Elisa Damato, in red shorts, sent me the following note when we posted this, “What is HIIT?”, graphic on our Instagram Page
“Had to screenshot this! I get so many people who ask me what I “do” and I needed this definition. Also, you wouldn’t believe I’ve had multiple strangers just approach me and say, “You have a great figure (yeah, right they haven’t seen me in a bathing suit), but they always ask me if I’m a runner! I say, “No, I’ve never run or been a runner. It’s Mojo!” Thanks for letting me share this, Elisa…And you do look pretty darn fit :-)
If any of you have tried to explain Mojo’s HIIT-based methods, I feel your pain. After all these years, it’s maddening that people still assume you need to be a “runner” to be slim. While running is certainly a good form of cardio, it’s like cotton candy for your body. Since the same primary muscle groups and joints are used repetitively, the afterburn wears off as soon as you get in the shower, and your joints are at higher risk for injury.
This is the reason I write our weekly newsletters. The better we understand how and why our body works, the more informed our lifestyle choices.
If you are looking to curb fat and ward off disease, the most rewarding exercise regimens are the ones that make us slightly uncomfortable, with a raised heart rate and sore muscles, head to toe. Unless people know why this type of exercise is beneficial, it tends to be very unappealing.
To help entice you (or your loved ones) to take it up a notch and sweat it out with us more often, I’d like to share some science-based tidbits on exactly why shaking up our body’s status quo with HIIT-based workouts, frequently and consistently, is the best thing we can do for a balanced, healthy and long life.
It all starts and ends with this one word, “homeostasis”…
A visual picture of your mental and physical health, when you do or don’t challenge your homeostasis
Homeostasis is the steady state of all our body’s systems, including body temperature, fluid balance, resting heart rate, and blood sugar levels, that keep your body balanced and functioning. The more we challenge that steady state, the better. Unless we balance our nutrition and exercise, our bodies slowly deteriorate.
Has it been a while since you have challenged yourself mentally and physically?
Here’s an analogy to consider: Imagine your body is a stagnant pond, still and undisturbed. Over time, it becomes polluted with algae and devoid of life.
Similarly, a life without challenge becomes stale, leading to physical and mental stagnation. Introducing ripples (challenges) to the pond (life) oxygenates the water (mind and body) and promotes growth and renewal.
According to Stacy T. Sims, PhD, an exercise physiologist and nutrition scientist:
Exercise affects our homeostasis by raising our body temperature, increasing the need for more oxygen, and changing our blood sugar and fluid balance. When we exercise, we cause a disturbance in this equilibrium by pushing our systems out of their normal resting preset limits.
How exercise affects homeostasis
Our body has built-in mechanisms to counteract changes in our internal systems and maintain homeostasis. Exercise challenges this balance, triggering adaptive homeostasis. During workouts, our heart rate, blood pressure, cardiac output, and respiratory rate adjust to match the exercise intensity.
In a nutshell, if you choose to walk for your exercise, encourage a homeostasis shake-up by walking briskly with strong arms and engaged glutes/abs, for at least 30 minutes. Welcome the disruption of a raised heartbeat and muscle strengthening.
Ways our bodies increase homeostasis during a workout
- Breaking Down Glucose for Fuel Glucose from the foods you eat is used up by your muscles for energy, and as a result, your pancreas reacts by changing insulin levels to maintain blood sugar. The more intense your workout is, the more oxygen your body needs to convert food (fat) into fuel.
- Increasing Heart Rate and Blood Flow During HIIT exercise, there is also an increased demand for blood to your working muscles, so our body responds by increasing our heart rate.
The more we adequately exercise, the more our body adapts to achieving exercise homeostasis. According to Dr. Sims, “Chronic exposure to this adaptive homeostasis is what we think of as improved fitness and health outcomes because the body adapts and becomes more efficient at performing an exercise.”
Best exercises to disrupt the body’s equilibrium and force it to adapt – aka. increasing homeostasis
1. High-intensity interval training (HIIT) is one of the most effective types of exercise for increasing homeostasis. HIIT involves short bursts of intense activity followed by periods of rest or low-intensity activity. It helps to improve cardiovascular health, burn calories, and build muscle.
2. Aerobic exercise is any type of exercise that gets your heart rate up and keeps it there for a sustained period of time. Aerobic exercise can help to improve cardiovascular health, burn calories, and reduce the risk of chronic diseases such as heart disease, stroke, and type 2 diabetes.
3. Resistance training is another type of exercise that can be effective for increasing homeostasis. Resistance training involves using weights or other resistance to build muscle. Muscle tissue is metabolically active, which means that it burns calories even when you are at rest. This can help to boost your metabolism and help you lose or maintain a healthy weight.
Mojo combines all three & every single session is different (and FUN), so we are constantly accessing unique muscle groups and eliciting challenging aerobic experiences.
For happier homeostasis, be sure to infuse these “adaptations” for increased endurance, muscle strength, and bone density.
1. Stay Hydrated!! Drinking water helps with maintaining homeostasis because it helps replenish fluids that are lost via sweat. Our body needs fluids to carry nutrients to our cells and organs to function properly.
Particularly in a hot and humid environment, consider a sports drink to help replenish electrolytes (salt and potassium) that are lost in sweat.
2. Breathe It’s a common mistake to hold your breath during hard efforts, but doing so decreases your body’s ability to maintain homeostasis.
3. Fuel Up Your body needs fuel to perform well during exercise. Make sure to enjoy a protein-laden pre-workout snack.
4. Warm Up and Cool Down
Avoid jumping right into your workout and do a quick warm-up to wake up your muscles and joints. After your workout, spend some time doing a cooldown to redistribute blood flow to your organs and improve muscle flexibility and joint range of motion.
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