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So, you just worked out. Are you paying the price with stiff muscles or sore joints? We get it. If your intensive workout routine is pushing your body to its limits, understanding high vs. low impact exercise options (and integrating them into your plan) may be exactly what you need to help lessen the toll it takes on your body.
In this blog, we’ll cover:
- What does “impact” mean when it comes to exercise?
- What’s the difference between high- and low-impact exercises?
- Benefits of high- and low-impact exercises
- Examples of high- and low-impact exercises
- How high- and low-impact exercises support weight loss
- And more!
What’s the difference between high-impact and low-impact exercise?
Generally, exercises can be categorized as high-impact or low-impact. Low-impact exercises are moves that keep your body grounded throughout the exercise, meaning you always have at least one foot planted beneath you (think: walking or doing a squat). If you’re doing an upper-body exercise, you would have one arm or hand grounded, such as with a plank.
Low-impact exercises involve less force on the body. There’s typically no jolting or jostling with low-impact exercise. Instead, there are smooth, fluid movements.
Benefits of low-impact exercise include:
- Better mood
- Improved mental health and well-being
- Less stress on joints
- Apartment-friendly!
High-impact exercises, on the other hand, are defined as moves that involve both feet leaving the ground at the same time (think: squat jumps). With moves that focus on the upper body, both arms or hands leave the ground, such as a push-up with a clap.
High-impact exercises oppose gravity, and with every stride or high-impact landing, ground reaction forces are exerted on your bones and joints.
The benefits of high-impact exercises include:
- Stronger bones
- Increased bone mineral density
- Improved balance and stability
- Reduced risk of injury
Both high-impact and low-impact exercise have exercise benefits like better cardiovascular health, higher muscle mass, lower risk of chronic disease, and improved longevity.
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What exactly is “impact”?
You’ve heard the word before — like when someone says “going to the gym has a positive impact on how you feel.” But what about with exercise? In this case, impact is more literal, and is about physical movement. Impact with exercise can be thought of as the amount of force that is placed on your body during movements, especially on your bones and joints. Impact happens when your body comes into contact with a surface, usually the ground (because, gravity!). Even walking involves impact.
Note: Be careful not to confuse this with intensity, which is a measure of how much the cardiovascular system (heart and lungs) is working. High-intensity exercise means you’re breathing heavily with an elevated heart rate. Impact, on the other hand, refers to the skeletal system (bones and joints).
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Looking for a challenge? Try these high-impact exercises!
What goes up must come down. With high-impact exercises, that’s when the impact happens — when you return to the ground.
Some high-impact exercises can even cause your joints to feel up to three times your body weight as direct force when you make contact with the ground. While it’s important to be cautious of exercises that have too much impact for your body, these high-impact exercises can also be beneficial by improving muscle flexion and strength.
However, high-impact exercises might not be appropriate for everyone. Luckily, there are ways to mitigate the effects of these forces (and sometimes, that means choosing alternative movements!). We’ll share low-impact alternatives further down, but first, let’s check out a few high-impact exercises to try.
Running
Running is considered high-impact because both feet are not always on the ground. When the foot hits the pavement or treadmill belt with each step, there is impact on the body, especially the bones of the feet, ankles, shins (tibia and fibula), and knees.
Exercises with jumps and hops
Jumping, jumping jacks, jumping rope, and squat jumps are all classic examples of high-impact exercise. These involve an explosive upward motion followed by gravity pulling your body back down to the ground. This means the most impact is exerted on the body when you land.
Plyometrics
Plyometrics include upper-body, lower-body, as well as full-body exercises that involve a specific type of training with explosive movements. Think: push-ups with clap, mountain climbers, box jumps, and burpees. Because they elevate the heart rate, they’re often incorporated into high-intensity interval training (HIIT) workouts.
More types of high-impact exercises
Looking for additional high-impact exercise options? Consider these activities:
- Pickleball
- Basketball
- Track events (like hurdles, sprints, and long jump)
Looking for a gentler option? Modify high-impact exercises with these variations
As we mentioned, plyometric exercises pack a major punch thanks to their explosiveness! But if you’re looking to lessen the impact, you can still do explosive movements without leaving the ground (and therefore, without having to land with impact).
Looking for a little inspiration? Try these exercise lower-impact alternatives with similar benefits to their higher-impact counterparts.
- Instead of push-ups with a clap, try a power push-up. This can be done in a full plank position (from the toes) or from a kneeling plank position. Lower down toward the ground in a slow, controlled way, and when you push back up, go as fast as you can but leave your hands on the ground. Doing these in fast succession with little rest will deliver a similar effect as doing a full clap push-up!
- Instead of mountain climbers, try deadbugs. A deadbug is completed lying on your back, either with your bodyweight or holding a weight in one hand. As you lower one arm and leg toward the ground in an extended fashion, you’ll hold your other arm and leg steady in position using your core muscles.
- Instead of box jumps, try step-ups. This will activate your glutes, but since you always have one foot on either the box or the ground, there’s lower impact on your body compared to the box jump.
- To make a burpee low-impact, use a box and do a modified box burpee. Here, you’ll step back instead of jumping back into an elevated plank position, and then step back up to a full-stand position to complete the rep.
