It’s difficult to emphasize just how important exercise is to keep your body and mind looking and feeling young. Just the other day, I had a client ask me what kind of exercise I would recommend for anyone trying to gain back a few years of vitality. The truth is, any exercise that you do is good for you. The key to getting the most from your exercise is sticking with it and changing it from a chore into a habit.
However, if you want to target the things that age brings with it, not all physical activity is equally beneficial. According to the science on the subject, the best form of exercise for anti-aging is something called High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT).
Never heard of it? Don’t worry! You’re not the only one.
If you want to learn about how HIIT works, continue reading:
What is HIIT?
For starters, let’s talk about what High-Intensity Interval Training actually is.
This type of exercise is characterized by short periods of intense physical exercise punctuated by shorter periods of less strenuous activity. Let’s use swimming as an example. If you were to do swimming HIIT, you might swim a full lap at 90 percent of your top speed followed by half a lap at about 40 percent. Follow this with another full lap at 90 percent. To complete a full session, you would continue this pattern for a set amount of time, depending on your abilities and goals.
How Does HIIT Help Anti-Aging?
According to a study conducted at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, HIIT helps slow one of the primary causes of age-related fatigue, muscle loss, and reduced metabolism.
In addition to increased respiratory and circulatory function, study subjects who underwent HIIT increased the mitochondrial activity present within their cells. As we age, mitochondrial activity decreases drastically. Because the mitochondria are the powerhouses of the cells, their decreased activity means our overall energy decreases as we get older. One group of the study, subjects aged 65 to 80 years old, showed the most improvement, up to a 69 percent increase in mitochondrial activity.
It’s important to remember that the study measured these results after three months of maintaining an exercise regime in the subjects. That’s why it’s so important to stick with any new exercise program—because results can take a while to become noticeable.
When combined with other anti-aging measures, such as Classic Cell Therapy or Platelet-Rich Plasma Therapy, HIIT can help you achieve your health and beauty goals.