6 Low Impact HIIT Workouts: High-Intensity Interval Training

The front squat works the quadriceps, hamstrings, and gluteus maximus (butt).

The rotating shoulder press, when added, focuses the shoulder muscles, obliques, and core.

Here's how you perform this exercise with good form:

1. Stand with both feet hip-width apart, toes facing straight forward or slightly away from your body.
2. Hold a single dumbbell in the left arm, palm towards your body, at your shoulder.
3. Sit your hips back with the weight in your heels. Lower the hips till they are parallel to your knees. Keep the body weight on your heels and your chest up.
4. Drive through your heels, stand tall, and thrust your hips forward. Rotate the hips to the right while simultaneously pressing the dumbbell with your left hand above towards the right (rotational push). The left foot should rotate in the path of the dumbbell.
5. Return to your starting position.
6. Repeat for the desired number of reps.

3. Jump-free Burpees

Burpees are well-known for being a full-body, high-energy, high-intensity workout - ideal for a HIIT program.

While they often incorporate leaping aspects that might tax the joints, I've found a way to modify them to a low-impact exercise.

Here's how you perform this exercise with good form:

1. Stand tall with both feet hip-width apart and your arms stretched high.
2. Lower into a squat by pressing your hips back and bending your knees.
3. Place your hands on the ground and swiftly return to a plank posture. Descend into a push-up right away.
4. Return to standing by pressing up, walking your feet back into a squat, and stretching your arms overhead to get back to the starting position.
5. Repeat for the desired number of reps.

Butterfly squats are one of my favorite bodyweight squat variations.

They're a great way to strengthen your inner thighs, quads, and knees.

Here's how you perform this exercise with good form:

1. Stand with both feet slightly wider than hip-width apart, arms outstretched in front of your chest, left palm on the top right, and lower into a squat position.
2. Lower your arms to your hips in preparation for a rapid stand-up, raising your arms overhead and pushing your heels off the floor.
3. Return to your starting position immediately.
4. Repeat for the desired number of reps.

5. Kicking Plank

The kicking plank is a fun and dynamic way to target your glutes and obliques in one exercise.

Here's how you perform this exercise with good form:

1. Begin in a table-top posture with your hands stacked squarely under your shoulders and your knees bent and placed directly under your hips.
2. Step back one leg at a time to form a high plank position with palms and feet hip-width apart.
3. Kick your left foot to the right while your right hand reaches for your left leg and your torso turns to the left, pivoting on your right foot.
4. Return to the beginning posture (rotate back to the high plank position).
5. Repeat for the desired number of reps.

Jumping jacks are essential for almost every warm-up, but not everyone can do them since they may impact your knees.

Luckily, there's a low-impact alternative that you can do.

Here's how you perform this exercise with good form:

1. Begin standing with your hands at your sides, much like a typical jumping jack.
2. Instead of a traditional jumping jack, remove the leap out and alternate one side at a time.
3. Bend your left knee slightly and move out to the side with your right leg, swinging your right hand above shoulder height.
4. Step back in and do the same on the other side. This should be a quick action, with your arms and legs retaining strength and force as you go.

High-intensity interval training (HIIT) is a training style that consists of periods of maximal effort accompanied by periods of reduced intensity or complete rest.

HIIT training may be applied to your favorite type of exercise in various ways, including running, swimming, rowing, elliptical, functional training, and more.

The low-impact HIIT workout (high-intensity low-impact training or HILIT) follows the same framework as traditional HIIT workouts but emphasizes lower-impact activities.

Many HIIT exercises include high-impact burpees, squat jumps, or jumping jacks, ideal for boosting your heart rate and expending large amounts of energy.

Low-impact HIIT exercises typically skip high-impact activities or provide gentler joint alternatives.

While HIIT running, for example, is a great approach to building strength, stamina, and endurance, it may tax the joints. Instead of running, consider utilizing an elliptical, stationary bike, or rowing.

"If you enjoy running and are unwilling to give it up, running on a treadmill is a lower-impact alternative to running outside."

- Cori Ritchey, National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM) Certified Personal Trainer

According to several studies, HIIT raises metabolism for hours after training, even more than running and weight lifting [2].

This is excess post-exercise oxygen consumption (EPOC, also known as afterburn), a substantially higher oxygen intake rate following intense exercise [3].

3. Improves General Health

HIIT is more than simply a method for losing weight. It can also benefit your overall health. A review of 50 independent research discovered that HIIT lowers blood sugar levels [4].

Further study indicates it can lower blood pressure and resting heart rate in overweight and obese people [5].