HIIT Training and POTS

HIIT Training and POTS (Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome)

The concept of HIIT (high intensity interval training) training with chronic conditions is done often in rehabilitation, just on a much lower scale due to the symptoms and heart rate of these patients.

HIIT training involves a period of higher intensity movement that stimulates the body to function at a ‘stress’ level where the heart rate increases, blood flow increases and various hormones such as adrenaline are upregulated to cope with the increased demand. During this time period the body is exposed to a high functionality, followed by a period of ‘rest’ or decreased demand where the body is able to bring all of those levels close to normal again.

Essentially it trains the body to function at higher levels.

POTS is a condition that affects an individual’s ability to exercise. Specifically due to a rapid abnormal change in heart rate, feeling light headed, fainting and fatigue.

For a POTS sufferer any exercise, including basic movements, can feel like a high intensity workout. The importance of exercise for these individuals comes from managing the dose, type and intensity of exercise. Exercise done in a progressive planned format can be extremely helpful to these patients and is an important aspect of managing the condition.

Rehabilitation training for chronic conditions involves pushing the heart rate slightly higher and then bringing it down again. How high we are able to push depends on a patient’s symptoms and can change every day. The ultimate goal is to be able to push more over a long period of time, thus improving variability and slowly aiming to reduce the amount the heart rate goes up and reduce the overall symptoms of the patient, or at least the extent to which they are experienced.

How does this translate to everyday life and why is it important?

As you can imagine for POTS patients their heart rate spikes during basic daily tasks, and if we are able to allow adaptation to the heart and its regulatory systems through rehabilitation we can decrease the amount it goes up during tasks and the individual will have a better quality of life.

Rehabilitation training can be very specific to each patient, and any patient who is unsure where to start should seek advice from a Biokineticist or their closest rehabilitation centre.