Introduction
Exercising should be a daily habit. It is an activity highly recommended by physicians and gym trainers to people who have a high risk of obesity and for those people who wanted to stay in shape. Basically, training and exercise are very much the same nature as it involves the workout of all the muscles in the body. Physiologically, many exercise procedures have been developed by professionals for over the years to combat obesity and to maintain a healthy figure. Many sports buff especially men and women who are engaged in athletics and body building. The intense training and long hours of endurance test eventually shaped the bodies of the fitness experts and athletes of today. It was scientifically proven that exercising have great effects on the human body. Aside from eliminating the toxic wastes by sweating, exercising targets various parts of the body to avoid fat buildup. Visceral fats are found deep within the body; its prime functions are to provide some cushion on the bodily organs. On the other hand, lateral fat are the ones that can be pinched beneath the skin. However, excessive fats in the body can cause many illnesses including heart attack and stroke. Furthermore, the purpose of this paper is to differentiate the high intensity training to the low intensity training and to provide some valuable information about the two premises.
High Intensity Training: Facts
Historically, HIT or commonly known as High Intensity Training is a style of exercise that was developed by Arthur Jones in the 1970’s, the man who founded the Nautilus. Scientifically, HIT is a form of repetitive training used by people who do less exercise. This style has become more and more popular amongst busy people of the urban area as it gives them the option to lose weight without doing everyday exercise. Basically, high intensity training is doing less exercise. The idea behind this is that, even if a person does lesser workouts than others, one can still lose their weights similar to those people who perform daily workouts. The secret behind HIT is the extreme exercise methods used to burn fat. Arthur Jones believes the philosophy of training hard but on a specific day, for example in day offs. A person who undergoes HIT is required to do an exercise overtime to remove the unwanted fats and to sweat a lot. The more sweat a person produces, the more effective his exercise can be.
“One fundamental principle of exercise is overload workout. In order to stimulate increases in muscular strength and size one must impose a demand on the muscles that is greater than the usual. The harder, or more intense an exercise is, the greater the degree of overload and the more effective the exercise” (Baye, n.p.)
High intensity training is measured by high oxygen consumption, increased in heart beat accompanied by uncomfortable feeling of tiredness after exercise and muscle fatigue. These are the most common results of high intensity training. During these sessions, exercise physiologists and gym trainers often use the Borg scale; the scale numbers ranges from 1 being the lowest and 10 being the highest; in some cases, 20 is the maximum number. The trainee will be asked to rate their feelings of discomfort based from these numbers. The most intense exercises are rated by the figures of eight and nine whilst the low intense are based from one to three. Moderate levels are characterized by numbers four to five. High resistance training, compared to low intensity training are usually thirty minute workout by which a combination of different exercises are performed. There are general guidelines that are meant to be strictly followed in order to achieve the desired figure. Newbies are encouraged to do three exercises per week whilst the advanced trainees are required to do fewer workouts. The exercises target primarily the muscular system of a person. In addition, repetitive exercises can prove effective in eliminating the fat stored in the body because it will allow more sweat to pass out of the skin. Baye also noted that in doing the special exercises, speed is not really an issue. In fact, he suggests that careful and controlled movements are far better than fast and jerky ones. The Nautilus machine are widely used in performing exercises and few examples of workouts are developed with the use of this machine such as: chest press, trunk curl, heel raise, leg press and pull down. Aside from these, there are also exercises designed without the need of the machine such as: barbell squat, pushups, heel raising, bench press, bent over row and standing press.
