Sometimes it seems that all I hear about is the magic of high intensity interval training, or HIIT. This protocol alternates short periods of intense exercise with longer periods of moderate recovery periods (think sprinting 30 seconds, then walking or jogging at an easy pace for one minute, and repeating for about 20 minutes total) and promises results in as little time as possible. But the concept can be daunting for anyone who is just starting a workout program, recovering from an injury or surgery, or packing a little more weight than ideal.
So I’m here to preach the gospel of LISS: Low intensity steady state.
LISS exercise is any repetitive motion for 30 to 45 minutes at 50 to 60 percent of your maximum heart rate, according to sports medicine specialist and physical therapist Kevin McGuinness, who practices at Washington Orthopaedics & Sports Medicine. Typically, this refers to such activities as walking, swimming, or even jogging or biking at an easy pace.
“LISS is any activity that gets your heart rate up just a little bit and for a longer period of time,” McGuinness says. If it sounds familiar, that’s not surprising: Before the recent popularity of HIIT, McGuinness says, low-intensity exercise was simply called “cardio.”
McGuinness says in addition to improving your mood and cognition and helping you control your blood sugar, “LISS is one of the best ways to maintain a level of fitness.”
Here’s how to practice LISS exercise. Calculate your maximum heart rate by subtracting your age from the number 220. For example, if you are 49 years old, your MHR would be about 171 beats per minute. To stay within the 50 to 60 percent range, then, you would want to keep your MHR between 85 and 115 bpm, McGuinness says.
There are plenty of devices that help you monitor your heart rate, but you can also do this by taking your pulse and counting the beats for 60 seconds (or for 15 seconds and multiplying by four). Or see if you can hold your end of a conversation comfortably. If you can, you’re working within the optimal range for LISS.
LISS is a great option for first-time exercisers, McGuinness says, especially those who might be intimidated or limited in their ability to engage in higher intensity exercise.
“Whether it’s a more approachable form of exercise or whether their weight makes that type of exercise too painful to complete on a regular basis, low-intensity exercise is a much friendlier, easier-to-try version of cardiovascular exercise for the uninitiated,” he says.
Because it is associated with fewer injuries, LISS is particularly appropriate for individuals recovering from an injury affecting a weight-bearing part of the body, such as an ankle, or the knee or hip, according to McGuinness.
“Getting your heart rate up again and reintroducing some of the benefits of exercise without the potential pitfalls and risks that come with higher intensity exercise make LISS an ideal option for people recovering and rehabbing injuries,” he says.
It can also be the answer for people recovering from surgery. When her oral surgeon told Liza Himmelman of Chevy Chase, Md., that she would need to stop exercising for at least two weeks after an upcoming surgical procedure, she panicked. She didn’t want to give up the progress she’d made through her fitness routine.
Himmelman’s trainer created a lifting plan that wouldn’t unduly raise her heart rate. It involved lifting lighter weights, lifting more slowly and taking more time between sets.
