Did you know that some of the everyday activities that you are already doing can give you the benefits like an actual High-intensity Interval Training (HIIT) workout? The British Journal of Sports Medicine reports that everyday activities like carrying your shopping bags up a few flights of stairs or hurrying across the street could have health benefits similar to HIIT.
There certainly isn’t anything wrong with actually getting a HIIT workout, but for some people, it takes a significant of time out of their day to travel to the gym, workout and then travel back so for some they don’t get into the gym as much as they would like. For these people and those that are just looking to get in some more calorie burning opportunities working these ‘everyday activity’ type of HIIT can serve a great purpose to their health and fitness.
There is a good chance your daily routine already has short spontaneous periods of high-intensity incidental physical activity, and it helps to know they do make a difference for your health. These physical activities may look like running after your children in the grocery store, running for the train, carrying the laundry up the stairs, etc. The scientists suggest however that increasing these brief intervals throughout your day can only contribute positively to your health, so it can’t hurt to add a few more into the mix or even level up their intensity.
Walk a Little Faster
You have to walk places anyway, so why not try and walk a little faster to your destination. If you have a 10-minute walk to work, you don’t even need to pick up the pace for the whole 10 minutes, even 2 minutes of speed walking was associated with a higher metabolic rate. Try parking farther away from the grocery store entrance and speed walk your way to the door.
Take the Stairs
If you are ever like most people, chances are there is a split second when you are waiting for the elevator that you think to yourself ‘I should just take the stairs’ only for the elevator doors to open before you have time to act on your thought. This next time though, when you walk into a building find the stairs immediately and get to climbing. The scientists found that walking up the stairs for even just one minute was an exercise that correlated with the highest metabolic rate.
We suggest some other ways to rev up your metabolic rate like carrying your shopping bags up the stairs, but you can also do things like finding a hill to climb. Hill climbing only takes 2 minutes to increase your metabolic rate or walk the dog a little faster. You will both benefit from the increased speed and hey your walk will be shorter leaving you some extra minutes for something else in your day.