Pros of HIT
This type of training was designed to eliminate the obese population by targeting the parts of the body which are more prone to fat buildup. However, due to the lifestyles of most people, such as the lack of everyday exercise is one of the main causes of becoming obese even at an early age (Melanson, MacLean and Hill n.p). In addition, the unbalanced food intake also triggers the fatty cells to store more fats in the body rather than to burn more calories to be used for energy. Baye also argues that extreme exercises have a tendency to place a great deal of stress on the muscles. He even pointed out that doing workouts in a daily basis without allowing the body to recover on heavy exercises can cause muscle strain, tiredness and lack of progress in exercises. However, according to the studies made by Andersen et al. in 2013, there has been noted evidence about the benefits of doing heavy workouts. According to their research article entitled, ‘High-Intensity Strength Training Improves Function of Chronically Painful Muscles: Case-Control and RCT Studies’, they pointed out that undergoing high intense training sessions can help improve the muscle and skeletal functions. “[R]elaxation of force is measured as the rate of force relaxation—occurred more slowly in women with trapezius myalgia, although the ability to fully relax the muscles between contractions was not lower than that in healthy controls. Moreover, the intervention study demonstrated that high-intensity strength training effectively improves strength capacity during repetitive contractions of the painful trapezius muscles attaining functional levels comparable to the healthy control group together with the decreased pain” (Andersen et al. p. 9)
In addition, because of the rigorous training, the body will then produce more sweats which is a good thing because the toxic wastes buried beneath the skin will go out on the skin surface along with the fats that had been stored in the body for a long time. Because of this, the effects will be the increase in metabolic rate and energy of an individual. Instead of building up fats, the body will become more muscular due to the intense exercise. For figure conscious people who do not have lots of time to do daily training, this exercise is absolutely effective because it pushes the body to the limits than the usual exercise. The oxygen consumption of the body will gradually increase due to the training. Physiologists sees this as an important function because of the oxygen intake of the body, the blood will transport the oxygen to all the cells. Moreover, the HIT is known for its benefits in promoting a better circulation of the blood whilst combating the risks of obesity and stroke in the real life.
Cons of HIT
Whilst it is deemed popular in the world of bodybuilding, high intensity training also has their side effects on the body. Unlike the resistance training which are done on a daily basis; the strain of having the muscles to work under pressure can certainly put a strain on them which eventually results into muscular cramps and tension. Tiredness is also one of the side effects, because the body is forced to work under extreme situations, the strain of muscles causes the tiredness which decreases an individual’s ability to do another activity. Depending on the person, there are people who are more accustomed in heavy training in the long run of performing HIT whilst there are other people who became more weak and tense after dealing with a lot of muscular pressure. Another thing is the buildup of muscles. Too much muscle can be quite unattractive as it deforms the natural features of a person’s body. There are no related researches to prove that muscles can cause harm in the body; however, the feeling of strain and tiredness can cause low productivity in the near future. In addition, the muscle buildup does not necessarily mean getting endurance and strength. After the body has been conditioned in rigorous training, later it will only focus in producing more muscles. Moreover, the skeletal system which provides the framework of the body is put into a lot of stress because of the intense training and muscle buildup.
In some people who have a history of cardiac and respiratory illness, too much workout can lead to ragged and shortness of breathing with chills accompanied by cold sweats, trembling of the body and weakness. It is highly recommended by physicians and gym experts to undergo a strict monitor on the health of all trainees who desire to perform intense resistance training in order to improve their physique and boost their self-confidence.
Resistance Training
This term commonly refers to the usual exercise done to get rid of the excess fat that is stored in the body. This exercise is usually just a simple workout done every day without putting too much strain on the muscles. Contrast to the high intensity training, this type of exercise primarily focus on strengthening the body, promoting endurance and speed to do certain tasks. By putting resistance on the muscles, this allows the fats to burn rather more slowly unlike in high intensity training workouts. This is only the balance type of exercise ideal for those people who do not want to gain muscles as a replacement for fats. In comparison, there are no differences in the exercises performed in high intensity training and resistance training; the exercises are exactly the same, the only difference is the amount of time it needs for the session to be completed. Normally, it takes fifteen minutes or twenty for a session of resistance workout which includes a combination of different exercises that targets the abdominal muscles, the common place wherein the fatty buildup starts; the thighs, the back muscles, the leg muscles, arms and hips. In real sense, both high intensity training and resistance training are essential in the field of bodybuilding and physical fitness, time and the frequency of exercising is the only difference that makes the high intensity exercise to become more effective than the traditional form of exercising. HIT is considered anaearobic workout mainly because the exercise alone triggers the excessive production of sweats and the increased in the heart rate is different from the usual aerobic exercise. Depending on the situation, resistance training can be labeled both on the category of anaerobic and aerobic exercises because it can be manipulated by putting and experimenting on different weights, like for example in weight lifting, the more heavier the dumbbells are, the more strain it produces, thus doubling the muscle effort to lift the heavy dumbbells.
