What is This Exercise Bliss Called “LISS”?
By Cheryl Harbour

Trying to find the right workout regimen can be a challenge. Even if you’re a fitness buff, you need different types of exercise at different times; for example, think what you ought to be doing on the days following a workout where you overdid it. Or repairing from an injury. Or recovering after surgery. Or just getting back in the habit of exercise after a “hiatus.”

An exercise format that’s getting a lot of attention is HIIT – high intensity interval training. But it’s not right for everyone, so more and more experts are advocating for LISS – low intensity steady state.

HIIT involves alternating short periods of intense exercise with longer periods of moderate exercise and continuing to repeat this pattern for 20 minutes or so. LISS takes a different approach to weight loss and physical conditioning: You maintain repetitive movement for 30 to 45 minutes at 50 to 60 percent of your maximum heart rate (MHR). Good LISS exercises are considered to be walking, swimming, easy jogging or riding a bicycle. If it sounds like good old-fashioned “cardio,” it is.

One of the reasons LISS exercise is so effective at burning fat is that the lower intensity makes more oxygen available for the body to break down fat.

According to an article in The Washington Post that quotes medicine specialist and physical therapist Kevin McGuinness, you start an LISS program by calculating your maximum heart rate (MHR). Subtract your age from the number 220. So if you are 55, your MHR would be about 165 beats per minute. If you’re 65, use the number 155. Then figure what your heart beat would be if you kept it to a LISS-healthy rate of 50-60% of your MHR.

As you exercise, check your heart rate either by taking your pulse and counting the beats for 60 seconds or you can use one of the devices that counts heartbeats for you, such as a FitBit. A device will make it easier and be more accurate, and it will keep track of your heartrate throughout your workout, so you can take a look afterwards to see if you were at a steady state throughout.

Another suggestion to get maximum benefits from LISS is to vary your exercise from time to time because your body adapts to the exercise you’re doing and may not burn calories as effectively over time. So, switch it up between swimming and walking one week, and the next week maybe add in some cycling. The key is to keep your body guessing so that the muscles don't get bored...and so you're not bored, too! Boredom can make you stop exercising, so varying your routine can help prevent you from being bored during your workouts!

 




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