HIIT with elliptical

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  • zafferFL
    zafferFL Posts: 402
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    3 minute warm up
    30 seconds all out
    90 seconds rest at low rate.
    repeat 8X

    That is the Peak 8. You can also get more info by doing a search on it. Hope that helps!

    too much rest ;)

    SERIOUSLY???? Crap, that is the exact routine I've been doing. Should I just reverse the two?

    Kinda serious :) No, that is ok, if the 30 seconds is very hard then 90 seconds rest is doable..as long as you aren't fully recovered...

    aim for lower and lower rest...once you get to 30 seconds on, 30 seconds off you'll be feeling the burn :)

    This is true. After my first interval, I recover fairly quickly, by the 5th, I am at 100% of max heart rate during, and never drop more than 10 points for the rest of the way out. The key is going all out. Or you can go 85% to 90% and shorten the rest. There are more than one way to skin the cat. I've never done a max heart rate teat but using the quick and dirty calculation of 220 minus your age, I'm 60. So max is 160. I'm pushing mid to high 160s during ans right after as my body tries to play catch up, drop down to about 155, 154 during rest. I go totally anaerobic at between 15 and 20 seconds. So zafferFL is right about how hard you go and not getting fully recovered. Maybe someday, I'll be able to work it down and be as cool as him ;) but right now it ain't happening! Those 30 seconds feel like forever and the 90 seconds go by in a flash!
    [/quote]


    I remember reading one article that said that all of the intervals except for the very last one are merely just warming up. It's that final push that should take your heart rate up and your muscles to the point where you cannot get enough oxygen into your blood for them. Keep that in mind and DON'T slow down on the last rep, push as hard as possible.

    Disclaimer: Just please don't push hard enough that you hurt yourself and come back to blame me :)
  • diggly
    diggly Posts: 29 Member
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    Interesting reading on the HIIT work out variations.

    It personally takes me about 10 minutes to get my heart rate up to about 60-70% of max, then I start the HIIT 1:1 high/rest basis with my HR up to 90-95% and then back down to 60-70% again. I do this for about 25 mins.

    Is this fine??
  • zafferFL
    zafferFL Posts: 402
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    Interesting reading on the HIIT work out variations.

    It personally takes me about 10 minutes to get my heart rate up to about 60-70% of max, then I start the HIIT 1:1 high/rest basis with my HR up to 90-95% and then back down to 60-70% again. I do this for about 25 mins.

    Is this fine??

    10 mins sounds long to get warmed up, have you tried just a higher resistance or speed to get there?

    25 mins of that sounds like a lot! Are you not exhausted by the end of that? What are your times on 1:1 and what is your heart rate at to be 90-95?

    Sounds like you are blessed with a high VO2 max
  • diggly
    diggly Posts: 29 Member
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    Interesting reading on the HIIT work out variations.

    It personally takes me about 10 minutes to get my heart rate up to about 60-70% of max, then I start the HIIT 1:1 high/rest basis with my HR up to 90-95% and then back down to 60-70% again. I do this for about 25 mins.

    Is this fine??

    10 mins sounds long to get warmed up, have you tried just a higher resistance or speed to get there?

    25 mins of that sounds like a lot! Are you not exhausted by the end of that? What are your times on 1:1 and what is your heart rate at to be 90-95?

    Sounds like you are blessed with a high VO2 max


    Oops, the 10 minutes is to get to 70-80% zone (not 60-70%). Yeah, maybe I'm not setting the resistance high enough.

    I'm 40 years old and my max is supposed to be 180. So I do the 10 minutes to get up to about 150, then start the HIIT. I do 1 minute intense and 1 minute rest. So intense will be my HR going from 150 to 175 (usually reaches 175 in the last 20 seconds of the 1 minute) and then back down to 150 again (also reaching 150 say last 30-20 seconds of rest).

    I think (not sure) I have a high VO2 max because I can breathe really well in running, sprints, endurance sports etc.
  • mmapags
    mmapags Posts: 8,934 Member
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    Oh, when I fall of the elliptical and have a coronary, I'm blaming You zaffer! ( Said in a George Costanza vioce. Just had to have a Seinfeld moment) :laugh:
  • stacyll
    stacyll Posts: 43 Member
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    i'm a fitness instructor and i just went to a hiit class for my continuing education class through a nationally certified organization. much of what we learned has been stated in this thread but a few key points:

    - hiit can be done with almost any piece of equipment or just your body and drills

    - it's about getting to 75% or greater of your max heart rate (not to be confused with the 220 - your age). since most people don't know this number our instructor suggested the talk test...when you're in this zone you can not talk!!

    - hiit should only be done about 2-3 times a week and not on consecutive days

    - it's particularly suited to take off belly fat (my instructor gave a detailed explanation why) but the down side is if you stop doing these types of workouts your will see the weight come back quickly

    - it's not for the faint at heart!!

    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

    what i do when i did hiit on the elliptical was i used my hrm to guage my intensity, not the resistance. i got my heart rate to a very high number and kept it there for a period of time, 30-45 secs by keeping my moves at that pace/intensity. i let it drop for a few seconds (like 15 secs) by working out less hard then took it right back to that high number. then i just repeat.

    the gym boss timer is good for setting the intervals to do hiit! there's an iphone app too. i don't like looking at the clock to do intervals but you can. it's almost impossible to do true hiit without looking at the ratio of time that you're working hard and resting. it's not enough to go by how you feel, it's also based on the time you're pushing hard too.
  • meshashesha2012
    meshashesha2012 Posts: 8,326 Member
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    I remember reading one article that said that all of the intervals except for the very last one are merely just warming up. It's that final push that should take your heart rate up and your muscles to the point where you cannot get enough oxygen into your blood for them. Keep that in mind and DON'T slow down on the last rep, push as hard as possible.
    _________

    that's good to know. especially since i usually up my intensity in terms of speed and resistance for that last interval. it's tough but i've usually worked myself up into a ME vs this damn machine frenzy that I'm ready to show it who's da boss ...at least until it's time for the next HIIT session :laugh:


    oh and i basically do 2 types of interval training.

