As you all know, we’re ALL about variety and when we started hearing more chatter about “LISS”, we had to understand more. LISS, which stands for low intensity sustained state, is your long dog walk, your light jog or your casual bike ride. Think slow and steady, for 30-60 minutes or more. HIIT, on the other hand, stands for high intensity interval training, which is your cardio bursts, your tabata class or your spin class with sprints, usually for 30-45 minutes.
The debate has been what is better for fat loss—many studies say HIIT is—but guess what!? It’s 2019 and we’ve got goals other than fat loss, and that’s longevity, lowering stress, recovering better and just feeling good. HIIT has shown to increase cortisol levels (i.e. stress!), and can actually work against your weight loss goals. For these exact reasons, we’re adding more LISS into our routine in the form of long trail walks. LISS has been shown to be a wonderful active recovery routine, as well as a way to unwind and prevent injury.
We’re not ditching HIIT altogether, as we believe it’s super beneficial for things like gaining strength, improving your cardiovascular system, lowering blood pressure, torching calories and more. Although we’re not experts on how often you should be doing each type of exercise, we think you should do what works best for you. Some weeks may vary, and some beautiful days just call for LISS al fresco. At the end of the day, it’s all about moving your body, no matter what acronym you lean towards.