HIIT Question

aisha786
aisha786 Posts: 87 Member
edited November 17 in Fitness and Exercise
Hi Everyone,

I started doing HIIT yesterday. Before this I was doing the elliptical machine full sustained cardio for 40-45 minutes. This is not a challenge anymore. I can't increase this because my poor heart is working to its max. Plus I am getting bored.

So I started HIIT on the treadmill, 7kph, 1min on 1 min off (feet on side of the treadmill - fully halted motion while I recover. My heart rate is between 165 to 170 and recover to about 140 in the 1 min rest time. Then I startedagain. I did this exercise for 30 minutes.

This is a challenge for me. I have started using muscles that I wasn't ever using I think. I'm super sore all over.

Will I be successful this way? I've lost 50 pounds and have a great diet, but I am looking to keep shedding weight as well as build my stamina.

The squats, lunges, and other HIIT exercises are really tough for me to sustain, but will this way I am doing work for me? Will I also lose fat and inches this way?

thank you in advance. Sorry this is so long.

Replies

  • BeauNash
    BeauNash Posts: 103 Member
    That's not really HIIT. The important letters are the "HI" not the "IT" - it's "high intensity".

    That means shortish periods of flat out balls-to-the-wall almost-vomiting intensity before you rest. Sprinting rather than jogging and 7kph is barely more than a jog.
  • NorthCascades
    NorthCascades Posts: 10,968 Member
    HIIT isn't great for burning calories or building endurance because of all the rest.
  • not_a_runner
    not_a_runner Posts: 1,343 Member
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=USPdqShb_bM
    Here's a good video about HIIT.
    As mentioned above, you're not really doing HIIT, more like interval training/sprints.
    As far as fatloss goes, you just need to keep your cico in check and you'll continue to lose weight.
  • JB035
    JB035 Posts: 336 Member
    You're doing interval training, which is great for building up lactic threshold.

  • aisha786
    aisha786 Posts: 87 Member
    BeauNash wrote: »
    That's not really HIIT. The important letters are the "HI" not the "IT" - it's "high intensity".

    That means shortish periods of flat out balls-to-the-wall almost-vomiting intensity before you rest. Sprinting rather than jogging and 7kph is barely more than a jog.

    But my heartrate gets too high if I go faster. Are you saying my heart rate should go more than 180? I am 40, female, 180 pounds. I am used to the elliptical but not at all with jogging. I never jogged before.

    If my heartrate goes more than 180 is that ok?
  • BeauNash
    BeauNash Posts: 103 Member
    aisha786 wrote: »
    BeauNash wrote: »
    That's not really HIIT. The important letters are the "HI" not the "IT" - it's "high intensity".

    That means shortish periods of flat out balls-to-the-wall almost-vomiting intensity before you rest. Sprinting rather than jogging and 7kph is barely more than a jog.

    But my heartrate gets too high if I go faster. Are you saying my heart rate should go more than 180? I am 40, female, 180 pounds. I am used to the elliptical but not at all with jogging. I never jogged before.

    If my heartrate goes more than 180 is that ok?

    I didn't say you should stop doing what you're doing.

    I said that the workout that you called HIIT isn't, in fact, HIIT.

  • livingleanlivingclean
    livingleanlivingclean Posts: 11,751 Member
    aisha786 wrote: »
    BeauNash wrote: »
    That's not really HIIT. The important letters are the "HI" not the "IT" - it's "high intensity".

    That means shortish periods of flat out balls-to-the-wall almost-vomiting intensity before you rest. Sprinting rather than jogging and 7kph is barely more than a jog.

    But my heartrate gets too high if I go faster. Are you saying my heart rate should go more than 180? I am 40, female, 180 pounds. I am used to the elliptical but not at all with jogging. I never jogged before.

    If my heartrate goes more than 180 is that ok?

    If you were doing actual HIIT, your sprints would be 10-20 seconds long, not a minute....my husband does HIIT on a spin bike once a week, and sounds like he's about to die at the end of each 10 second sprint!
  • Motherofship
    Motherofship Posts: 122 Member
    I'm not an Expert, but my understanding of HIIT is that it varies immensely based on the fitness level and type of activity. 7kph might be a walk in the park for some, but for others--many others--that is "balls to the wall"
  • BeauNash
    BeauNash Posts: 103 Member
    errigrg wrote: »
    I'm not an Expert, but my understanding of HIIT is that it varies immensely based on the fitness level and type of activity. 7kph might be a walk in the park for some, but for others--many others--that is "balls to the wall"

    Not if they're doing it for 60 seconds it's not, which is what we're talking about here.

  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,809 Member
    errigrg wrote: »
    I'm not an Expert, but my understanding of HIIT is that it varies immensely based on the fitness level and type of activity. 7kph might be a walk in the park for some, but for others--many others--that is "balls to the wall"

    The description given by the OP is just interval training - it's not HIIT.
    Doesn't make it a bad training protocol (but it is out of line with the OP's stated objectives of weight loss and stamina building) and true HIIT sounds like it would be an inappropriate choice for the OP anyway.
  • aisha786
    aisha786 Posts: 87 Member
    I think the best thing for me for a while based on what I have understood here and that video, thank you so much for that, is to keep on like this so that I can build my fitness and stamina. I might give the shorter time and loger recovery.

    Thank you!!!
  • BeauNash
    BeauNash Posts: 103 Member
    B)
  • MeanderingMammal
    MeanderingMammal Posts: 7,866 Member
    aisha786 wrote: »
    So I started HIIT on the treadmill, 7kph, 1min on 1 min off (feet on side of the treadmill - fully halted motion while I recover. My heart rate is between 165 to 170 and recover to about 140 in the 1 min rest time. Then I startedagain. I did this exercise for 30 minutes.

    The value of something like this is that it helps you develop the capacity to run continuously for 30 minutes, acting as a basis for running longer. That said running slowly then stopping isn't really doing much for you. To put it in perspective, you've done less work than week 1 day 1 of Couch to 5K.

    If you want to run, then try downloading that plan and using it.
  • MeanderingMammal
    MeanderingMammal Posts: 7,866 Member
    errigrg wrote: »
    I'm not an Expert, but my understanding of HIIT is that it varies immensely based on the fitness level and type of activity. 7kph might be a walk in the park for some, but for others--many others--that is "balls to the wall"

    The High Intensity aspect is what's significant. In HIIT I'd be expecting to be in the range of 98% of maximum heart rate. Fast walking pace isn't going to do that unless someone has underlying cardiac health issues.
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