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HILL
The Life Fitness-patented HILL workout offers a variety of configurations for interval training. Intervals are periods of intense
cardiovascular exercise separated by regular periods of lower-intensity exercise. The CLASSIC PROFILE WINDOW repre-
sents these high and low intervals as columns of light, which together have the appearance of hills and valleys. The computer-
ized interval training workout has been scientifically demonstrated to promote greater cardiorespiratory improvement than
steady-pace training.
The HILL workout goes through four phases, each marked by different intensity levels. The CLASSIC PROFILE WINDOW dis-
plays the progress of these phases. As noted in the descriptions below, the heart rate should be measured at two stages in the
workout to gauge its effectiveness. Wear the chest strap or continuously grip the Lifepulse handles. The Message Area does
not display a request for a heart rate measurement, as it does with CARDIO, FAT BURN and the HEART RATE ZONE
TRAINING programs.
1 Warm-up is a phase of low, gradually rising resistance, which brings the heart rate into the lower end of the target
zone and increases respiration and blood flow to working muscles.
2 Plateau increases the intensity slightly, and keeps it steady, to bring the heart rate to the low end of the target zone.
Check the heart rate at the end of this phase.
3 Interval Training is a series of increasingly steeper hills, alternating with valleys, or stints of recovery. The heart rate
should rise to the high end of the target zone. Check the heart rate at the end of this phase.
3 Cool-down is a low-intensity phase that allows the body to begin removing lactic acid, and other exercise by-prod-
ucts, which build up in muscles and contribute to soreness.
Each column, as seen in the CLASSIC PROFILE WINDOW and the chart above, represents one interval. The overall duration
of the workout determines the length of each interval. Each workout is made up of 20 intervals, so the duration of each interval
is equal to the duration of the entire workout divided by 20.
1 to 9 minutes: A workout with a duration of less than 10 minutes is insufficient for the HILL program to complete all four
phases adequately. The program, therefore, condenses a workout of this duration at various stages.
10 to 19 minutes: The interval durations initially are set at 30 seconds for a 10-minute workout. For every minute over 10,
each interval increases by three seconds. A 15-minute workout consists of 20 intervals at 45 seconds each.
20 to 99 minutes: All intervals last 60 seconds. If the user adds minutes to the pre-set duration while the workout is in
progress, the program adds hills and valleys that are identical to the first eight intervals of the Interval Training phase. This pat-
tern repeats until the workout is completed.
H
EART RATE +WORKOUTS
The FAT BURN workout is designed to maintain a user’s heart rate at 65 percent of the theoretical maximum
†
. Throughout the
workout, the user wears a Polar heart rate chest strap or grips the Lifepulse system sensors. If the user is not wearing a chest
strap or grasping the sensors, the WORKOUT PROFILE window displays a heart shape, and the display prompts the user to
grip the sensors. The console continuously monitors and displays the heart rate, adjusting the intensity level of the Cross-
Trainer to reach and maintain the target*. This workout uses the body’s fat stores and carbohydrates as sources of fuel. A
high percentage of total expended energy is from fat.
†
Defined by the American College of Sports Medicine's "Guidelines for Exercise Testing and Prescription" as equal to 220 minus an individual’s age.
*
Target Heart Rate (THR) is a percentage of the theoretical maximum. For example, a 40-year-old user's THR for the FAT BURN workout is 117. This workout targets 65 per-
cent of the maximum, so the equation would be (220-40)*.65=117
