High Intensity-Interval Training (HIIT) is not a nice walk in the park. However, this is the exact opposite. HIIT will push the limits and change the metabolic pathways by doing time-limited but high-intensity exercises, as evidenced by the Lumen metabolic tracker.
HIIT exercises have grown in popularity since the United States government included this type of training in its physical activity requirements. It recommends 75-150 minutes of high-intensity exercise each week, which includes HIIT.
When exercising through HIIT, the body depends on anaerobic pathways (breaking down glucose without oxygen) to provide the energy it needs to keep you going further.
Switching from aerobic to anaerobic doesn’t come without strain to the heart rhythm. Workouts at 80-95 percent of your maximal heart rate are considered HIIT.
Exercises and Metabolic Flexibility?
Metabolic flexibility refers to an organism’s capacity to adjust or adapt to variations in metabolic or energy demand, as well as existing circumstances or activities.
The more general idea of metabolic flexibility has been promoted in fuel selection during the transition from fasting to fed states or insulin stimulation.
Exercise is another physiological situation requiring metabolic flexibility to match fuel availability with metabolic machinery to satisfy massive increases in energy needs.
Exercise length and intensity can significantly impact energy demand, stressing energy reserves and catabolic pathways in quite different ways.
One of the critical reasons for metabolic inflexibility is most likely physical inactivity. Therefore, exercise training programs can be used as a treatment to increase metabolic flexibility.
Exercise training programs can be used as a treatment to increase metabolic flexibility. Aerobic (or endurance-based) and anaerobic/glycolytic (resistance-based) activities are the two extremes of exercise. Both offer significant health advantages, such as higher mitochondrial content and better glycemic management.
HIIT dramatically improved metabolic flexibility
In 2015, Marcinko et al. showed that endurance exercise training lowers insulin resistance, adipose tissue inflammation, and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). This result is frequently accompanied by moderate weight reduction.
Recent research has also found that high-intensity interval training (HIIT) decreases blood glucose levels in people with type 2 diabetes regardless of weight reduction.
People that have a high level of metabolic flexibility:
- Find it simpler to lose and keep the weight off.
- They are more likely to get muscle and perform better throughout workouts.
- They are less likely to suffer from obesity, diabetes, or metabolic disorders.
According to more than 1 million breath analyses conducted with the Lumen metabolic analyzer device, 60% of HIIT workouts resulted in a shift from carb to fat burn, which is 25% greater than jogging and nearly quadruple that of recreational sports.
How can Lumen help in achieving your fitness goals?
By detecting the level of Carbon dioxide in the exhaled air, the Lumen sensor offers the possibility to detect the body’s sources of energy, either carbohydrates or fat.
The possibility of switching to different energy sources when exercising or during intermittent fasting is at the core of metabolic flexibility.
We reviewed the Lumen device and found it as a great way to improve overall fitness. But, will it be for weight loss, improving metabolic health, or knowing more about the benefits of HIIT metabolic flexibility.
Lumen was done to satisfy the gold standard for metabolic assessment in a research done by San Francisco State University.
Lumen uses cutting-edge technologies in tailored nutrition and metabolism to help people enhance their health and fitness.
Lumen, created and built by twin sisters, physiology PhDs, and Ironman finishers, uses the power of our breath to monitor metabolism, which is intimately related to weight, fitness, and personal wellness.
The Lumen gadget evaluates metabolism in less than a minute with a single breath, which was previously achievable with an hour-long lab test. Lumen devices are sold through Lumen.me and ship worldwide, with the software available on the Apple App Store and Google Play.
