High Intensity Pilates for Stunning Results!

by Bob Hannum April 15, 2014

Ongoing research about the benefits of HIIT (high intensity interval training) continues to amaze me! This article reviews fascinating new research and explains how to apply HIIT to just about any workout including Pilates.
HIIT is simple. There’s no equipment or special instructions. You can add it to running, swimming, cycling, jump rope, and even Pilates. It is short bursts of intense exercise followed by brief rest periods.  

For example, sprint for 15 seconds, then walk for 60, and then repeat for 15 to 20 minutes. Best of all you only need to do this once or twice a week for maximum benefits. In Pilates mat exercise, do a block of 5 or 6 exercises with 3 to 5 reps without stopping followed by a couple at a slow and restful pace. Then repeat this cycle until you’ve completed all 50+ mat exercises. It takes me about 30 minutes. For my latest book about how to add HIIT to your Pilates workout go here.

I just added HIIT to my favorite elliptical machine workout at the YMCA. Here are my results. I went as fast as I could for 15 seconds, and then I continued at a slower pace (the equivalent of a slow walk) for 60 seconds. I repeated this 15 times and then finished my 30-minute workout with the slower walking pace. I burned 400 calories when I usually get to about 350 in the same amount of time. I became winded after about 10 repetitions, but I never felt exhausted. Each 60-second walk gave me the recovery time I needed for another 15 second burst. I was tired after 15 rounds but not knocked out! It was a refreshing variation on my regular use of this machine and a helpful way to avoid boredom. Remember, you only need to do this once or twice a week at most. HIIT raises your heart rate to an anaerobic level which is good for a healthy body. For more about the importance of periodically reaching this heart level see this article. Essentially HIIT tricks us into raising our heart rate to a level that most of us rarely have the energy or ambition to achieve, especially as we get older. But HIIT isn’t for everyone. If you have any health issues consult your doctor about how to gradually work yourself up to HIIT safely.  

Here are the impressive benefits and the research in case you want to read further.

• HIIT increases our levels of HGH (Human Growth Hormone) better that other exercise. HGH is key to burning fat and fighting many of the effects of aging (1).
• HIIT increases calorie-burning after exercise better than other exercise (2).
• HIIT increased fat-burning 3 times more than other aerobic exercise in less time (3).
• A new study out of Australia just found yet another benefit: fewer calories consumed over 36 hours after an HIIT workout. “Intense exercise may suppress ghrelin, a hunger-stimulating hormone,” says Aaron Sim, Ph.D and lead author of the study. This study also found that the best work/rest ratio is 1/4 meaning sprint 15 seconds and walk 60 (4).

For more about HIIT, especially the lactose/oxygen connection here’s another good article.