WORKOUT | HIGH-INTENSITY TRAINING
HIGH INTENSITY TRAINING (HIIT) | BY ARTHUR JONES
Arthur Jones (entrepreneur, sports equipment manufacturer and inventor of the Nautilus machines from the 1970s) and the bodybuilder Mike Mentzer through his book Heavy Duty were primarily responsible for the spread of HIT.
THE BACKGROUNDS
Jones was inspired to develop HIT by his hobby as a big game hunter. When observing lions, he drew logical conclusions between the intensity of an animal's physical exertion and the development of its muscles. While female animals spent the whole day gathering food for their young, males slept the whole day. During the hunt, however, the males showed an exceptionally strong intensity in sprints and jumps. Jones concluded that the muscle mass of the male animals could not only be attributed to their hormonal conditions, but also to the short and very intense exercise intensity during the hunt, followed by sufficient rest and recovery phases that were used for muscle regeneration. He therefore made the following recommendations for bodybuilding training: "intense, short and infrequent".THE IMPLEMENTATION
Mike Mentzer, a successful bodybuilder from the 1980s, was the first to follow and advocate HIT. Among other things, he came up with the so-called seven-second rule, which is intended to reflect the sequence of a repetition: three seconds for the positive movement, one second for muscle tension (= muscle contraction) and three seconds for the downward movement, the negative sequence of a repetition. For HIT, a working weight must be chosen with which 6 to 10 repetitions can be achieved, with each repetition having to be performed cleanly and in a controlled manner. A maximum of 2 sets can be performed per exercise, and no more than 10 sets in total per training session. The goal of each set is to achieve muscle failure at certain points. A training session should last a maximum of 60 minutes. The opposite training method to HIT is classic volume training, which was favored by Arnold Schwarzenegger, among others.
THE ADVANTAGES
1. OPTIMAL HORMONE RELEASE
Various studies prove that intensive training promotes the release of anabolic (= muscle-building) hormones and that these reach their highest point after about 45 to 50 minutes. However, after about 50 to 60 minutes, the release decreases and the production of catabolic (= muscle-degrading) hormones increases dramatically. Therefore, the optimal duration of a training session is limited and should not be longer than one hour. Limiting the training time is a fundamental principle of HIT, which results in optimal hormone release.2. LOW TIME CONSUMPTION
While a conventional training session usually lasts 1.5 to 2 hours or longer and is carried out at least 3 times a week, or even 5 times for advanced users, HIT takes significantly less time. Three training sessions of 45 minutes each per week are enough to achieve results faster and with less effort than with conventional training. However, this requires maximum intensity and compliance with the rules underlying HIT.3. CLEARLY DEFINED RULES
Clearly defined rules encourage motivation and lead to success more easily. The rules of most training programs are rather vague and therefore open to more or less broad interpretation, which increases the likelihood of ambiguities and misunderstandings. HIT, on the other hand, defines clear rules that must be followed in order to be successful, making it much easier to implement. "Push yourself to the limit, reach muscle failure and keep the training short!" are clear guidelines that everyone can understand and implement.4. OVERTRAINING IS NOT POSSIBLE
The biggest enemy of any training method is overtraining, as this not only prevents the development of new muscle mass, but can even break down existing muscle mass. The basics of HIT prevent overtraining from the ground up by only allowing training to resume after recovery and adaptation are complete.