Pros of Resistance Training
Resistance training is an exercise developed to fight obesity and to avoid the risks of getting stroke in the future. The principles of resistance training is to prepare the body to cope with the outside resistance and to increase the stamina and endurance; hence, according to experts, whenever a trainee is performing this type of training his strength will be increased. Furthermore, there are wide varieties of fitness exercises that aim to strengthen the skeletal system, particularly the joint, bone and its density, muscular endurance such as the ligaments, tendons and joints. Resistance is very common in the external environment, which means that in order to prepare the body for such situations is to train the body by undergoing exercising with the use of dumbbells; the weight of these equipment can be manipulated by adding metal circles of different weight to the steel bar. In ancient China, kung-fu was considered a martial art and a form of exercise. The universal form which is eventually adopted by the Taiji Quan, a form of exercise that is governed by the kung-fu movements is the first resistance training that used various objects to become a resistance such as clay pots, jars, animals, plants and even people. The goal of the resistance training in kung-fu is for the body to learn flexibility, endurance and strength. The benefit derived from this exercise is perhaps the most common: improving one’s physique and to combat obesity. Meanwhile, resistance training produce slower results due to the time frame allotted to the training whereas high intensity training can produce faster results because the muscles are overexerted beyond its limits. Other benefits of this training are improving the posture, mood and the avoidance of insomnia. Because of the proper distribution of resistance and oxygen in the bloodstream, muscle fatigues and the ill effects of exercise are avoided.
Cons of Resistance Training
Weightlifting is resistance training because a person can manipulate the amount of resistance by placing weights. This is more common in the body building as this enables the muscles to develop on their own. The exaggerated muscular physique is achieved by the combination of resistance training and high intensity training. Meaning, a person who desires to achieve the physique of the body builder must lift heavy weights every day for longer span of time like thirty minutes. Sometimes, this combination forces the muscles to contract and become tenser as a result of coping with too much strain from the weights. Depending on a person, this combination can be both fatal and beneficial. However, the strain buildup that is absorbed by the muscles can be dangerous to the bones. The skeletal system which provides the framework of the body deals with the stress brought by resistance. Whilst undergoing the training, it is also essential to follow strictly the prescribed amount of food intake as well as the type of foods to be eaten. Before the training usually two hours ahead, a light meal is required to be eaten to make sure that there is a source of energy and amino acids needed to do the workout. In addition, water intake is carefully controlled to achieve the result of the dream body. Water is given in fewer amounts usually in intervals between the training sessions. As a result of this, dehydration is one of the common problems that lead to other complications of exercising. Gender has also an issue concerning this training; because the female are not capable of producing hormone for developing muscles; thus, muscles are not that evident on the female population no matter how rigorous the training can be. In males, excessive workouts under resistance can result to the dizziness and discomfort of the muscles. Fatigue is also a common outcome of working beyond the limits of the muscles.
Works Cited
Andersen, Lars et al. High-Intensity Strength Training Improves Function Of Chronically Painful Muscles: Case-Control And RCT Studies. 1st ed. Copenhagen: Hindawi Publishing Corporation, 2014. Print.
Baye, Drew. 'High Intensity Training'. Drew Baye's HIT 2014. Web. 9 Jun. 2014.
Better Health Channel,. 'Resistance Training - Health Benefits - Better Health Channel'. N. p., 2014. Web. 9 Jun. 2014.
Melanson, Edward L, Paul S MacLean, and James O Hill. 'Exercise Improves Fat Metabolism In Muscle But Does Not Increase 24-H Fat Oxidation'. Exercise and sport sciences reviews 37.2 (2009): 93. Print.
