Results 1 to 7 of 7

Thread: To HIIT or not to HIIT?!

  1. #1
    God/dess Will's Avatar
    Joined
    Feb 2005
    Location
    Boston-ish
    Posts
    2,328
    Thanks
    278
    Thanked 505 Times in 289 Posts

    Default To HIIT or not to HIIT?!

    HIIT Training, are you really doing it?


    To HIIT or not to HIIT…


    Just about everyone and his mama has heard about High Intensity Interval Training, or HIIT for short. HIIT has been found to have various advantages over other forms of exercise for both fat loss and retaining muscle mass. It seems everyone has jumped on the HIIT bandwagon and regularly talk about how they do 40 minutes or so of HIIT and so on. The problem is, most of the people who claim to be doing HIIT are not. A quick hint: if the person was doing true HIIT, they would not be able to do 20 minutes of it, much less 40!


    Many, if not most, people seem to confuse HIIT with regular interval training. HIIT is in fact a form of interval training, but not all interval training is HIIT. Put simply, Interval training is a varying of intensities within the same workout, where you alternate a low intensity bout with a higher intensity bout. That’s the general nature of interval training, but it aint HIIT training folks. HIIT training, is a low intensity/no intensity bout alternated with a maximal intensity bout. By maximal, I mean 100% effort, which of course, no one can achieve for more then 20-30 seconds at a time.


    There are various ways to perform HIIT, but all have that in common, and what most people think they are doing for HIIT is really just old fashioned interval training. For example, the other day I did 4 minutes of walking on a treadmill at 3.5mph hour followed by 1 minute of running at 8.5mph (which for my short legs is pretty fast pace!) and repeated the cycle 5 times, which meant I was doing a 1:4 run/walk that lasted about 30 minutes including warm up and warm down. Was that HIIT? No, it was not. It was interval training, which is effective and productive training, but it’s not HIIT.


    There are many ways to perform HIIT training, from Tabata protocols (the most intense form of HIIT) which may only last 4-5 minutes to other versions. For example, my current HIIT protocol goes like so: after a brief warm up – 5 minutes or so on the treadmill – I will use a stair stepper type machine and will do 1 minute low intensity followed by 30 seconds all out, and repeat. I will do that for 10 minutes, which is literally all I can stand. When I say “all out” I mean 100% intensity, nothing held back, as fast and as hard as my legs can move me, similar say to a full sprint on a track.


    I like the stair stepper because it’s non-impactive on the joints and it’s easy to speed up and slow down quickly, but there are many ways to do HIIT training. The fact is however, most people claiming to do HIIT are not…another essential point is, HIIT is not for everyone. It requires a higher level of fitness, and many people are better off starting with various interval programs similar to what I wrote above vs. HIIT. Done too often, and or combined with other forms of high intensity exercise (e.g., weight lifting, etc.) HIIT can and will lead to over training and or injury, or as James Krieger concludes in his excellent review on the topic below
    “HIIT carries a greater risk of injury and is physically and psychologically demanding, making low- and moderate-intensity, continuous exercise the best choice for individuals that are unmotivated or contraindicated for high-intensity exercise.”

    Don’t gloss over that part.


    Personally, I do HIIT training no more then once per week when combining it with weight training and will usually do the interval training outlined above, or something like it, and keep the HIIT to once per week, and as part of the Hybrid Training program I developed, is very taxing and intense. I will also take time off from the HIIT for a time, and then add it back in for a few months at a time. What follows is a nice review of the science of HIIT worth reading, but keep in mind the realities of HIIT training.

    HIIT Report Cont.
    A cunning linguist...

  2. The Following User Says Thank You to Will For This Useful Post:


  3. #2
    God/dess Kylea2's Avatar
    Joined
    Nov 2007
    Location
    Denver & San Fran
    Posts
    6,907
    Thanks
    181
    Thanked 2,002 Times in 1,285 Posts

    Default Re: To HIIT or not to HIIT?!

