How Does HIIT Training Burn Fat? (UPDATED FOR 2023)
HIIT training rose to prominence in 2005 and was created by Kirsten Burgomaster and her colleagues.
HIIT has been shown to be an effective way to burn fat in both men and women.
In one study, HIIT was shown to be more effective than moderate-intensity continuous training (MICT) at reducing body fat percentage.
In another study, HIIT was shown to be more effective than MICT in reducing visceral fat (fat around the organs).
What is HIIT Training?
HIIT is an acronym for high-intensity interval training. The basic premise of HIIT is to exercise at a very high intensity for a short period of time, followed by a brief rest or active recovery period. This cycle is then repeated multiple times.
A typical HIIT workout might involve a 5-minute warm-up, followed by 4 minutes of high-intensity exercise (such as sprinting), followed by 2 minutes of active recovery (such as walking or jogging), and then repeated for a total of 20 minutes.
How Does HIIT Training Work?
When you exercise at a high intensity, your body uses more oxygen than it does when you exercise at a moderate intensity. This causes your heart to work harder and your muscles to use more energy.
The result is that you burn more calories in a shorter period of time with HIIT training than you do with MICT. In addition, HIIT has been shown to continue burning calories for up to 24 hours after your workout, whereas MICT only burns
Why Does HIIT Burn More Fat?
Because of the intense use of energy of HIIT your body is forced to use stored energy from fat cells to meet the demands of the workout.
In addition, HIIT has been shown to increase your metabolism for hours after your workout is completed. This means that you continue to burn more calories even when you are not exercising.
Does HIIT Burn More Calories?
Due to the sheer intensity of HIIT and the energy used over a short period of time, HIIT burns more calories than any other type of workout.
HIIT training is a form of exercise that alternates between periods of high intensity and recovery.
The benefit of HIIT is that it can be done in a shorter period of time than other forms of exercise, and research has shown that it is more effective at burning fat. In addition, HIIT has been shown to increase your metabolism for hours after your workout is completed.
HIIT Reduces Belly Fat
According to a 2018 meta-analysis, which looked at 39 studies involving 617 subjects. “HIIT significantly reduced total (p = 0.003), abdominal (p = 0.007), and visceral (p = 0.018) fat mass,” the study's authors said. It's able to do this because it “exerts a more profound impact” on your metabolism.
This is important because visceral fat, also known as “active fat” or “dangerous fat,” is the type of fat that's stored around your organs. It's been linked to an increased risk of heart disease, stroke, and type 2 diabetes.
Can HIIT burn muscle?
If you've done several HIIT workouts over a period of time it will certainly start to burn muscle.
That's not necessarily a bad thing as some people want to lose weight and HIIT will help with that. But if you're trying to build muscle then you'll want to do more traditional forms of exercise such as weightlifting or bodyweight exercises.
Can HIIT burn after a workout?
The burn often referred to as an "afterburn" can last up to 24 hours after your workout.
The afterburn is caused by an increase in your metabolism, which is the number of calories you burn in a day.
A study conducted in 2018 found that HIIT can increase your metabolism for up to 24 hours after your workout.
This means that you continue to burn more calories even when you are not exercising.
Does HIIT burn fat or carbs?
The order in which the body burns fats, carbohydrates, and protein you provide it is determined by three things: how many cells require it, how much energy it takes to convert it to usable energy, and how much it can store. Because carbohydrates excel in all three categories, your body prioritises them over fat.
How Often Should I Do HIIT?
You can do HIIT workouts every day if you want, but most people will do them 3-5 times per week.
HIIT is a very intense form of exercise so it's important to give your body time to recover between workouts.
If you're just starting out, you may want to do HIIT workouts only 2-3 times per week.
What happens when you stop doing HITT training?
The problem when you stop HIIT training is that you will slowly start to lose the benefits that you have gained from HIIT.
This is because HIIT training helps to increase your metabolism and when you stop doing HIIT your metabolism will slowly return to its normal state.
In addition, HIIT training helps to increase your aerobic capacity and when you stop doing HIIT your aerobic capacity will slowly decrease.
Which HIIT Workouts Burn the Most Fat?
There are several great exercises that you can do for HIIT, but some exercises are better than others at burning fat.
Here are some of the best exercises for burning fat:
- Jumping Jacks.
- Burpees.
- Step-ups.
- Mountain Climbers.
- Tuck Jump.
- Skipping.
- Push-up.
- Plank.
- Side Plank.
- Squat Jacks.
- High Knees.
- Lunge Twist.
- Crunches.
In Summary
HIIT training is a great way to burn fat because it's intense and burns more calories than other forms of exercise.
HIIT also helps to reduce belly fat and can be done in a shorter period of time than other forms of exercise. However, HIIT can also burn muscle so it's important to do traditional forms of exercise if you're trying to build muscle. HIIT workouts 3-5 times per week are typically sufficient for most people.