Staying in shape during the holiday season can be challenging at times, but it’s important to stay on track and keep those MEPs high. HIIT, or high-intensity interval training, can be a great way to stay active during the holiday season or while on vacation. Whether you have gym access or just some accessible floor space, you can utilize a holiday HIIT routine to stay on top of your exercise progress while keeping your heart rate up.

How does HIIT work?

For those new to the concept of HIIT, the idea is to move through the exercises as quickly and safely as possible to keep a high heart-rate. Putting in as much effort as possible through quick and intense bursts of exercise followed by short, often, 30-second recovery periods allows for the body to burn more fat in less time. Since HIIT requires such a high amount of energy, the workout usually spans about 30 minutes or less, which is another great factor when in holiday or vacation mode. A HIIT workout can be done with almost any type of activity, such as cycling, running or swimming as well as strength training exercises.

The routine below should be alternated through with 30-second breaks in-between sets. The goal is to keep your body constantly moving, keep your heart rate up and keep your MEPs high. Intermediate exercisers should do the below sets for 60-seconds straight, alternating moves and taking 30-second breaks in-between sets. Advanced gym-goers should try for 90-second sets with 30-second breaks. Always aim to keep yourself in the yellow or red zones and use your MYZONE belt to make sure you’re burning calories and staying on track.

Holiday HIIT routine

• Squats and mountain climbers
• Alternate backward lunges and oblique plank twists
• Lateral jumps and push ups
• Jumping jacks and plank holds
• Alternate curtsy lunges and sit ups
• Plank jacks and bicycle crunches
• Jump squats and burpees

Why it works

One of the reasons HIIT is such an effective technique is because of the “afterburn effect”. More officially known, the excess post-exercise oxygen consumption or more simply, EPOC. Several studies suggest that there is a strong correlation between the number of calories burned post exercise and the activity's intensity. The harder you workout and higher you maintain your heart rate, the more oxygen your body craves after the workout is complete which leads to higher fat burned. For more information, check out our master trainer's blog post explaining EPOC.

If you’re interested in some more HIIT workouts to try out as well as test your endurance, give this 30-minute routine a shot and let us know how you do. Remember, always aim to keep yourself in the red and yellow zones during HIIT workouts, and in the lower zones during recovery. Most importantly, remember to stay hydrated! Let us know how you fared during these holiday HIIT exercises by posting your thoughts on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Make sure you use #myzonemoves and #effortrewarded so we can find you!