Low Intensity Steady State Cardio (L.I.S.S.)
What is L.I.S.S.?
LISS stands for Low Intensity Steady State Cardio. Let’s break that down even further: Low Intensity means that it is easy and not strenuous. If you’re walking with a friend and you can hold a conversation without being out of breath, that’s a good indicator that you’re walking at a low intensity. Steady State means that you are maintaining the same intensity for the entirety of this activity. For example, if you’re walking, your heart rate would remain about the same for the whole walk. Compare this to interval training, where you would increase and decrease your intensity at various intervals, thus resulting in your heart rate elevating and dropping according to the increase and decrease in intensity.
What does LISS look like in a training program?
LISS can be used in a training program for many fitness goals. LISS can be used to improve cardiovascular fitness, added at the end of a workout to increase caloric burn + fat burn and increase daily step count, or done as an active recovery on a non-training day.
LISS can be done with any form of cardio, such as a bike ride, walking, or rollerblading. The key is to do the activity at a low intensity and maintain that low intensity for the duration of the activity.
Read more about LISS in these LWL articles
