Brand Stories

Food for Thought. Exercise Snacking

Canadian scientists who helped popularise high intensity interval training (HIIT) and the “one—minute workout” have released new research that supports a new way to improve physical fitness: “exercise snacks.”



Canadian scientists who helped popularise high intensity interval training (HIIT) and the “one—minute workout” have released new research that supports a new way to improve physical fitness: “exercise snacks.”

To “snack” on exercise is to do several short periods of exercise throughout the day, which could include taking a brisk walk or foregoing the lift in favour of the stairs. A sedentary lifestyle leads to weak muscles, which leads to maladaptive movement patterns, which can then lead to injuries and the kinds of pain that keep us even more sedentary. Taking on a fitness challenge in small bites rather than a large portion can help to re—frame the challenge of exercising.

Many health experts also recognise that exercise snacking could augment gym sessions as it encourages regular movement throughout the day and is less likely to result in the long amounts of time spent sitting that are linked to a slow metabolism, poor blood sugar control and a decrease in the body’s ability to effectively break down fat. All in all, dividing workouts into smaller more frequent sessions can provide multiple health benefits.

Climbing stairs is a cardiovascular exercise, meaning it works your heart, lungs and circulatory system. Stairclimbing works all of the major lower—body muscles, including glutes, hamstrings, quadriceps and calves— it’s a classic short burst exercise and ideal for the time—poor. Unlike traditional stairs though, which have the same step height, Intenza’s Escalate Stairclimber offers 20 unique step—heights which can be scaled to match exercise goals. You can make workouts more challenging by upping the speed, incline variation and step height.

As well as doing a great job of burning calories and strengthening your legs, the Escalate is also very kind to the joints. If you’ve got arthritis or any other kind of painful joint problem that prevents you from running on a treadmill, you can carry on exercising without hurting your ankles, hips or knees and also prevent any further damage from developing. Maintaining good form on the machine and being consistent with your training routines will make your leg muscles have more stamina so you will feel better doing day to day tasks, like walking or climbing the office stairs! #howfitnessshouldfeel