School is starting, and I will start getting busier and busier. With limited workout time, I am planning to incorporate short HIIT trainings back into my daily workouts.

At the beginning of my get-fit journey, I did bodyrock and zwow (both 12~15 minutes HIIT) for a few months. As I got stronger, I did two of those short videos everyday. Then, I added running (and fell in love with it). Then, I was introduced to Insanity. And Insanity felt like a longer version of the bodyrock/zwow workout, so I gradually stopped following bodyrock/zwow.

I also have my doubts about HIIT.

Don’t get me wrong—I think HIIT certainly challenges my body. It helped me build muscle and get stronger. Many articles and people swear that HIIT did wonders for their weight/fat-loss plan.

One of the biggest selling point of HIIT is that although it’s a short workout, it increases excess post-exercise oxygen consumption (EPOC) and elevate your metabolism. Many people believe that it will rev up your metabolism for 24-48 hours.

I do believe that HIIT will get the metabolism up for a longer period of time, compared to regular cardio and interval training. But I’m not so sure about elevating the metabolism to 24-48 hours. I also found plenty of articles and research studies that have the same doubts.

I’ve read many, many articles, and whether or not HIIT elevates metabolism for that long of a period is still a question mark. Not saying that it doesn’t, but I can’t say for sure that it does either.

I tend to believe it does boost metabolism, but perhaps for just a few hours after the workout (instead of 24-48 hours). And since I have doubts, I will be combining HIIT, regular interval cardio training, and strength training.

Monday—1 hour (or more if I feel like it) of interval cardio training + strength training (pop pilates or weights) OR insanity

Tuesday—HIIT (zwow or bodyrock)

Wednesday—HIIT

Thursday—1 hour (or +) of interval cardio + strength training OR insanity

Friday—HIIT+ 45 minutes (or +) of interval cardio

Saturday—1 hour (or +) of interval cardio

Sunday—Rest day, sports day, or less intense interval cardio

As you can see… Tuesday and Wednesday is when I have classes all day lol

Hopefully I can stick with my plan during a stressful school year… 5 classes, 2 jobs, and an internship lol