HIIT
What is it?
HIIT stands for High Intensity Interval Training. It is an exercise strategy that alternates between shorter, intense periods of exercise with longer, less intense recovery periods.
Some of the reported benefits of HIIT in humans are:
Burns calories Burns a lot of calories in a short amount of time.
High metabolic rate Maintains metabolic rate at high for hours after exercise.
Reduces fat Intense workouts help reduce fat.
Muscle gain The rigorous exercise helps to work more muscles.
Oxygen consumption The intense workout increases breathing rate, so you consume more oxygen.
Reduces heart rate HIIT reduces heart rate and blood pressure.
How does this relate to dogs?
Whether you're conditioning your working dog, or for competition, or you're just trying to keep your companion as fit and healthy as possible so that they enjoy a long life, interval training is something that can be incorporated into your existing exercise program.
If you're utilizing the slatmill in your interval training, the dog handler should encourage the dog to work as hard as possible during the intense workout phase. You can do this by holding the dog's favourite toy in front of the dog, but not letting them actually take the toy. You can also use verbal praise or even food. Use whatever motivates your dog the most.
When your dog enters the recovery phase, remove all stimulation meaning take the toys/food and move them out of sight. If you were encouraging them with praise or a high-pitched sing-song voice, you can lower your voice and give more calming praise. This allows the dog to slow down and to just walk instead of trying to sprint towards their favourite reward. This becomes the recovery period and should be longer than the initial intense workout phase.
When the dog resumes a more moderate respiration rate, you can repeat the cycle. Grab the reward, present it to the dog and encourage them to work as hard as possible again.
How do I know how long the intense workouts should be versus the recovery period?
This will vary depending on the individual dog. Genetics and overall fitness will both play a factor here.
As the conditioner, you will develop a sense of your dog's aerobic/anaerobic thresholds as well as their recovery.
An example could be:
30 seconds intense running 3 minutes recovery 30 seconds intense running 3 minutes recovery Etc...
As your dog becomes more fit, the intense work will increase while the recovery period will decrease.
So, over time, the interval training may progress to look like...
1 minute intense running 2 minutes recovery 1 minute intense running 2 minutes recovery Etc....
If you choose to incorporate interval training into your dog's workout routine, it is important to document each session. This will allow you to see when the dog is ready to increase the intensity and reduce the recovery.
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