HIIT (High-Intensity Interval Training)

Definition

Alternating between maximum-effort bursts and recovery periods to obliterate calories and fitness plateaus in 20 minutes, because who has time for an hour?

Example Usage

We did a HIIT session of 30 seconds sprinting, 30 seconds walking for 10 rounds.

Origin

Formally studied in the 1990s, particularly by Izumi Tabata

Fun Fact

HIIT workouts create an 'afterburn effect' where your body continues burning calories for hours post-exercise.

Source: Exercise Science and Cardiopulmonary Research

Related Terms

Intermediate

tabata

A high-intensity interval protocol of 20 seconds maximum effort followed by 10 seconds rest, repeated for 4 minutes. Named after the researcher, feared by everyone.

⚽ Sports / Fitness

Intermediate

LSD

"Long Slow Distance"—extended runs at conversational pace to build aerobic base. Despite the acronym, the only trip involved is the mental journey of running for 2+ hours.

⚽ Sports / Fitness

Intermediate

race weight

The optimal body weight at which an athlete performs best in competition, achieved through careful manipulation of body composition. The number on the scale that justifies months of dietary suffering.

⚽ Sports / Fitness

Intermediate

Hat Trick

Scoring three goals in a single game, which in hockey prompts fans to throw actual hats onto the ice like some kind of haberdashery-based celebration. Nobody knows where the tradition started, but thousands of perfectly good hats have been sacrificed to it.

⚽ Sports / Fitness

Beginner

strava stalking

The art of obsessively analyzing other athletes' workout data on Strava to compare routes, speeds, and suffer scores. It's social media for people who measure friendship in heart rate zones.

⚽ Sports / Fitness

Advanced

max effort

Training with maximum possible intensity, typically near or at one-rep max loads. The Westside Barbell principle that separates the brave from the smart.

⚽ Sports / Fitness

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