Can you reduce fat without HIIT?

Voca_Star

So everyone I know treats HIIT like the only means of losing fat. I can't do HIIT. Personal reasons involving strict parents that have to supervise my exercise, even though I'm 18. My Mom just won't let me do it. I told her about it, and how when I tried it once it made me feel sick so, her being her super strict self, won't let me do it longer than maybe 5 minutes -___-

I really want to lose a lot of fat, too. I have an event coming up next year that requires me to wear tight-fitting clothes (it's Cosplay, if you don't know what that is, look it up ) And, I really want to reduce my saddlebags by then....

I hope that losing 20 - 25 pounds in general will help. But will a clean diet (with an occasional treat, like holidays, special events, desperately craving something), intense cardio for 35 - 40 minutes, 6 days a week, and strength training every other day do?

My cardio gets my heart into the fat burning zone, and I alternate muscle groups when I do strength training. I eat lots of protein, vegetables, whole grains, fat-free dairy, fruit, chicken, nuts, eggs, etc.

Help?

MoreBean13

So everyone I know treats HIIT like the only means of losing fat. I can't do HIIT. Personal reasons involving strict parents that have to supervise my exercise, even though I'm 18. My Mom just won't let me do it. I told her about it, and how when I tried it once it made me feel sick so, her being her super strict self, won't let me do it longer than maybe 5 minutes -___-

I really want to lose a lot of fat, too. I have an event coming up next year that requires me to wear tight-fitting clothes (it's Cosplay, if you don't know what that is, look it up ) And, I really want to reduce my saddlebags by then....

I hope that losing 20 - 25 pounds in general will help. But will a clean diet (with an occasional treat, like holidays, special events, desperately craving something), intense cardio for 35 - 40 minutes, 6 days a week, and strength training every other day do?

My cardio gets my heart into the fat burning zone, and I alternate muscle groups when I do strength training. I eat lots of protein, vegetables, whole grains, fat-free dairy, fruit, chicken, nuts, eggs, etc.

Help?

Yes, you can certainly lose fat without HIIT!
A good regimen would be to do FULL BODY strength training 2-3x a week, 30-45 mins- I recommend checking out a program like New Rules of Lifting for Women or Stronglifts 5x5- they will give you a really good complete program of compound, full body lifts. And moderate (or intense, if you like) cardio 3-4x a week, 30-45 mins. You can amplify the fat burning by doing some cardio right after your lifting routine- but your lifting routine should leave you pretty well spent, so you may want to just do 15 mins after lifting and the rest on alternate days. With both of those, you can still get 1-2 rest days a week, and you'll have a great program.

HIIT is anaerobic, very much like lifting, and to do a bunch of HIIT and lifting doesn't leave you much adequate rest time, so it's actually kind of detrimental to a lot of people's programs, the way people replace cardio with HIIT on alternate days. Do the lifting and the cardio and you don't need the HIIT. You'll be all good.

ETA: Here's a good stronglifts article on HIIT, if I haven't convinced you:
http://stronglifts.com/hiit-interval-training-fat-loss/

BrianSharpe

I hope that losing 20 - 25 pounds in general will help. But will a clean diet (with an occasional treat, like holidays, special events, desperately craving something), intense cardio for 35 - 40 minutes, 6 days a week, and strength training every other day do?

My cardio gets my heart into the fat burning zone, and I alternate muscle groups when I do strength training. I eat lots of protein, vegetables, whole grains, fat-free dairy, fruit, chicken, nuts, eggs, etc.

Help?

Three words you should banish from your vocabulary ....."fat burning zone"

The so-called fat burning zone is low intensity cardio that does in fact burn more calories, proportionately, from fat but overall burns a lot fewer calories than a higher intensity workout. Higher intensity cardio still burns calories from fat and provides your cardiovascular system with a better overall workout.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/health-and-fitness/fitness/the-secret-to-weight-loss-workouts-you-may-not-like-the-answer/article4268218/

http://scienceblogs.com/obesitypanacea/2010/06/30/the-myth-of-the-fat-burning-zo/

By all means, though, include strength as part of your fitness program (doesn't need to be HIIT). You may want to pick up a copy of the New Rules of Lifting for Women.

myofibril

Yes, you can certainly lose fat without HIIT!
A good regimen would be to do FULL BODY strength training 2-3x a week, 30-45 mins- I recommend checking out a program like New Rules of Lifting for Women or Stronglifts 5x5- they will give you a really good complete program of compound, full body lifts. And moderate (or intense, if you like) cardio 3-4x a week, 30-45 mins. You can amplify the fat burning by doing some cardio right after your lifting routine- but your lifting routine should leave you pretty well spent, so you may want to just do 15 mins after lifting and the rest on alternate days. With both of those, you can still get 1-2 rest days a week, and you'll have a great program.

HIIT is anaerobic, very much like lifting, and to do a bunch of HIIT and lifting doesn't leave you much adequate rest time, so it's actually kind of detrimental to a lot of people's programs, the way people replace cardio with HIIT on alternate days. Do the lifting and the cardio and you don't need the HIIT. You'll be all good.

ETA: Here's a good stronglifts article on HIIT, if I haven't convinced you:
http://stronglifts.com/hiit-interval-training-fat-loss/

This is excellent advice.

ahamm002

I hope that losing 20 - 25 pounds in general will help. But will a clean diet (with an occasional treat, like holidays, special events, desperately craving something), intense cardio for 35 - 40 minutes, 6 days a week, and strength training every other day do?

My cardio gets my heart into the fat burning zone, and I alternate muscle groups when I do strength training. I eat lots of protein, vegetables, whole grains, fat-free dairy, fruit, chicken, nuts, eggs, etc.

Help?

Three words you should banish from your vocabulary ....."fat burning zone"

The so-called fat burning zone is low intensity cardio that does in fact burn more calories, proportionately, from fat but overall burns a lot fewer calories than a higher intensity workout. Higher intensity cardio still burns calories from fat and provides your cardiovascular system with a better overall workout.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/health-and-fitness/fitness/the-secret-to-weight-loss-workouts-you-may-not-like-the-answer/article4268218/

http://scienceblogs.com/obesitypanacea/2010/06/30/the-myth-of-the-fat-burning-zo/

By all means, though, include strength as part of your fitness program (doesn't need to be HIIT). You may want to pick up a copy of the New Rules of Lifting for Women.

^^this

Also, your mom supervises you when you workout? And she won't let you push yourself hard when you workout? Really? That seems like kind of a strange relationship. Do you have some sort of ongoing health problems that make exercise dangerous? If you're otherwise healthy, than there is no reason an 18 y/o should be worried about doing HIIT. So you got a little naseuous once, no big deal. It probably just means you're out of shape.

DavPul

People were getting into shape a long time before the letters H I I and T were strung together. Pick the things you can/will do and get to work.