Fitness and diet myths that just won't go away

AnnPT77

ninerbuff wrote: »

TABATA PROTOCOL

There are so many "influencers" now and classes that tout TABATA workout when the truth is all they are doing are intervals.

Tabata protocol is a specific protocol use to force the body to reach and improve VO2max. The protocol requires 100% effort on EVERY INTERVAL and of course each interval will reduce in power and speed.

Today, the majority of people think that doing a 20 sec work and 10 second rest for 8 cycles is Tababta.

It's a disservice to the man that created the program who created it to help Olympic racers improve.

If it ain't 100% effort for just 4 minutes..................................it's NOT Tabata. They are just intervals.

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 35+ years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

The real thing still has alternations of 20 seconds max effort and 10 seconds easier effort, times 8, making up that 4 minutes. Strictly, it's supposed to be 170% of VO2max on the 20 second pieces, if a person had the right lab equipment. For practical purposes without those, it's "max effort" on the hard part of the intervals.

I believe that you, niner, know this. "If it ain't 100% effort for just 4 minutes..................................it's NOT Tabata." is an inaccurate summary, though.

I agree that many people don't have the slightest idea how to gauge max effort in that sense, thinking it's "work as hard as you can at . . . whatever" which isn't exactly right in this context. Some athletic activities aren't really capable of getting a person to the equivalent of 170% VO2max even at perceived "max effort", and many people don't have the relevant experience to gauge what "max effort" really feels like for them, besides. There are ways to estimate VO2max from heart rate, but that assumes a person has a sports-tested HRmax, and most people don't.

That said, most of the experiences I've had with "Tabata intervals" in a group fitness context have been . . . not Tabata intervals, as you say.

I think it's particularly amusing when instructors claim "Tabata intervals" for activities that aren't primarily cardiovascular exercise, since the original protocol is in terms of oxygen consumption. (You - niner - know that the heart rate to oxygen consumption relationship isn't the same in other modalities, but not everyone knows that.)

One of my spin teachers liked to do a "Tabata intervals" toward the end of a class. Nope. Just short high intensity intervals.

None of this is a diss of the activities wrongly described as "Tabata intervals". Interval workouts are great, high intensity intervals included. It's just another example of the high-cachet label for something being overgeneralized to things that don't technically conform to the actual definition, and claims being made that this over-extended case has the same benefits as the original, basically for marketing reasons.

springlering62

mtaratoot wrote: »

During some of the pandemic lockdown, a neighbor who wasn't able to work (art teacher) held "gym class" out in the street. I was working from home. She had loud music that was already kind of annoying, and then she started using one of those Tabata timers, and it was even more obnoxious.

I had to ask several times to please turn it down a bit. Not that they're really even supposed to be using the street for that.... There were times some of them brought out equipment and set up stations. It was a great community building idea, but for people who were nearby and didn't want to have to listen to it, it was pretty annoying. A couple other neighbors and I would shake our heads and talk about it later.

Just say no to annoying your neighbor with a loud timer that goes BLWEEEEP multiple times per minute.

Please.

I feel ya. We live in an inner city cluster home community. Our neighbor’s garage door is 10 feet from our screened porch and kitchen door.

He’s an avid pickleball player and likes to practice on his garage door. Loooong practices.

He was one of the reasons I walked so much during the pandemic. Had I not, his *kitten* would be dead by now.

Cup half full me- because I’m (*gritted teeth*) a happier person these days- probably ought to thank him I didn’t gain weight during that period.

Thankfully, they’ve travelled extensively since the pandemic and are never home or I might do or say something highly regrettable.

ninerbuff

AnnPT77 wrote: »

ninerbuff wrote: »

TABATA PROTOCOL

There are so many "influencers" now and classes that tout TABATA workout when the truth is all they are doing are intervals.

Tabata protocol is a specific protocol use to force the body to reach and improve VO2max. The protocol requires 100% effort on EVERY INTERVAL and of course each interval will reduce in power and speed.

Today, the majority of people think that doing a 20 sec work and 10 second rest for 8 cycles is Tababta.

It's a disservice to the man that created the program who created it to help Olympic racers improve.

If it ain't 100% effort for just 4 minutes..................................it's NOT Tabata. They are just intervals.

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 35+ years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

The real thing still has alternations of 20 seconds max effort and 10 seconds easier effort, times 8, making up that 4 minutes. Strictly, it's supposed to be 170% of VO2max on the 20 second pieces, if a person had the right lab equipment. For practical purposes without those, it's "max effort" on the hard part of the intervals.

I believe that you, niner, know this. "If it ain't 100% effort for just 4 minutes..................................it's NOT Tabata." is an inaccurate summary, though.

I agree that many people don't have the slightest idea how to gauge max effort in that sense, thinking it's "work as hard as you can at . . . whatever" which isn't exactly right in this context. Some athletic activities aren't really capable of getting a person to the equivalent of 170% VO2max even at perceived "max effort", and many people don't have the relevant experience to gauge what "max effort" really feels like for them, besides. There are ways to estimate VO2max from heart rate, but that assumes a person has a sports-tested HRmax, and most people don't.

That said, most of the experiences I've had with "Tabata intervals" in a group fitness context have been . . . not Tabata intervals, as you say.

I think it's particularly amusing when instructors claim "Tabata intervals" for activities that aren't primarily cardiovascular exercise, since the original protocol is in terms of oxygen consumption. (You - niner - know that the heart rate to oxygen consumption relationship isn't the same in other modalities, but not everyone knows that.)

One of my spin teachers liked to do a "Tabata intervals" toward the end of a class. Nope. Just short high intensity intervals.

None of this is a diss of the activities wrongly described as "Tabata intervals". Interval workouts are great, high intensity intervals included. It's just another example of the high-cachet label for something being overgeneralized to things that don't technically conform to the actual definition, and claims being made that this over-extended case has the same benefits as the original, basically for marketing reasons.

Yes Ann, I truly doubt that there are many that have experienced max effort and gasping for air for 3 minutes. I've done Tabata running on a treadmill (3.5 low to as high as 13.0 in speed) and on a bike and when I was done, I was laying on the floor for at least a minute and a half just trying to catch my breath. Lol, that was in my mid 30's. Now all I do are moderate to high intensity intervals.
I just see all these "influencers" on Instagram, Tik Tok, etc. promoting they are doing Tabata and they do a set a push ups as an interval.

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 35+ years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition