What is HIIT training?
Although we all know that exercise is good for us, it’s estimated that approximately 20% of people worldwide don’t get enough daily physical activity. As a fitness and wellness professional, I find this statistic absolutely horrifying!
This may be because many people find it difficult to squeeze in the time to exercise every day. If that’s the case for you, then you may want to try HIIT – high-intensity interval training. HIIT really is the answer for a lot of busy, working people who want to get fit fast. Not everybody can squeeze in a full hour of exercise every single day – as a working mom, I can relate!
HIIT training involves short bursts of intense exercise, where you really push yourself, alternated with short, low-intensity recovery periods. With this type of training, you get optimal health and weight loss benefits in a short amount of time.
Typically, a HIIT workout is between 10 and 30 minutes long – however, despite how short the workout actually is, it can produce similar – or even additional – health benefits to moderate-intensity exercise.
WATCH: For more info on HIIT training
What is the bounti HIIT Programme?
HIIT is one of the forms of exercise that I’ve enjoyed the most throughout my fitness career, and finally we’ve taken it, and added a rebounder!
Traditional HIIT training is high-impact, and best done in moderation due to the injury risk associated therewith. By adding a rebounder, you get all the intensity with none of the impact.
Unlike land based HIIT training, all the tension and strain on your joints is absorbed by the mat of the rebounder. It’s such an amazing tool to get your heart rate right up, while saving your body the wear-and-tear. Rebounding takes HIIT, and minimises the strain, while maximising the results!
WATCH: Why add a rebounder?
ALSO SEE: 46 more benefits of rebounding
HIIT is all about working as hard as possible, really pushing your body and burning as many calories as possible within a short time span. With only a limited time on the clock, this rebounding programme is incredibly time-efficient and super effective.
We have 12 workouts – all of them 36 minutes long with a 3 to 4 minute long warm-up. The warm-up is obviously much easier than the rest of the workout. It gets the blood flowing from head to toe, includes some dynamic stretches, and loosens up the joints and muscles, so that they’re prepped and ready for lots of hard work.
We then start the HIIT session, where we train hard and fast. With my guidance, you’ll know exactly what you need to do for each song and what equipment you’ll need. I’ll also tell you how many sets and reps to do. It’s lots of hard work for about 5 to 6 songs before the cool down.
The cool down is around 3 minutes long, to a slower song. It includes static stretches and deep breaths where we lower our heart rates and recover.
Although they all have the same structure and framework, all the workouts throughout the programme differ in their playlists, warm-ups & cool downs, combinations of moves and required equipment.
This programme is not progressive. All workouts are full-body, without a specific order to follow. You can do whichever, whenever!
If you are slightly newer to the co-ord side of rebounding or you prefer the simpler moves, you’ll enjoy following Mandla. For an intermediate session, with light weights and slightly easier movement variations, follow Lisa G. If you’re advanced, fitter and more proficient on a rebounder, you can follow me – I’ll be doing more challenging moves with heavier weights.
To do this programme, you will need:
- A rebounder
- Exercise mat
- (you can use lighter dumbbells instead)
- Heavier dumbbells (up to 5kgs)
- Hydroball (you can use a heavier dumbbell instead)
- Lighter dumbbells (1-1.5kgs)
- Long resistance band
- Ankle weights
- Weighted body bar (3-5kgs)
WATCH: Screen recording of the bounti HIIT Programme
This programme is also unisex, so grab your partner, get bouncing and have some fun!
WATCH: For more on the bounti HIIT Programme
What is the bounti HIIT Instructors Course?
For all the rebounding instructors out there, we present the bounti HIIT Instructors Course! I have been so excited about this course – it’s been a long time coming! The bounti Instructors Course or any alternative rebounding certification is a prerequisite to this course.
The online bounti HIIT Instructors Course includes:
- Online learning via the platform (videos and theory)
- Exercise technique videos
- bounti-written HIIT music
- 12 x bounti HIIT class workouts
You will be required to complete the theoretical section on the Life of bounti online learning platform, as well as attend a compulsory 3 hour live (via Zoom) workshop with Lisa.
From your workshop date (the date of your live Zoom session with Lisa), you will have 3 months to complete the course.
