Most people think that high intensity low impact exercises are only for newer athletes. Sure, they’re great for those that are new to the gym, however, they’re key to increasing cardiovascular fitness in athletes of all levels. In this article we will review some great exercises you can add to your fitness program to take your training to the next level. Keep reading for all the details.
Most readers of this website know that I write a lot of fitness programs. I’ve got plans for bodybuilders, runners, CrossFit athletes, and quite a few hybrid training programs. Because I write a wide variety of programs, for athletes of all different experience levels, I have a little broader perspective than most coaches.
I tend to think that all athletes need to balance weight training with some amount of cardiovascular fitness. Even pure strength, and hypertrophy athletes need cardio! The only question is how much? It’s important as a coach to figure out which types of cardio work best for my athletes.
Unless you’re a dedicated runner, or your sport requires certain types of cardio, high intensity low-impact exercise gives the most bang for your training buck. Here are there benefits of high intensity low impact exercises.
Benefits of High Intensity Low Impact Exercises
- Quick recovery times
- Allows high workout volumes for athletes with an advanced fitness level
- Limits interference with strength training
- Less delayed onset muscular soreness (DOMS)
- Time efficient for busy athletes
I would say that for a majority of athletes, HIIT style cardio would provide the most benefit in terms of cardiovascular health and fitness. That isn’t to say that low intensity, low heart rate training, doesn’t have some incredible benefits as well. You can read this article on low-impact workouts and Zone 2 training for more on that topic.
In the next section we will review each type of low impact exercise I recommend for high-intensity interval training . Before we do that, don’t forget to join the email list below, so you don’t miss out on the latest articles.
5 Best High Intensity Low Impact Exercises
There’s no way around this one, several of the best options for HIIT workouts require some cardio equipment. The good news is that most of the best options aren’t very expensive. Moreover, you can find the equipment in most gyms.
Because many of my readers have to exercise well away from the creature comforts of climate controlled gyms, I have included a few options that don’t require any specific cardio equipment. In the next section we’ll review the cardio exercises by type, and then I’ll give you some easy guidelines to plan any low-impact HIIT workout.
Assault Bike
The Assault Bike, and it’s analogues like the Echo bike, are by far my favorite pieces of cardio equipment (Amazon Affiliate Link). They have so many advantages over most other machines, it’s hard to count. Because they use wind resistance, they have incredible flexibility. You can do a low power output cardio workout, or go crazy with high intensity interval training, producing over 1,000 watts of power.
The other big benefit of an Assault Bike is that it uses more muscle mass than other types of cardio training. You use the muscles in your upper legs including: quads and glutes. You also use upper body muscles including: biceps, lats, shoulders, chest, triceps, and forearms. The only muscles that aren’t used are abs, and your posterior chain.
Readers of this website know that I used the Assault bike and cycling for my 20 weight loss plan, with great success. I also recommend pairing it with the online game Zwift, to compete in online challenges, and race other athletes in real time. To do that you need the middle of the road Assault bike or better.
Next we’ll review my other favorite options for high-intensity exercise. If you want a great muscular growth program check this out.
Stationary Bike
The stationary bike is my next most common recommendation for cardio. Like the Assault Bike, it’s great for a low-impact HIIT workout. Moreover, research indicates that it pairs very well with strength training. For athletes that do a lot of cardio and strength training, cycling is an effective way to limit any interference between the two disparate types of training.
Because this is also a very popular training type you can find a lot of options. Most gyms have a variety of traditional style bikes, but you can also find recumbent bikes as well, that can be more comfortable for some athletes.
If you’re looking for home gym options you can purchase something like a Zwift trainer that turns a bike you already own into an online trainer (Amazon Affiliate Link). You can also get a complete bike like a spin bike or Peloton bike, if you want to try some of their low impact workouts online. I also recommend looking for a cycling class at your local gym too.
This is one area where I think you can often find a good deal on used equipment. Most people end up using exercise bikes as clothes hangers, rather than their intended use! Next, let’s talk about our first completely free option.
