Interval training is harder that distance running?

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fruitloop2
fruitloop2 Posts: 437 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Every time I tell people I do interval training on the treadmill ( I do a 1 min run/1min fast pace walk on a min incline of 1%) they say it's so much harder than distance running/ running or jogging the same speed for a certain time/distance. I don't understand that. I find interval training/running easier. I can't run for long periods of time and find that harder. Is interval training/running really harder or are these people smokin crack? If it is, why is it harder?


Sorry, title was suppose to read *harder than distance running*

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  • Mr_Excitement
    Mr_Excitement Posts: 833 Member
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    Hmm-- I wouldn't really call that interval running. It's more like getting conditioned for running. I mean, I suppose it is, but it may not be what those others are thinking of.

    I've done interval running workouts that consisted of things like sprinting for 50 yards, then jogging for a minute, then sprinting again, and things like that-- and THAT just kills me and all my dreams. That is way harder than just plain running.
  • SJ46
    SJ46 Posts: 407 Member
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    I think of intervals as sprinting for a certain amount of time then slowing down for a certain amount of time. Those types of intervals are definitely harder than steady state. It is uncomfortable to get that heart rate up!
  • lylesvegas44
    lylesvegas44 Posts: 6
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    True HIIT for me is run as hard and fast as I can for 45 seconds and then jog for 60 seconds. Try doing it outside and don't dog it, you will be gasping at the end. Every 45 seconds of sprinting will get slower and slower. On a treadmill your sprint speed is always the same so you can't be running as hard as you can every time. Make since?
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,704 Member
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    Every time I tell people I do interval training on the treadmill ( I do a 1 min run/1min fast pace walk on a min incline of 1%) they say it's so much harder than distance running/ running or jogging the same speed for a certain time/distance. I don't understand that. I find interval training/running easier. I can't run for long periods of time and find that harder. Is interval training/running really harder or are these people smokin crack? If it is, why is it harder?


    Sorry, title was suppose to read *harder than distance running*
    This will depend on the muscle type you are more efficient at using. Type I for endurance, Type II for strength.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
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  • fruitloop2
    fruitloop2 Posts: 437 Member
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    I think of intervals as sprinting for a certain amount of time then slowing down for a certain amount of time. Those types of intervals are definitely harder than steady state. It is uncomfortable to get that heart rate up!

    That's what I'm doing...isn't it? From what i was told and have read, it is interval training. My heart rate gets way up there during my running intervals. Is the uncomfortable part what makes it hard? I just don't get what is hard about it. Don't get me wrong, I'm exhausted and sweating like a pig when I'm done so it is a hard workout, I just find it easier to do 40 min of that than just straight running/jogging for 40 min.
  • SJ46
    SJ46 Posts: 407 Member
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    I don't know. Maybe it is because it isn't as boring as steady state running?
  • kurting81
    kurting81 Posts: 32 Member
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    Distance running works the aerobic system more while interval training is primarily anaerobic. Two different systems. Sounds like you might have a much better anaerobic system most likely due to doing more anaerobic training.
  • blackermagic
    blackermagic Posts: 32
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    I think of intervals as sprinting for a certain amount of time then slowing down for a certain amount of time. Those types of intervals are definitely harder than steady state. It is uncomfortable to get that heart rate up!

    That's what I'm doing...isn't it? From what i was told and have read, it is interval training. My heart rate gets way up there during my running intervals. Is the uncomfortable part what makes it hard? I just don't get what is hard about it. Don't get me wrong, I'm exhausted and sweating like a pig when I'm done so it is a hard workout, I just find it easier to do 40 min of that than just straight running/jogging for 40 min.


    Nope...you aren't doing interval training. At least not for what runners would define as interval training versus what you are doing. Go sprint on a track or outside for xx distance or time, then slow it down for xx distance or time. Repeat! You are on a treadmill where the speed is constant at what ever rate you have it set on. Oh...and its sooooo easy to cheat on a treadmill! :)

    Good luck with your running!
  • katevarner
    katevarner Posts: 884 Member
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    Your body adjusts to what you are doing to it, so after you run at the same speed for a while, your body adjusts to make your calorie burn more efficient. Intervals make you burn more calories because your body has to keep adjusting. At the same time, if you continue the same workout for weeks or months, eventually it will burn fewer calories because your body adjusts. If you change up the intervals, you will keep burning more. Not sure it's "harder" but it definitely burns more calories and your body continues to burn more after the workout is over. If you are just starting, then yes, what you are doing can be considered intervals for you, but you should eventually find it too easy and have to run faster or longer to challenge yourself.
  • fruitloop2
    fruitloop2 Posts: 437 Member
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    I think of intervals as sprinting for a certain amount of time then slowing down for a certain amount of time. Those types of intervals are definitely harder than steady state. It is uncomfortable to get that heart rate up!

    That's what I'm doing...isn't it? From what i was told and have read, it is interval training. My heart rate gets way up there during my running intervals. Is the uncomfortable part what makes it hard? I just don't get what is hard about it. Don't get me wrong, I'm exhausted and sweating like a pig when I'm done so it is a hard workout, I just find it easier to do 40 min of that than just straight running/jogging for 40 min.


