Hop like a Hottie with HIIT

Running out of time to exercise? Learn how to hop like a hottie and get fit in less time with HIIT.

_______ are fast and anxious creatures who rarely get a chance to relax.

What word did you put in the blank above? If I was being honest (and blunt), I might put my own name in that blank above. Alas, this sentence came from my last blog post, Eat Like a Bird, not a Bunny to Get Thin. While that blog shared why we should eat like birds instead of bunnies, the truth is we should be exercising like bunnies for ultimate body bliss!

Do you feel like you live in a fast world, are always anxious and rarely have a chance to relax? Do you hop from place to place with very little rest? You are not alone.

The #1 problem health coaching clients tell me when it comes to weight loss is:

Finding time to exercise!

Here’s the problem with most of our fitness routines. You have to plan at least an hour into our daily calendar to put your gym clothes on, drive to the local spot, work it, change into regular clothes, and drive back home.

Not to mention you probably have kids to cook dinner for, a spouse to canoodle with, a house to clean, bills to pay, and friends to connect with. With everything we have going on in our lives, it’s no wonder we go into lack of time excuse mode.

Unless you make a concerted effort to plan ahead and book a “date” with your gym, it probably won’t happen. But, the very idea of carving yet another hour-long slot out of your already packed day can be incentive to procrastinate. Instead, you might check your Facebook feed, tell yourself one day won’t matter, or even grab a treat after a long day.

Until now.

What if there was a way to spend less time exercising, and still get the same (or better) results? In order to do that, we have to look to our long-eared furry friends.

Every day, my family and I stare out our front window at the bunnies that dine in our yard. I love bunnies. Given that I am allergic to anything with fur, wild bunnies are the closest thing I will have to a pet. We caught them playing one day.

Bunnies are NOT marathon or endurance champions. They mostly just hop lazily along, until they see danger. Before you know it, they have disappeared in a flash! Apply the same policy to your exercise routine and reap the benefits.

The secret to finding time to exercise is to spend less time exercising. That is, to exercise like a bunny.

No, I won’t tell you that exercising for 5 minutes is going to drop 50 pounds. Get real. But, you can get a solid 30 minutes of exercise several times a week and still lose weight. Like I did.

• Gone are the days when you can lean on a treadmill while reading a magazine and watching TV. Was that really worth your time, anyway? Did you even kick up a sweat?
• Gone are the days when you dance for 2 hours, but don’t feel sore the next day.
• Gone are the lazy days of hopping along through your day.

It’s time to enter bunny BEAST MODE. It is time to hop like a hottie with HIIT.

BEAST MODE means by the end of your exercise routine, you are at least 2 of the 3:

1. Out of breath
2. Flooded with soreness
3. A puddle on the floor

Your clothes should be soaked in sweat, you should be breathing hard enough to see your chest rise, and your muscles should feel like they just carried two twins into the house along with a bag of groceries.

You don’t have to take it to extremes like this woman did. To read more about why she wanted to lift heavy while heavily pregnant, check out this Shape article.

Here are the basics of High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT):

• You exercise at maximum capacity for either 30-90 seconds, followed by rest periods of 30-45 seconds.
• You use light weights, resistance bands, or use body weight
• You are either hopping, jumping, or launching yourself from one spot to another

You might also know HIIT as Tabata. Tabata is simply a more specific process developed by a man of the same name.

My husband used to tell me I should jog more. That jogging is the best way to lose weight and keep it off. What does jogging consist of (other than a lot of agony)? It is a continuous movement measured by either time or mileage. It is also known as steady state cardio.

Steady state cardio is ok for some people who are already fit, or exercise simply to feel good. Just like any exercise, your body can adapt to steady state cardio, which means that you need to do it longer to get the same results.

But, HIIT can work for you even when you are asleep! That’s right. Going for a jog ends as soon as you stop running.

[bctt tweet=”If you jump and hop like a crazy rabbit, you will still be burning #calories even while you sleep. #Easter #exercise” username=”jegoswam”]

If that’s not a reason to give it a try, I don’t know what is. This is not a miracle drug, it is allowing your body to do what it already naturally does.

Here’s another benefit of HIIT for those of you who shy away from dance classes due to lack of coordination. HIIT is simply a series of simple moves that you can learn in no time. The moves are repeated in waves, so once you learn one set of moves, you have a solid routine! Plus, you can mix and match whatever set of moves you want to work on that day.

Ready to get started? I can help you create your very own HIIT routine in your own home using a few simple tools and techniques inside of 30 Days. In 30 Days, I provide weekly accountability towards a consistent HIIT practice you can love.

Don’t waste your precious time logging minutes on the treadmill, exercise bike, or hamster wheel at the gym. Instead, look to the springtime bunnies, and hop like a hottie with HIIT.

To find out if HIIT might be a good fit for you, try this (free) personal Workout Style Quiz, and get moving the right way!

Have you tried HIIT? What did you like or dislike about it? Share your thoughts!