Separating HIIT Fact from Fiction

Rahul Bernath is the Sales and Marketing Director for the home fitness bike called CAR.O.L at carolfitai.com. Before joining CAR.O.L, Rahul graduated from the University College London with a First Class Degree and worked with some of the UK’s most valuable consumer brands in marketing and sales.

The name of this rather innocuous-looking stationary bike stands for CARdiovascular Optimization Logic. CAR.O.L is an AI-powered, interactive exercise bike with self-learning algorithms that took more than four years to develop. The big selling point of CAR.O.L is that it automates each HIIT (high-intensity interval training) workout and guides you through perfect execution of each workout using biofeedback, a touchscreen, and audio prompts.

I had the opportunity to try out a CAR.O.L bike in person, and although I enjoyed a good workout and was intrigued by the device, I walked away with some mixed feelings. Those mixed feelings mostly focussed around the claims that so many devices like these seem to elicit. Claims such as "CAR.O.L is clinically proven to give you the same cardio benefits of a 45-minute jog in under 9 minutes, with only 40 seconds of hard work." So, instead of griping about these negative feelings in private, I decided to have Rahul on the podcast to discuss it openly. So civilized, right?

See also: 3 Problems with High-Intensity Interval Training. 

In our conversation, which I highly encourage you to listen to in the audio podcast player at the top of this page, Rahul and I discuss the following topics. 

• The difference between cardiovascular or biological fitness and full-body physical fitness.
• How devices like CAR.O.L and HIIT can be a positive "gateway drug" for previously unfit individuals to progress toward a more robust movement filled life.
• The many benefits of having a healthy and strong heart, which is one of the biggest boosts from a HIIT style workout.
• How a once a previously-sedentary Rahul achieved a level of cardiovascular fitness using the CAR.O.L and then started doing more involved exercise programs.
• The motivation that can be found in seeing the quick results from workouts like HIIT or weightlifting versus the slow results you get from longer, slower cardio. (Spoiler: Seeing quick results keeps you coming back for more.)
• Why the AI aspect of CAR.O.L helps to execute HIIT the "correct" way that it's done in the highly controlled environment of a sports science lab. For more info on...

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