There are countless exercise options existing today, therefore, you are no exception if you sometimes feel lost and don’t know which one is more beneficial for our health. Sometimes we are too tired to do explosive workout and sometimes our busy lifestyles don’t allow us longer cardio sessions, which leads to skipping exercise.  To make things easier, we can distribute them on the basis of their duration and intensity in so-called “HIIT” and “LISS” exercises.

What are HIIT and LISS?

HIIT is an abbreviation for high-intensity interval training. It a type of training where a person is doing a cardiovascular activity at high intensity- meaning a high heart rate during the exercise and less intense heart rate during the resting interval. HIIT session duration usually lasts up to 20 minutes or ends at the point where an athlete is no longer capable to continue with the exercise because of exhaustion. 

LISS is an abbreviation for a low-intensity steady-state type of cardio. It is a type of cardiovascular training where a person is doing exercise at a steady phase without pause in between. LISS session duration usually lasts from  30 - 45 minutes, where heart rate is kept constant through the whole exercising period.

How to know which exercises to do?

Both types of workouts are distinguished on the basis of intensity. The best measurement of intensity is heart rate. Therefore we distribute HIIT and LISS workouts in the following  way:

For HIIT training:

A person has to calculate it’s recommended heart rate based on the following formula:

 - (220 - age) x 0,70 and (220 - age) x 0,90 to get an interval of heart rate recommended for an intensive part of training.

 -(220 - age) x 0,60 and (220 - age) x 0,65 to get an interval of heart rate recommended for a resting part of training.

Example:

A person who is 30 years old should calculate the intervals in the following way:

- (220 - 30) x 0,7 = 133 and (220 - 30) x 0,9 = 171  (recommended heart rate for 30 year old person at intensive part of HIIT training: from 133 to 171)

- (220 - 30) x 0,6= 114 and (220 - 30)  x 0,65 = 123 (recommended heart rate for 30 year old person at resting part of HIIT training: from 114 to 123)

Recommended HIIT workout:

• 5 minute jog (warm-up) (increase heart rate up to 60 to 70 percent of max. recommended heart rate)
• 20 sec all you can do sprint ( keeping heart rate in the interval between 70 and 90 percent of max. recommended heart rate) and
• 40-60 sec jog (back to 60 - 70 percent of max. recommended heart rate)
• Repeat both up to 10 times (skip the warm-up)
• Cooldown at the end

For LISS training:

A person has to calculate it’s recommended heart rate based on the following formula:

- (220 - age) x 0,65 and (220 - age) x 0,70 to get an interval of heart rate recommended for LISS training.

Example:

A person who is 30 years old should calculate the intervals in the following way:

- (220 - 30) x 0,65 = 123 and (220 - 30) x 0,7 = 133  (recommended heart rate for 30 year old person at LISS training: from 123 to 133)

Recommended workout for beginners:

• Incline walking at a steady phase
• Jogging at a steady phase
• Bike at a steady phase
• Anything where you can increase your heart rate in the interval between 60 and 70 percent of max. recommended heart rate and then keep it constant within that interval

When all the calculations are done, it’s on you which exercise you want to do. It strongly depends on your current condition and your heart’s reaction to the exercise.  

Pros and cons of HIIT and LISS type of training

	Pros	Cons
LISS	-For beginners (less experience is required -Fewer chances of injury -Less exhaustion during and after	-Lasts from 30 -45 minutes -Longer, frequent practicing can lead to joint use and permanent injuries (e.g athlete foot)
HIIT	-Done under 20 min -Burning more energy between and after exercise -Helps to build body strength and lean muscle mass -More variety of exercises -Improves cardiorespiratory endurance	-The progressive start is required (usually for people with some workout experience) -More chances for an injury (exercises should be done correctly) -Beginners should start slowly at their own phase

Which one is for me?

The answer is simple: it is your personal preference. It depends on your lifestyle, time, physical condition, and level of experience. For those who feel either bored or cannot squeeze 30 or 45 minutes into their schedule should definitely try with the transition to HIIT. Those who tried HIIT and didn’t like it should definitely stick to LISS.  The combination of both is possible as well. The most important thing is to keep cardiovascular activities a part of your lifestyle at least 3 times per week.