    Nope...you aren't doing interval training. At least not for what runners would define as interval training versus what you are doing. Go sprint on a track or outside for xx distance or time, then slow it down for xx distance or time. Repeat! You are on a treadmill where the speed is constant at what ever rate you have it set on. Oh...and its sooooo easy to cheat on a treadmill! :)

    Good luck with your running!

    I am by no means a "runner" and would never classify myself as 1. I do enjoy running...doing a "version" of interval training that has my heart rate way up but i also do oher strength training/circuit training too...unless doing videos like nike trainer or JM aren't considered strength training because i'm not in a gym lifting heavy weights. I increase my speed and push myself harder every time...even on a treadmill. So are you telling me because I do this on a treadmill instead of outside or on a track it's not interval training? That doesn't make sense to me.
  • nkyjennifer
    nkyjennifer Posts: 135 Member
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    I think of intervals as sprinting for a certain amount of time then slowing down for a certain amount of time. Those types of intervals are definitely harder than steady state. It is uncomfortable to get that heart rate up!

    That's what I'm doing...isn't it? From what i was told and have read, it is interval training. My heart rate gets way up there during my running intervals. Is the uncomfortable part what makes it hard? I just don't get what is hard about it. Don't get me wrong, I'm exhausted and sweating like a pig when I'm done so it is a hard workout, I just find it easier to do 40 min of that than just straight running/jogging for 40 min.


    Nope...you aren't doing interval training. At least not for what runners would define as interval training versus what you are doing. Go sprint on a track or outside for xx distance or time, then slow it down for xx distance or time. Repeat! You are on a treadmill where the speed is constant at what ever rate you have it set on. Oh...and its sooooo easy to cheat on a treadmill! :)

    Good luck with your running!

    I am by no means a "runner" and would never classify myself as 1. I do enjoy running...doing a "version" of interval training that has my heart rate way up but i also do oher strength training/circuit training too...unless doing videos like nike trainer or JM aren't considered strength training because i'm not in a gym lifting heavy weights. I increase my speed and push myself harder every time...even on a treadmill. So are you telling me because I do this on a treadmill instead of outside or on a track it's not interval training? That doesn't make sense to me.

    Doesn't make sense to me, either, and I run intervals the way you do, OP. When I started, running for 30 seconds (or less in the very beginning) would have been equivalent to a fit person sprinting for all their worth - gasping for breath, heart pounding, literally couldn't do it another second.

    Maybe look up some stuff from Jeff Galloway. It's been very helpful for me.

    As for why it's harder, I've heard from experienced runners that it's harder because you get in a rhythm and when you stop to walk (or change speed up - whatever your intervals call for) you're forcing your body to work differently.

    Edited to add - I *am* a runner. I don't care if I'm only doing 30% of the time. I think you're a runner, too. We can be newer at it and slower at it and still be called runners. :flowerforyou:
  • blackermagic
    blackermagic Posts: 32
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    I think of intervals as sprinting for a certain amount of time then slowing down for a certain amount of time. Those types of intervals are definitely harder than steady state. It is uncomfortable to get that heart rate up!

    That's what I'm doing...isn't it? From what i was told and have read, it is interval training. My heart rate gets way up there during my running intervals. Is the uncomfortable part what makes it hard? I just don't get what is hard about it. Don't get me wrong, I'm exhausted and sweating like a pig when I'm done so it is a hard workout, I just find it easier to do 40 min of that than just straight running/jogging for 40 min.


    Nope...you aren't doing interval training. At least not for what runners would define as interval training versus what you are doing. Go sprint on a track or outside for xx distance or time, then slow it down for xx distance or time. Repeat! You are on a treadmill where the speed is constant at what ever rate you have it set on. Oh...and its sooooo easy to cheat on a treadmill! :)

    Good luck with your running!

    I am by no means a "runner" and would never classify myself as 1. I do enjoy running...doing a "version" of interval training that has my heart rate way up but i also do oher strength training/circuit training too...unless doing videos like nike trainer or JM aren't considered strength training because i'm not in a gym lifting heavy weights. I increase my speed and push myself harder every time...even on a treadmill. So are you telling me because I do this on a treadmill instead of outside or on a track it's not interval training? That doesn't make sense to me.


    Go back to your original question:
    Is interval training/running really harder or are these people smokin crack? If it is, why is it harder?

    The pure definition of an interval training...doing something and then resting and repeat.

    Is what you are doing the same...ummm...ok, sure based on that definition.

    But true running interval training is not easy. It is way harder than just going out and doing 7 miles...a lot harder. You are going full exertion to half exertion and then back to full exertion.

    SO...based on your analysis of what you said..."that you find you are not finding your interval training harder than a just running" ...logical thought process would assume that you are not doing full exertion on the intensity portion of the interval training.

    Do you walk at 3 MPH for a minute and run at 6 MPH for a minute? Are you raising the speed to 9 MPH and trying to hold on? You give no information about the details of your process. If its too easy...speed up both your walk and run portion on the treadmill.

    Push yourself! Good luck!

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