imperative that you sustain that energy and stay motivated. You can achieve your fitness goals, be thinner, more muscular, and smart as a tack simply by incorporating uphill sprinting into your regimen.
Your friends will compliment you on how great you look and ask you how you did it, be sure to spread the word and tell them about the amazing health benefits of uphill sprinting and high intensity interval training! Just remember to start out slow and work your way up to longer, more intense sessions.