Hill Running
Most people associate running with high-impact exercise, and generally speaking, they would be right. However, up hill running is drastically lower in impact. In fact, it’s one of my favorite low-impact modifications for runners. You can further reduce the impact by running on grass or other natural terrain. If you’re in the right area, and a glutton for punishment, you can run up sand dunes, at a fast pace.
The hard part can be finding a good hill to run. Normally the longer, and steeper, the better. You need the ability to run for at least 30 sec or so for a high intensity low impact HIIT workout. The steeper the hill, the lower the impact.
If you’re looking to keep the impact low, make sure that you aren’t running back down the hill. Most research shows that downhill running is very high impact! Now let’s talk about our other low cost option.
Swimming
Swimming might be the lowest impact option for high intensity training you can find. Because your body is supported by water, there is little muscular soreness, or chance of injury. It also uses more major muscle groups than almost any other type of exercise.
Similarly, there are more options than you might think in a pool. Even if you don’t know how to swim, or aren’t a proficient swimmer, you can actually walk, or run in shallow water for a great high intensity workout without much stress. In fact, there are special underwater treadmills that are often used for physical therapy.
Now let’s get to the last option on this list of low impact physical activites. After that, we’ll review some great interval training options that have been well researched to promote fitness gains.
Elliptical Machine
I know, I know, you probably didn’t expect this one to appear on the list, but it’s actually a great low impact piece of equipment. It tends to get a bad reputation because of the new years resolution crowd. For some reason they tend to gravitate to this machine.
For those looking for an intense workout, you will need to turn the resistance up to get your heart pumping. Most HIIT training will be done in cardio Zones 4 and 5, meaning hard to max effort training. If you can hold a conversation, then you aren’t going hard enough!
I would also recommend not putting too much credence in their calorie counting. They are quite generous in their estimates. Next let’s cover some great training guidelines to get the most from your high intensity cardio.
Interval Training Guidelines for High Intensity Low Impact Exercises
Interval training doesn’t have to be complicated, especially for athletes that aren’t planning on going to the Olympics. If you take a look at the table below, you’ll find it quickly shows you how interval training should work.
This chart is from my Ebook, Programming Your Fitness, where I go over the basics of functional fitness training, and how to put together an effective research based program. You can pick your copy up below, or find out more about it here.
For HIIT training you will want to focus on power outputs of 75% or higher, which is roughly your anaerobic threshold. The longer, lower power intervals, are more for aerobic capacity training. This means your intervals are generally 30 sec or less. You will be resting up to 3 minutes between efforts on these high-intensity workouts.
An example of this would be 30 sec at 90% effort, every two minutes on the minute for 20 minutes. This 20 minute workout would give you 10 hard intervals, with 90 seconds of rest between each, which is right within the guidelines. You could also do 10 seconds hard, every 90 seconds, for a similarly challenging workout. EMOM style training is a great way to put together a high energy workout, in a short amount of time.
Now that we’ve covered some great training options, for high intensity low impact cardio, let’s finish this article up with some training recommendations.
Final Thoughts
As a coach I think there are many benefits of maximum intensity training, especially when it’s paired with low impact exercises, but that doesn’t mean it’s the only style of training you should do. Just like all strength athletes need some cardio. All endurance athletes need some strength training.
It’s not just my opinion, research confirms that it increases pace, and makes more durable athletes. It’s always a good idea to be well rounded. Exercise of any kind is good in a workout regimen. It doesn’t have to be the perfect exercise.
It’s important to find a balance of training styles for your specific fitness goals, including rest days. If you want to be generally fit, then 50% low-impact cardio and lifting is a good mix. If you need more of one or the other, then you’ll have to change that bias. I recommend checking out some of my other programs to find a great, well thought out program, full of HIIT workouts, for all athletic goals. Now get out there and get training!
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We are not affiliated with any other company . Each workout plan is entirely owned by Tier Three Tactical and we recommend that you exercise under the supervision of a professional coach. It’s also recommended that you seek medical clearance from a licensed medical doctor before starting any fitness program or physical training.
