HIIT stands for High Intensity Interval Training, and it is ideal for anyone pushed for time, hence the words ‘high intensity’. 20 – 30 minutes of training can be equal to a whole hour’s moderate workout, which means that you don’t need to worry about spending hours of the time you don’t have.

HIIT is also significantly effective in gaining muscle and reducing fat and studies have shown clear results of the benefits of high intensity sessions when compared to slower cardio sessions. Not only does it affect you while at the gym, but has a strong after-effect that aids your workout even further. This training increases the metabolic afterburn, meaning you will continue to burn calories up to 6 hours after leaving the gym!

What can HIIT involve?

Tabata is a great form of HIIT that really burns fat and builds muscle. It can be used for any type of exercise, and emphasises the high intensity part of the training by allowing you to complete short bursts of all-out activity with minor breaks in between each one. For example, you could do 20 seconds of strong, full-on training and break for 10 seconds before repeating this 8 or more times to total around 4 minutes of workout.

Of course, this is only one example of a massive variety of workouts you can do using this method of training. But that doesn’t mean that you should be using this method all of the time – as HIIT is so intense, too much of it can be damaging, so you need to know how to pace yourself.

What we can do

We can figure out exactly how much training you need and can monitor how it is working for you personally. At Diana’s, we run HIIT classes Monday-Thursday, Saturday and Sunday, combining cardio exercises and muscular toning in our get-lean programme.

So what are you waiting for. HIIT the gym!

We want to look our best in our swimsuits, come back with a cracking tan and just sit back and relax!

To get our beach body confidence we deny ourselves our favourite sweet treats and train extra hard – but what happens to all our good work when we go on holiday?

To avoid starting from square one when you return home, here are some top tips to stay fit while on holiday.

Scenic sightseeing

There is often no better way to experience your holiday destination by visiting the local area on foot. Whether you’re on a city break or strolling down a sandy coastline, pack comfortable walking shoes to take in all the scents and surprises.

Remember: public transport can be awfully sweaty and crowded!

Take the stairs

It might sound simple but whether you’re walking to and from your hotel room or ascending the Eiffel Tower, there is always the choice: the lift or the stairs!

Imagine how many calories you’d burn climbing the Spanish Steps?!

Play with the kids

If you’re on a family holiday, join in with the kids’ favourite activities for some calorie burning fun and quality time together!

Go bodyboarding in the sea, organise a bike riding trip or have a family tournament on the tennis courts – the opportunities are endless!

Plan a travel fitness routine

Talk to a personal trainer before you jet off on your travels and design a workout you can do anywhere.

To start why not try our beginner routine: it is a bodyweight regime designed to work your muscles without needing a gym!

The circuit consists of 5 rounds of each increasing in time increments, so you perform each exercise for 15, 30, 45, 60 and 90 second rounds.

The workout is: reverse lunges vs plank vs jumping jacks vs press-up.

Move from one exercise to the next and aim to take no breaks – it’s a simple circuit that you can complete in just 15 minutes.

Explore the hotel gym

Many hotels are fully equipped with a gym to help maintaining training on holiday easy. You don’t even need anything fancy – if your gym has basic equipment or lighter weights to what you’re accustomed to, you can always perform circuits more than once!

The best part of booking a hotel with its own gym – you can work out in the morning before enjoying relaxing by the pool with a cocktail or two.

Here are some example workouts:

• Squat vs bench press, upright row, shoulder press, bent over row.

Start with 10 reps of each exercise, then perform another circuit of 8 reps, then drop by 2 reps until you hit 2 reps.

• Squat, Romanian deadlift, bench press, military press, uptight row, pull-ups.

This workout requires a proper gym with heavy resistance so you would need to plan ahead to find a good workout location.

Make a splash

You can use the swimming pool for more than just cooling off this summer – take advantage of quiet periods in the pool, usually in the morning and early evening, to swim lengths.

Set yourself a target each day to see how much you improve across your holiday – you could even book yourself a spa treatment as reward afterwards.

Enjoy the local cuisine

This is not a trick – you should enjoy trying new food and drink while on holiday, but everything should ideally enjoyed in moderation.

Remember: all-inclusive doesn’t mean you have to eat absolutely everything! Change your daily routine and diet by walking to restaurants outside your complex or on the other side of town.

You’ll enjoy the leisurely walk in the cooler evening air and walking after a meal helps to keep blood sugar levels down.

Share your holiday fitness with us and you could feature on our Facebook and Instagram!