If you’re new to exercise or evaluating your current routine, there are a lot of variables to consider. Should you be focused on strength training or cardio? High-intensity interval training or more low-intensity steady state cardio? And one I hear a lot: Are high-impact exercises more effective than low-impact workouts?
Each training style can sometimes get a bad rap: High-impact training is known for being hard on the joints and jarring for the body. Low-impact training has a reputation of being too easy or only for those with injuries. But both types of exercise can be done safely and effectively — and both can be used to create a high-intensity workout routine!
High-intensity and high-impact exercise are often used interchangeably, but it is an important distinction to make. While high-intensity exercise can be a great addition to everyone’s workout routine, the level of impact you include in your routine needs to be carefully considered. It’s important to take the time to learn the difference between high and low-impact exercises and evaluate which one is right for you.
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What is high-impact exercise?
High-impact exercises are movements that include jumping and put a high level of stress on your body, specifically your joints. Because these movements often require having both feet off of the ground at the same time, they put more weight and impact on your body when you land. Research shows that jumping and activities that include jumping cause the bones, muscles and joints to absorb close to 10 times the weight of your body! For many people, especially those that are new to exercise, recovering from an injury, or have joint issues, this can be a lot of strain to place on the body.
An example of a high-impact HIIT workout: 10 jump squats, 10 pushups with one foot off of the ground, and jogging or doing high knees in place for 30 seconds.
What is low-impact exercise?
Low-impact exercise are movements without jumping that put little to no stress on the joints. Low-impact cardio exercises include walking, biking, swimming and using an elliptical. Low-impact strength training includes exercises like squats that keep both feet on the ground, or pushups that keep both feet and hands on the ground, eliminating the bounce or the jump from any exercise. These types of exercises are gentler on the body and are generally considered to be safer. Many high-impact exercises have modifications that can keep the intensity, but lower the impact on the joints. For example, you can mimic jump squats by powerfully coming up onto your toes at the top of the movement before lowering back down.
An example of a low-impact HIIT workout: 10 squats, 10 pushups and walking in place for 30 seconds.
High-impact vs low-impact exercise: Which is safe for you?
It's true that you can burn more calories and get a more intense workout with high-impact exercise, but at what cost? This is the question I challenge my clients to ask themselves.
For beginners, it is always better to start slow and steady with lower-impact exercises. This reduces the risk of injury and pain that comes with high-impact exercise to ensure that you're able to stick with a consistent workout routine. Don’t feel like you’re getting less of a workout by doing low-impact moves. Part of exercise is honoring your body where it’s at!
If you have been working out consistently and do not have joint issues, incorporating some high-impact moves into your routine can be a way to challenge yourself and up the intensity. So how do you know if you should go for high or low-impact moves? This fitness test will help you figure out which type of exercise is best for you.
High-impact fitness test
This test will help you determine what type of exercise is right for you — and help you become an expert on your own body!
Jump test
Ask yourself: Does it hurt my knees, ankles or hips to jump?
How to perform the jump: Standing with your feet as wide as your hips or shoulders, whichever is more comfortable, bend your knees and reach your butt back into a squat or into a half squat. Swing your arms back as you jump up off of the ground, and then lower down onto your feet with your weight mostly oi your heels or back half of your feet, and have your knees slightly bent. Stand up and shake out your legs.
Verdict: How do you feel? If your knees, ankles or hips hurt, do low impact and avoid jumps.
Plank test
Ask yourself: Does it hurt my shoulders or wrists to perform a plank?
How to perform the plank: Come onto your hands and knees on a mat, with your wrists lined up with the front of the mat. Shoulders are over your wrists, and fingers are spread out wide. Then pull the naval in toward the spine to support the low back, and step each foot back into a plank position. Tuck your toes under and reach your heels toward the back of the room. Look a few inches in front of your hands with your eyes. Check in the mirror to make sure your low back is not sagging and that your core is engaged.
Verdict: Are your shoulders and wrists hurting? If so, avoid plank positions and especially exercises like full mountain climbers or single shoulder taps that put more pressure on the wrists and shoulders in a plank position. Focus on building up to plank instead, and doing other types of HIIT exercises that don’t require maintaining plank for a long period of time.
Jog test
Ask yourself: Does it hurt my knees, ankles or hips to jog?
How to perform the jog test: Standing with your feet as wide as your hips, start to run in place. Pump your arms and do a light jog — if you have the space you could even jog forward 10 feet. How do your knees and hips feel?
Verdict: If you feel pain in your knees, hips or ankles, focus on low-impact exercises like walking in place and jumping jacks without the jumps. You’ll still get in cardio but with a lot less pressure on your joints!
