HIIT treadmill workout

law102189

Looking for some advice. I started doing a HIIT treadmill workout last Saturday. I do a 5 minute warm up and then do 15 intervals of 30 seconds at 6.8 setting followed by 90 seconds at 4.5 setting, all at 1.0 incline. This takes me to 35 minutes and I do a gradual cool down for 5 minutes. Is this a good routine or is it better to sprint faster but reduce the number of intervals to maybe 10? I don't think I could last 15 intervals at speeds much faster,but might be able to do it for 8-10. I want to maximize calorie and fat burn. According to Vivosmart HR this routine burns about 460 calories. Max HR is 167. Thanks!

earth_echo

From my understanding of HIIT, you want your short bursts of exercise to be absolutely 100% effort. By continuing to work during the rest periods (for you, 4.5 setting at 1.0 incline), you're dipping into your ability to maximize your next burst, which would compromise the purpose of the entire thing. During a rest interval, do just that REST and recover.

law102189

Thanks for the advice. I'll slow down during the rest period tomorrow. I noticed someone doing a similar routine last night and his rest was 3.5. I used to do Insanity and you're right, the rest was just that...rest.

ashleyylo

I would agree with the above. When I do intervals on the tread I wokeep my "active" part at 40s or maybe 60 s then rest (litterally jump onto the side part) for the rest part (20 or 30 sec)

It can be killer, but it's also awesome. I'm pretty drenched with sweat and like dead after.

earth_echo

I read in another post that you're doing 40 minutes of HIIT. If you're able to do 40 minutes of HIIT, you're doing it wrong. My guess is that 6.8 at an incline is less than what you could actually put out. With HIIT, you want give 100% and I mean EVERYTHING you've got. On a treadmill, that's a bit difficult, imo. Maybe try a stationary bike and start with 15 second bursts followed by 1 minute rests (work up to 30 second bursts). There's some good Youtube vids on HIIT, maybe watch a few of those to give you some ideas. If you're gonna bother doing HIIT, you might as well do it correctly.

law102189

Thanks again. I'll check out You Tube for ideas.

law102189

ashleyylo wrote: »

I would agree with the above. When I do intervals on the tread I wokeep my "active" part at 40s or maybe 60 s then rest (litterally jump onto the side part) for the rest part (20 or 30 sec)

It can be killer, but it's also awesome. I'm pretty drenched with sweat and like dead after.

How long do you do this for in total with warm up and cool down?

earth_echo

Fit In 6 Minutes
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SHN-4ve81TY

How To Do HIIT Cardio Properly For Fat Loss
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tS0eaKk2F7c

ashleyylo

law102189 wrote: »

ashleyylo wrote: »

I would agree with the above. When I do intervals on the tread I keep my "active" part at 40s or maybe 60 s then rest (literally jump onto the side part) for the rest part (20 or 30 sec)

It can be killer, but it's also awesome. I'm pretty drenched with sweat and like dead after.

How long do you do this for in total with warm up and cool down?

I haven't done it in a while, admittedly, but i would prob keep at it for about 30min, which includes a warm up and cool down of a few minutes each.

Lazz5k

I also don't know if I am doing HIIT correctly, but I burn a ton of calories and I am drenched so I have to be doing something right! I usually start with a walk for 5 min to warm up and then start at 5.0 on the treadmill for 1 min and jump to the sides for 30 sec rest, repeat and increase speed gradually (5.0, 5.5, 6.0, 6.5 etc) - up to 8.0-10.0, usually 40-45 min of HIIT including the warm up walk

MeanderingMammal

law102189 wrote: »

Looking for some advice. I started doing a HIIT treadmill workout last Saturday.

What are you hoping to achieve?

To be honest if you're sustaining the effort for that length of time it's not HIIT. The value is in maximising your effort, more than the paces. That's one of the reasons that a treadmill isn't really a suitable tool for it.

You're aiming for c95-98% max heart rate in the effort periods.