    one is the kind where i go as fast and hard as i can for 1 minute and then do a recovery intensity for 2 minutes. the other is when i go as hard as i can for 15 seconds and then i rest(ie not move/catch my breath) for 15 seconds. the first type is much easier (it's still hard though) than the second type and the intensities are vastly different. it's the difference between running a 9.5 minute mile and a 7 minute mile.

    also it took a good 2 months of doing the first type before i could get through a session of the 2nd. but in all honestly i prefer the 2nd best because i like working hard :happy:
  • TrueBlueBruin78
    TrueBlueBruin78 Posts: 311 Member
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    When i lean out i use this program:

    4 times a week after strength training

    40 minutes total

    -15 minute constant at 10 Incline and around 165 strides per min

    -next 20 min
    - 30 seconds sprint around (230-250 strides per min)
    - 30 seconds constant/ rest 135-165 strides per min

    -5 min cool down
  • idauria
    idauria Posts: 1,037 Member
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    I do interval training on my elliptical twice a week, on my off days from strength training. I warm up for 5 minutes, then do 10 minutes of intervals where I go all out for 15-20 seconds and then recover the rest of the minute, this is at level 1. Then I do intervals until I reach 35-40 minutes. I'll work up from level 2 through 5 then back down again to 1. I might do some more all out intervals if I have any gas left in the tank.
  • Melissaol
    Melissaol Posts: 952 Member
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    I want to try this. Love the elliptical. So 2 minutes of 2-4 resistance
    then 30 sec at 8. Repeat for 20u minutes.
    Is this right.
  • marriedwith
    marriedwith Posts: 72 Member
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    bumpity
  • M1chelles5
    M1chelles5 Posts: 107
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    Bump!
  • Ant_the_old_keith_lemon
    Ant_the_old_keith_lemon Posts: 272 Member
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    now i`m on 20 min total time :-

    five min mild warm up @ 135bpm or approx 215watts
    ten min intervals of 120sec high and 20 sec low with a double interval in the middle @ 168BPM or 345 watts

    so basically i have 5 intervals, four @ 120secs and one big one at 240 sec - and 120sec downtime :) haha

    then a five min cool down....

    oh yes then i turn around and hit a treadmill for tne mins of intervals 1 min high @8.5mph and one min low @7.1mph hitting say 174bpm at times...

    considering i couldnt run for 2 mins at the begining of the year i can now run for hours :)

    some days i do look white leaving the gym but thats the joys of intervals haha
  • Will210
    Will210 Posts: 201 Member
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    I do it as well. Warm up for 5 minutes, 45 seconds of slower speed and 15 minutes of sprint.

    On every 5th minute I will sprint for 30 seconds. One the last I will sprint for the full minute.

    Like weight lifting - you can push yourself more every few weeks like maybe adding 5 seconds to the sprint times. Changing the resistance. Things like that.

    I do daily steady state cardio in the AM on an empty stomach. I try to fit in 3 nights of HIIT. The 20 minutes seems to last longer than the steady state 50 minutes! Very challenging! The whole point is it helps your body get fitter and overall will help with your other exercises and burn more calories throughout the day. Heart monitor would be a good tool to have but you should have an idea of your levels via breathing.
  • Melissaol
    Melissaol Posts: 952 Member
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    I'm so confused. I want to start this tonight. But I'm not sure what I should do. I'm going to do it on the elliptical . So do a
    2 minute warm up
    Then what
  • Will210
    Will210 Posts: 201 Member
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    I'm so confused. I want to start this tonight. But I'm not sure what I should do. I'm going to do it on the elliptical . So do a
    2 minute warm up
    Then what

    Since it's your first time I would recommend a 5 minute warmup. When the clock turns at 5:00 go pretty much as fast as you can for say 10 seconds - then go back to your normal pace. Allow you body to recover and get your steady breath back. Wait until minute 6 comes up and go for 10 seconds. if you find you are not that out of breath - try for 15 seconds.
  • sphira
    sphira Posts: 132 Member
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    Bump for later
  • Philllbis
    Philllbis Posts: 801 Member
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    I do this. I like to use the predefined workouts on the machine. My favorite for HIIT is the one called Hill Climb. You warm up for 5 minutes. Then, you have a series of hills each increasing in resistance. There are 8 hills and the duration of the hill is 1 minute with a 1 minute rest in between. I go by my heart rate and my goal is to "run" up the hill as fast as I can getting my heart rate up in the 160 range. On the minute in between I try to contrl my breathing and bring my heart rate down. I'm drenched by the end of this and you can burn quite a few calories in 20 minutews using this method.

    This is also a great workout for your quads. Mine burn the entire time.
  • KathyPBiles
    KathyPBiles Posts: 292 Member
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    Bump for later - going to attempt HIIT with my elliptical tomorrow.
  • OnionMomma
    OnionMomma Posts: 938 Member
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    Here's what I do:

    3 mins warm up

    After that I alter every 30 seconds.

    I do 10 for incline and 10 for resistance.

    On my hard 30 seconds, I just go to 10 and 12 resistance.

    After an hour, I am soaked.

    I went to this because my knee was bothering me running outside. At the time, I could run 4 miles in about 42mins.

    I am just getting back to running outside as long as my knee tolerates it. So, today, I ran 2 miles in about 20 mins then came inside and did HIIT on the elliptical for 40 mins with cool down later. I then do planks a couple of different kinds.