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Is high-impact exercise safe after 40?
Our bodies change over time, which can lead to questions about which exercises should be modified for maximal benefit. Here’s the good news: High-impact exercise is safe and effective after age 40, even for people who are at risk for bone loss.
Research shows that high-intensity resistance and impact training (HiRIT), when done progressively and under supervision, can actually improve bone mineral density in post-menopausal women with osteoporosis and osteopenia.
The benefits of high-impact exercise extend beyond women to all adults, as well. Research estimates that around 110,000 deaths per year could be prevented for certain adults by adding more moderate-to-vigorous physical activity to their routine, by just 10 minutes per day. For U.S. adults between 40 to 85 years or older, research estimates that just 10 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity a day could prevent around 110,000 deaths per year.
High-impact and high-intensity exercise clearly have their perks — even (and sometimes especially) after age 40. With this in mind, it’s important to understand your body’s needs and choose the right level of impact and intensity for you.
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When are low-impact exercises a good idea?
Depending on physical conditions and individual needs, some people may be instructed to avoid high-impact motions in their workouts. This can be common when there’s been an injury and the recovery process requires extra caution.
Chronic pain can also get in the way of comfortably completing high-impact exercises. If you have pain in your lower body joints (hips, knees, or ankles) when you jump or hop, stick with low-impact alternatives for the lower body. If you have any pain in your shoulders, elbows, or wrists when you hold a plank, avoid high-impact exercises for the upper body.
Low-impact exercise is an excellent choice for people who are:
- Rehabilitating after an injury or medical event
- Older and living with existing conditions or orthopedic concerns
- Living with inflammatory rheumatic diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, or psoriatic arthritis
Switch things up with these low-impact exercise alternatives
If you’re looking for alternatives to high-impact exercises, you’re in the right place! In general, adapting a movement to make it low-impact will involve slowing it down and removing the explosive portion of the movement. Here are some examples.
Cycling, the elliptical, and the stair climber
If the high-impact nature of running isn’t right for your body, there’s good news — there are other ways to get the cardiovascular benefits without putting pressure on your body’s bones and joints. Low-impact alternatives for running like cycling, using the elliptical, and the stair climber can still bring your heart rate up and give you a feel-good endorphin rush.
Squat-to-calf raises, side steps, and lateral floor run
Substituting jumping exercises for lower-impact movements will allow you to work your lower body explosive muscles without the force of the landing post-jump.
- Instead of squat jumps, try squat-to-calf raises. This exercise requires you to “power up” from the squat position right into a tip-toe position, which will give a similar effect to a squat jump, without the hard landing. This move is high-intensity without being high impact.
- Instead of jumping jacks, try side steps. This exercise involves the same motion with your arms as a jumping jack, but you step to the side with one foot instead of hopping with both feet. Your ankles will still get the benefit of being strengthened, and you’ll also feel your heart rate increase without the jump.
- Instead of jumping rope, do a lateral floor run. This exercise, also known as “fast feet” involves stepping quickly to this pattern: in in out out, in in out out, repeat. This is a fantastic option for a general conditioning move that targets the side muscles of the legs, which are frequently forgotten in workouts.
Walking
Slower than running (and with one foot kept on the ground), walking is a low-impact exercise, and a great option for people who are being cautious of high-impact movements. Even in speed walking, at least one foot is always in contact with the ground. If you bump up your speed to a jog, however, the impact will increase (as do the bone-strengthening and joint health benefits).
Swimming
Gentle on the body, swimming is one of the lowest-impact exercises out there, making it a good option for people who are recovering from injury, in some cases. The water allows for fluid body movements and minimal stress on bones and joints while still providing an effective workout.
More low-impact workouts to try
Looking for more low-impact workouts? There’s more to try! Start exploring these options:
- Functional training
- Core exercises
- Yoga
- Pilates
- Tai chi
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Which is better for weight loss, high-impact or low-impact exercise?
One study looked at the question closely, comparing results from two groups of overweight or obese women following different programs. One group followed a high-impact aerobics program, and the other followed a low-impact aerobics program combined with strength training.
Here’s what the study found:
Women in both groups saw improved body composition, cardiovascular health, and overall physical fitness after 24 weeks. This included better aerobic fitness, a higher vertical jump, more abdominal muscle endurance, and improved flexibility.
Women in the group doing low-impact aerobics with strength training experienced an increase in lean mass (aka bone and muscle tissue). This was the only group to build muscle tissue.
Benefits specific to the high-impact aerobics group included weight loss (lower total body weight, not specifically fat loss), improved speed and agility, and a lower resting heart rate.
If your goal is centered on weight loss, high-impact aerobic exercise is more effective. However, becoming leaner (losing fat while building muscle) requires strength training.
Finding balance between high-impact or low-impact exercises
Because there are benefits to high-impact and low-impact exercise, and each type may have specific benefits, one isn’t always better than the other — it's up to you and what you’re looking to get out of your workout. The key to success is ultimately about finding what works for you and sticking with it. As always, our Coaches are here to help guide and support you with a personalized plan (and we can even help you track your results with body composition scans!).
Ready to get set up with one-on-one support to identify and reach your next goal? Sign up for a fitness consultation at an Anytime Fitness near you to get started!