FabianRodriguez94

For HIIT, you should probably not exceed 20 minutes. 10-15 minutes should be more than enough if you are pushing yourself to your max, which is the point.

law102189

Lazz5k wrote: »

I also don't know if I am doing HIIT correctly, but I burn a ton of calories and I am drenched so I have to be doing something right! I usually start with a walk for 5 min to warm up and then start at 5.0 on the treadmill for 1 min and jump to the sides for 30 sec rest, repeat and increase speed gradually (5.0, 5.5, 6.0, 6.5 etc) - up to 8.0-10.0, usually 40-45 min of HIIT including the warm up walk

Thanks for the reply. I guess maybe I'm not actually doing HIIT in its purest form, but I following a routine I found on the Internet. Tonight upped the max effort to 8.0 and slowed down the rest period to 3.5. I did 8 intervals plus warm up and cool down for total of 30 minutes. I then did a regular walk for 10. I guess if it's working and we are burning calories and pushing ourselves it can't be all bad, right? I'm afraid to try jumping to the side for the rest, I'm afraid I'll break my ankle or fall off the treadmill!

law102189

Thanks everyone! I'm going to keep pushing myself as you have suggested, I probably haven't been going as hard as I can. Upped max to 8.0 tonight and 8 intervals were about what I could handle, plus a little extra regular walking. One step at a time...

robertw486

I think a true high level HIIT session would be tricky on a treadmill. If you like the intervals, there is nothing wrong with what you are doing now, but just some food for thought here as well. You might want to take a look at your intervals, do the math, and just figure out an average speed.

You mention wanting to maximize calorie burn, and most people will do that doing steady state cardio vs intervals. Also keep in mind that using a HR monitor for anything other than steady state cardio can be less than accurate for results. Your HR rise carries through and settles while you are already actually going at the slower recovery speed, and over time that skews your HR to the high side.

I do training on an elliptical, so it has the advantage of slowing down quickly if I want. On a treadmill that isn't quite as easy. But experiment and find what works best for you. Often if you reduce your higher speed just a little, you can easily sustain that speed for a much longer period of time. So in the end, sometimes going slower means you end up with a higher calorie burn.


Some of the earlier HIIT protocols were designed with the intention of pushing hard enough to exceed your oxygen uptake as well as tax your muscles more. Doing that type of intensity proved to improve fitness measures in a shorter period of time. It won't burn more calories though. Once you get used to your pace vs HR at steady state for any given period of time, you can easily burn more calories just doing the steady state stuff.

What I often do is set a pace based on what I want to do for a given time I have to exercise, and then if I'm feeling it, toss in some higher paced intervals near the end to really get my HR up and push the calorie burn and intensity up.

MeanderingMammal

law102189 wrote: »

I guess if it's working and we are burning calories and pushing ourselves it can't be all bad, right?

So if your main priority is burning calories, you'll make far greater gains from steady state. There is much nonsence around about the near magical effects of HIIT, which clouds the issue.

Calorie expenditure is a function of mass and distance, with a factor to account for mechanical efficiency. Running consumes twice the calories of walking, as a result of that mechanical efficiency. That means you get most gains in pure calorie expenditure from covering a longer distance. So a more consistent pace for the 30 minutes will give you more bang for the buck.

The main value of HIIT is about improving oxygen uptake, so if you're not doing HIIT, as you identify you're not, then you're getting none of the value.

To put it in perspective, for comparison purposes. If I'm doing a sprint interval session I'll do 15 minutes of warm up at about a 10minute mile, 6 to 8 max effort 50 metre sprints with sixty second rest intervals at a 10 minute mile again. Those will bring my HR up to 195 to 200 bpm, then another 15 minute cool down.

Of the calories expendede, about 400 at my weight, 300 of those come from the warm up and cool down, 50 come from the rest intervals and about 50 come from the max effort periods.

If I just ran at a 10 minute mile for the 45 minutes I'd get 450 calories

If anyone tries to tell you that afterburn is a big deal, ignore them. The session I described above will give me between 20 and 30 calories for that effect.

That's why I asked what you were wanting from the session. If it's about calories, then focus your effort on the approach that'll give you most benefit.