HIIT HELP

jack1336

I workout two days in a row. One break day in between. 5x5 strength training. What HIIT workout should I do. One that helps with fat loss and muscle gains.

Note- I take prescription Adderall so heart rate is up. Many people tell me not to do straight cardio.

sijomial

Don't do HIIT would be my advice.

Real HIIT (bursts of maximal effort cardio interspersed with recovery periods) is incredibly fatiguing and requires recovery and is a dreadful antagonist to strength training which is also fatiguing and requires recovery time. It's also a low calorie burner due to the necessity of being very short duration. If something is described as HIIT and is long duration that's a huge clue it really isn't.

If you can't do "straight cardio" then you certainly can't do maximal effort cardio. What does your Doctor tell you about exercise while on your meds rather than random people?

Fat loss either comes from a sustained calorie deficit or building muscle while maintaining your weight - HIIT isn't a muscle building exercise and exercise on MyFitnessPal isn't intended to create an additional calorie deficit over the rate of loss you picked.

PS - if you mean circuit training or some other kind of interval training that marketing departments insist on hanging the HIIT label on then that is really for conditioning, enjoyment or cross training for a sport. All good reasons to do it but not what you state your goals are.

beatyfamily1

You can do whatever you want. Steady state cardio isn’t typically recommended because too much of it can actually hurt your muscle gains. It’s not that you shouldn’t do it at all but you may want to limit how much you are doing. HIIT cardio is different. It mimics the benefits of weight lifting. You are pushing your muscles to the max with timed intervals similar to weight lifting. You can gain muscle with HIIT along with the calorie burning benefits, and just like weight lifting, you can burn calories long after you have stopped. I do it with battle ropes, weighted step ups, farmer walks with cinder blocks, box jumping, and running on the treadmill. Just be creative with whatever you choose to do. Since your heart rate is already elevated you may want to give it a try and check your heart rate to see if you are safe to continue. Start with short durations and go from there.

mmapags

OP, you got 2 opposite responses and mine is to help clarify. The first respone from sjomial is dead on in every detail.

The 2nd response from beatyfam is dead wrong in most respects. Cardio does not hurt muscle gains as long as you get adequate calories and protein. That is an old broscience myth. Also, HIIT does not build muscle just like lifting weights. That is just plain wrong. HIIT is a protocol developed to increase Vo2 max in athletes in burst style sports like MMA, Soccer, Football. It was never developed to build muscle and indeed it does not. It's also not particularly effective for fat loss due to short duration, as sjomial mentioned. It also wasn't designed for that.

I would consult with you physician before beginning any cardio based on your medical history. If cleared, a nice low to moderate intensity cardio will burns some calories and help a little with fat loss and improving cardio health. It will not build muscle. That's what weight training is for.