Once you have read through all the info and watched the video tutorials, you will need to complete the following assessments prior to becoming a certified instructor:
- Multiple choice quiz at the end of each section
- Exercise technique assessment
- Final video submission: 35 minute rebounding HIIT class presentation (with written programme)
It was so much fun putting this course together – I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. I can’t wait to see what HIIT classes you create!
WATCH: More info on the bounti HIIT Instructors Course
Why should I do HIIT training? Here are 4 convincing reasons:
Whether you’re a rebounding fanatic like me, a runner, a cyclist or a cross-fitter, I would recommend adding 1 to 2 HIIT workouts to your training regime per week.
It’s extremely beneficial to do shorter, more intense workouts once in a while to really push your body – especially because HIIT, specifically on a rebounder, is all the intensity, minus the impact, injury risk and strain.
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It torches calories and burns fat
Although aerobic exercise is great to maintain your heart health, steady-rate cardio, like running or cycling, isn’t the best calorie-burn. You burn so many more calories – quickly – using HIIT. Researchers found that HIIT burns 20-30% more calories than weight training or steady-rate cardio over the same 30-minute time-span.
HIIT actually helps you burn calories after the workout. It increases your metabolism after exercise more than running or weight training, and can actually shift the body towards using fat for energy instead of carbs.
The effect of all that intense exertion kicks your body's repair cycle into overdrive, which elevates your metabolism for hours, which burns additional calories after you’ve finished training.
In fact, the high-intensity intervals produce similar fat loss to traditional endurance exercise, with a much smaller time commitment. It’s a win-win!
HIIT also increases muscle mass – the more muscle you have, the more fat you burn. Typical HIIT workouts focus primarily on the trunk and legs, however our bounti HIIT targets the full body, so you’ll build muscle everywhere.
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It doesn’t require crazy, complex moves or tons of time
One thing that puts a lot of people off of HIIT is the assumption that, because it’s more intense, it requires complex movements or complicated circuits. Contrary to this belief, you don’t need to be flying or flailing to achieve a solid workout.
The true benefits of HIIT lie in the exertion, not the complexity. Simple moves are key in HIIT – you can’t push hard enough to benefit if you’re too focused on perfecting complicated moves and routines. It’s all about pushing yourself with the simpler moves, getting the technique right, and performing them well to make your workout as intense as possible.
Check out the Technique Queen series on YouTube for tutorials on how to perfect basic exercise moves.
It’s all about working as hard as possible without compromising on form. Particularly because it is so intense, HIIT also keeps it so simple to prevent injury.
HIIT workouts are amazing because of their super-effective, yet time-efficient nature. It’s advised that HIIT remains as short as possible, ideally between 20 and 30 minutes. Longer workouts mean you’re unlikely to maintain the intensity required to reap the benefits of HIIT.
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HIIT is good for your cognition
HIIT requires you to be attentive and focused. You can’t get distracted, or else you’ll miss a move, lose your form, make a mistake or struggle to keep track of the clock! It forces you to put your phone down and give yourself and your body your full, undivided attention.
This can benefit your mental health, as forcing yourself to be fully present in the moment promotes mindfulness. Because you have to stay so hyper-focused during a HIIT workout, regular HIIT can also boost your memory and make you sharper in everyday decision-making.
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HIIT has various health benefits
Oxygen consumption is your muscles’ ability to use oxygen. Endurance training (steady-rate cardio) typically improves your oxygen consumption. However, HIIT produces the same benefits in a shorter amount of time.
Extensive research indicates that HIIT reduces heart rate and blood pressure in people who are overweight. Some researchers have even found that HIIT reduces blood pressure more than the frequently recommended moderate-intensity exercise.
Studies also found that HIIT, not only reduces blood sugar, but also improves insulin resistance more than traditional continuous exercise. Based on this information, it’s possible that high-intensity exercise is particularly beneficial for those at risk to type 2 diabetes.
A lot of people get stuck on one fitness modality without realising how important it is to move your body in different ways. For the best results, remember to keep switching it up. Our bodies are masters at adapting, so if they get too used to one thing, progress may hit a plateau. Add some variety to your training regime and keep your body guessing. Come on, grab your cordless skipping ropes and let’s HIIT it out!
