Maybe it’s because of our increasingly fast-paced lives but, when it comes to popular trends, it seems slow is the way to go. You may already be familiar with the slow food movement and slow fashion, but what if this method also works with exercise?
Low-intensity steady-state exercise (or LISS) has been around for some time. More recently it’s been embraced under the name of cosy cardio, after TikToker Hope Zuckerbrow coined the moniker to help women reclaim their relationship with exercise.
HOW IT STARTED
Hope had successfully lost 45kg through intense workouts. However, this all-or-nothing approach started working against her when she began to dread visiting the gym. She decided to flip her approach to exercise – and a movement was born. (Hope has 1.1 million followers and more than 43 million likes.)
So can this style of exercise really work? Well, it seems the answer may be yes. In fact experts say it’s surprisingly effective when compared with sweatier and more intense workouts.
THE LOWDOWN ON LISS
Glenn Phipps, founder of Stretch Yourself Strong, says the concept became popular as a much-needed anecdote to the high-intensity interval training (HIIT) boom of the 2010s.
“As HIIT gained popularity, we needed a term like LISS to differentiate the type of cardio training we were doing,” he explains. “And this is important. The appeal of LISS often comes down to the fact that we can burn similar calories to high-intensity exercise for what feels like less effort.”
BUT ISN’T THAT TOO EASY?
Well, the answer is actually no. That’s because Glenn says the “no pain, no gain” maxim is misleading.
“It doesn’t always have to hurt to work,” he affirms. One major reason that cosy cardio works for a lot of people is that they’re less likely to give it up.
“The type of exercise you’re most likely to stick to is the one that resonates with you the most, and research on LISS has been met with higher levels of compliance, lower injury risk and higher
long-term sustainability,” he explains.
And because LISS is more gentle, once you get into the habit, it’s also a workout style that you can continue for life.
CAN LISS BURN FAT?
If your goal is to lose weight, Glenn says LISS can be effective at this, too. “LISS allows you to tap into fat stores as you exercise,” he explains. “Exercising at a low intensity means that the body mobilises fat stores and uses fat as a preference for fuelling this type of exercise.”
The fact that you can do LISS for longer may also give it an edge in the fat-burning stakes.
“HIIT will preferentially burn glucose during trainings and burn fat in recovery. However, the extent to which this happens is probably fairly exaggerated,” he says. “It is possible that you may actually burn more calories during LISS given the greater period of time that you can sustain the exercise for.”
BRAIN BENEFITS
Glenn says all types of exercise have the potential to improve mental health and brain function. However, once again, LISS may possibly have an edge.
“Higher levels of intensity are associated with lower levels of brain oxygenation and impaired cognitive function, whereas lower intensity exercise is correlated with increased levels of brain oxygenation,” he explains.
And because LISS can be as simple as a walk and talk with friends, it also has the potential to be more social.
HOW MUCH IS ENOUGH?
Whether it’s a weekend walk or morning swim, Glenn says LISS can be done daily. As you become more confident, you could consider adding in a couple of days of HIIT or moderate activity. If you prefer to keep things at a mellow pace all week round, that’s OK, too.
“You can certainly get plenty of benefit from LISS alone,” he says. “Meeting the [weekly]recommendations of two-and-a-half to five hours of activity is a good gauge, ideally staying on the higher side of these figures if the intensity is low.”
FROM THE HEART
Foster care love goes both ways. You complete each other.
Open your heart to foster care with Family Spirit. familyspirit.org
Related stories
Native ad body.
Native ad body.
Native ad body.
