Читать книгу HIIT Your Limit. High-Intensity Interval Training for Fat Loss, Cardio, and Full Body Health онлайн

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The reason for this improvement in insulin sensitivity from HIIT training is well understood. Scientists have discovered that exercising your muscles actually activates the body’s glucose transporter proteins, called “GLUT4 proteins.” Your HIIT workouts prompt these proteins to take glucose into the muscles for fuel.

You may be asking: why is this important? Here’s why. Under normal conditions, your muscles use insulin to activate the GLUT4 proteins to take glucose into the muscles (as explained). However, for people with insulin resistance, also called low insulin sensitivity, and type 2 diabetes, insulin is not able to effectively stimulate these GLUT4 proteins. What does this mean in real-world terms? It tells us that HIIT workouts are an excellent line of defense toward the prevention and/or management of type 2 diabetes, one of the fastest growing diseases throughout the world.

What Is the Effect of HIIT on Cholesterol Levels?

Cholesterol is a waxy, fat-like substance that’s found in all cells of the body. One of its most important functions is to aid in the production of hormones, and it also plays a chief role in constructing our cell membranes. It’s transported in the blood by special protein packages called “lipoproteins.” The two most important lipoproteins to know about are low-density lipoproteins (LDL) and high-density lipoproteins (HDL). LDL cholesterol is often called the “lousy” cholesterol because an excess of LDL in the blood builds up on the artery walls, creating the plaque that leads to heart disease. On the flip side, HDL cholesterol is frequently called good or healthy cholesterol because it’s responsible for removing and transporting cholesterol from the artery walls to the liver, where it is disposed of by the body. Having an elevated level of HDL is believed to be favorably associated with preventing heart disease, that is, having enhanced cardioprotection.