Can High Intensity Resistance Training (HIRT) Help You Reach Your Fitness Goals?

While there are no shortcuts to torching fat and getting fit, there are a few things you can do to get more from your workouts.

By now you are likely aware that high intensity interval training (HIIT) allows you to burn more calories, burn more fat, and build greater levels of endurance in a short amount of time. But have you heard about HIRT, or high intensity resistance training? Like HIIT, HIRT can elevate your workouts and take your resistance training routine to the next level.

What is HIRT training?

Simply put, HIRT is strength training for fat loss. If you struggle with cardio, or you are looking for a workout that is lower impact than HIIT, the HIRT method is a variation of HIIT and delivers many of the same fat burning benefits, but HIRT shifts the focus away from cardio exercises (including any jumping or high joint stress exercises) and focuses instead on more lifting and strength based movements. HIIT is largely cardio based, and HIRT is strength based training. HIRT typically incorporates the resistance provided by a weighted vest, ankle weights (for the most balance, we recommend beginners start with these hands-free resistance options) dumbbells, or a bar and weights designed for home use. 

Why you should try HIRT workouts:

The HIRT method of strength training for fat loss is perfect for you if you’d rather eat rocks than run on a treadmill for an hour. Steady state cardio like running on a treadmill or using the elliptical machine is catabolic which means that it metabolizes your muscles, using them, instead of fat, for an energy source. HIRT training allows you to maintain and build those muscles while burning fat and calories as the primary energy source. 

HIRT is a powerful way to reach many of your fitness goals. If you want to lose excess body fat, for example, HIRT increases your metabolism-boosting lean muscle even when you are on a calorie-reduced diet. On the flip side, if you are looking to build lean, athletic muscle tone, HIRT allows you to build lean muscle tone without adding extra body fat.

When compared to steady state cardio or straight up resistance training, HIRT burns more calories in less time and boosts both your aerobic and anerobic endurance.

How to start HIRT training:

Intensity is the most important part of HIRT training. Strength training becomes more intense when you move quickly through the exercises with limited rest.

Follow a HIRT workout program: Because you will be moving quickly between sets, you won’t have time to stop and figure out what to do next. The best approach is to follow along with an existing HIRT workout program - this will let you stay focused on the next exercise, and getting your form correct. If you are new to HIRT, try our 30 Day Beginner Bootcamp, or our Intro to Strength series on our fitness streaming platform, BodyRockPlus.com. These 2 programs will get you started with HIRT and strength training at home for fat loss. 

 Do full body HIRT workouts instead of splitting it up into muscle groups: 

Typical strength training routines often split up training days by muscle groups that are being targeted. HIRT workouts focus on a full body burn - you exercise all the major muscle groups at once in a HIRT session. Adding a little bit of extra weight can really take this full body focus to the next level. Adding, for example, the BodyRock Weighted Vest, can increase your resistance without impeding your movements. It is such a small adjustment but can yield you massive results.

HIRT workouts use reps in the 6 to 15 range: Lower reps lead to gains in muscle mass while higher reps create muscle endurance. This mid-range will stimulate fat loss while giving you explosive strength.

Allow yourself limited rest between sets: No matter how tempting it may be, don’t allow yourself to rest in the middle of your set. Follow along with the cadence of the workout program that you are following to insure that you are keeping up with the HIRT workout format. Power through. Keep moving.

Do every HIRT exercise quickly: But remember, good form is first and foremost. If you find your form is failing, slow down a bit.

Allow recovery between your HIRT workouts: Remember, you need to give your body time to repair. You maybe tempted to do more work to see greater gains but that isn’t how things work. Your rest days are every bit as important as your workouts! The benefit of following a HIRT workout program like our 30 Day Beginner Bootcamp, is that the rest days and workout durations are already taken care of for you, so all you need to do is just press play and follow along. 

What does starting a HIRT routine look like?

Our 30 Day Beginner Bootcamp is an excellent example of a low-impact HIRT style workout program. The program focuses on basic strength training moves, low rest periods between sets, and full body workouts. Because it’s a beginner level workout program, the workouts are between 10-15 minutes in duration, and teach foundational strength training moves. For these reasons, this style of HIRT is a perfect place for beginners interested in leaning out, losing excess fat and building up their strength and exercise endurance. For a limited time, we are offering a full year of access to our Beginner Bootcamp series, as well as all of our other workout programs on our fitness streaming series BodyRockPlus.com for just $69 with code: NY22. 

Best,

Freddy