Can you do HIIT over 40?

Staying active as we age is one of the most important and effective ways to keep healthy. If you’re not currently exercising regularly, you’re probably reading this because you want to start. So here’s a type of workout that you can do in less than 20 minutes that will get your blood pumping like nothing else.

High intensity interval training (HIIT) is a popular form of exercise that involves working out at maximal capacity with intermittent resting periods. The working periods are typically between 15 to 45 seconds and involve reaching around 80-90 percent of your maximum heart rate. As it’s impossible to maintain this heart rate for more than 45 seconds, each work period is met with a rest period lasting for a similar time length.

The work followed by a rest cycle is repeated for typically 10 to 20 minutes depending on the intensity of the exercise. So if you’re doing treadmill sprints it would be very difficult to maintain a good speed for 20 minutes if you’re doing 30 seconds on/30 seconds off. But if you were doing 5 rounds of 4 exercises like squats, push ups or crunches totaling 20 minutes; it would be easier as your heart rate is lower.

So what’s the benefit of HIIT if you’re over 40?

The benefits of HIIT are extensive regardless of your age, it improves aerobic function, it boosts your metabolism, it mobilizes fat stores, promotes muscle retention and improves endurance and fitness, according to a 2009 analysis. 

If you’re over 40, it’s important that you look to keep as much muscle mass as possible. Over 30 you break down up to 8 percent of muscle mass every decade due to the natural aging process of sarcopenia. This slows your metabolism, increases your body fat and leaves you feeling weaker - not ideal.

HIIT is a great way to counteract the less enjoyable sides of aging. A naturally slowing metabolism is no match for HIIT, that causes an increase in fat burning for up to 48 hours post-exercise.

When you age, you require longer recovery periods between gym sessions. The benefit of HIIT is that it doesn't cause significant muscle damage because it doesn’t typically involve weights or intensive resistance training because it’s a form of cardio. This means that it doesn’t require your muscles to spend a lot of time repairing, as it would with a weights workout. So you can do it more often, to see more benefits.

If you want to start getting fit, start doing HIIT. It’s a great form of exercise for any age, but particularly as you hit 40 when you want to start incorporating exercise that will help to counteract the physiological effects of aging.