Can anyone help with advice on HIIT for improving cardio on 3 months

Describe the running test. Intervals on the treadmill might not be the best approach.

You can say that again

gemmi33 wrote: »

Hi all, I have been doing quite a bit of research on HIIT as I am trying to improve my cardio quite a bit. I have 3 months to do this for a running test I have coming up. I would really appreciate it if anyone could offer any advice on this or know of any good workouts especially on the treadmill. I'm currently doing 1 min walking at 3.6 mph to 1 min 7.5 mph and this for me is tough. I do about 5 sets. I know it's poor.

Do you think a big improvement could be made in 3 months with the right practice?? Thank you all

So what are you doing the MSFT for and what's the three month constraint for? It's a common test for military and police entry, and ongoing fitness testing. What level do you need to achieve?

It's worth bearing in mind that the MSFT isn't an interval run, it's a progression run, starting reasonably slow and working up to as fast as you can sustain. A lot of it is also technique, most dropouts are just after a pace increase,

You need to get off the dreadmill and run in the real, and you need to work on running for a longer period, rather than using something like HIIT. Conventionally runners don't much benefit from speedwork until they're running at least 20-25 miles per week over 3-4 sessions.

In three months you should be able to get to the stage that you can hold your own for the 20 minutes or so needed to get to level 9. But it's more about improving your pace, which is largely about getting in more miles than speedwork.

gemmi33 wrote: »

I also think I have a mental barrier with the MSFT, I seem to have conditioned myself the fear the bloody thing

Personally I loathe the MSFT, I'd much rather do the 2.4Km run option.

So, get yourself running 5Km in 30 minutes 3-4 times per week and you should be able to pass it reasonably comfortably. If you rack that up to 10Km, not really possible in 3 months, then you should be able to get a good pass.

You will fear it less an be more confident if you practice.
I'd agree with above that the treadmill doesnt give you the best way of doing it nor is hiit alone.

If you are serious about wanting to improve then you are going to have to take it seriously and put some effort in both to cover the distances to get your aerobic endurance up as well as pushing it for a bit of anaerobic improvement.

keep doing the exercises 5x a week or even twice a day but for a shorter period and note down the times. You should see improvement if you pace yourself and push it. You can actually buy yourself an interval beeper if you want to replicate it that way. Practice and you will improve. If you cna manage it now then after 3 months training you should be managing it with ease. Its up to you to put the work in consistently and with the right intensity now.

If you are going to go for a run as meandering M points out then practice changing pace and increaseing it every x minutes or every km

For ideas.

http://www.topendsports.com/testing/beep-train.htm

The best way to be ready for it is to perform it as you would that day, etc. Periodically do it (like every couple of weeks). Work on your endurance with continual improvement on duration/speed, but there's nothing like taking on a testing preparedness by doing the actual requirement.

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
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Here are few tips to help increase your endurance. Best of luck to you!

http://www.therunnersmark.com/3-ways-to-build-running-endurance/