    Why is the subject title phrased as a question when you are obviously for it? This looks more like a marketing article and less like the beginning of a discussion.
    Don't you ever sleep?
    Not at night...that's when the stars have rather better things to do. They're coming out, shining, that sort of thing.
    - Blog -
    My PM box fills up quick. If you have a question please with your username.
    Congrats to Pryce on doing some much needed tending in his garden!
    - -


  4. #3
    God/dess Will's Avatar
    Joined
    Feb 2005
    Location
    Boston-ish
    Posts
    2,328
    Thanks
    278
    Thanked 505 Times in 289 Posts

    Default Re: To HIIT or not to HIIT?!

    Quote Originally Posted by Kylea2 View Post
    Why is the subject title phrased as a question when you are obviously for it?
    I am "for it" under specific conditions. I guess I could have called it "are you really doing HIIT?" or something like that. The point being: many think they are doing HIIT when they are not, HIIT has some unique metabolic effects, HIIT is not for everyone all the time.

    Quote Originally Posted by Kylea2 View Post
    This looks more like a marketing article and less like the beginning of a discussion.
    Perhaps it's a bit of both!
    A cunning linguist...

  5. #4
    God/dess princessjas's Avatar
    Joined
    Nov 2008
    Posts
    2,520
    Thanks
    348
    Thanked 878 Times in 506 Posts

    Default Re: To HIIT or not to HIIT?!

    Hmm, I'm wanting to try this. I currently do interval training (although I never call it this.) I just randomly go all out (not quiet 100% though) on the elliptical or stairmaster for 30sec-1min, I can really only do it 2 or 3 times during my workout and have to go at a much lesser intensity for 10 min or so to recover (it might take a bit of building up my endurance to be able to do it with less recovery time). The shorter more intense thing is especially appealing for those days when I'm really rushed for time.
    "I hear you calling and it's needles and pins. I wanna hurt you just to hear you screaming my name...You're poision. but I don't wanna break these chains.... I wanna love you but I'd better not touch."

  6. #5
    God/dess Will's Avatar
    Joined
    Feb 2005
    Location
    Boston-ish
    Posts
    2,328
    Thanks
    278
    Thanked 505 Times in 289 Posts

    Default Re: To HIIT or not to HIIT?!

    Quote Originally Posted by princessjas View Post
    Hmm, I'm wanting to try this. I currently do interval training (although I never call it this.) I just randomly go all out (not quiet 100% though) on the elliptical or stairmaster for 30sec-1min, I can really only do it 2 or 3 times during my workout and have to go at a much lesser intensity for 10 min or so to recover (it might take a bit of building up my endurance to be able to do it with less recovery time). The shorter more intense thing is especially appealing for those days when I'm really rushed for time.
    My HIIT sessions only last 10 minutes and I am toast. Try mine above on the stair stepper and see how you like it. There's many ways to do HIIT, but I explain above why I like that version.

    The most intense of them all is the Tabata HIIT protocol, and that only lasts about 4 mins. The original Tabata Protocol requires the following:

    * 5 minutes of warm-up
    * 8 intervals of 20 seconds all-out intensity exercise followed by 10 seconds of rest
    * 2 minutes cool-down

    Tabata (named after the researcher who developed the protocol) did that as sprints I recall. I do NOT recommend you start with that as his studies used highly-trained endurance athletes in peak physical condition.
    A cunning linguist...

  7. #6
    Member
    Joined
    Aug 2008
    Posts
    63
    Thanks
    2
    Thanked 6 Times in 6 Posts

    Default Re: To HIIT or not to HIIT?!

    thanks for the info, I've actually been dying to get into this at the gym.

  8. #7
    God/dess Will's Avatar
    Joined
    Feb 2005
    Location
    Boston-ish
    Posts
    2,328
    Thanks
    278
    Thanked 505 Times in 289 Posts

    Default Re: To HIIT or not to HIIT?!

    Quote Originally Posted by scr333x View Post
    thanks for the info, I've actually been dying to get into this at the gym.
    Have fun!
    A cunning linguist...

Similar Threads

  1. To HIIT or not to HIIT?!
    By Will in forum Body Business
    Replies: 8
    Last Post: 09-15-2009, 05:18 AM
  2. HIIT treadmill routine
    By exotisch23 in forum Body Business
    Replies: 3
    Last Post: 09-10-2007, 03:29 PM

Bookmarks

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •