Best approach to High Intensity Interval Training-does it wo

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Hey,

I train a fair bit at the gym..do a lot of spin and high impact aerobics and combat. I often find i'm in the gym doing cardio for quite a while, especially if i do some additional cardio before a class.

I've heard HITT is really effective in burning fat and improving fitness. Just wondered what others thought on this and any ideas on how to go about it? My fitness levels are generally good so would say i'm intermediate.

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  • tuskegee4
    tuskegee4 Posts: 110 Member
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    I am a former muscle head who has feel in love with bodyrock.tv. I thought I was in good shape, but after a month and a half of bodyrock I'm in better shape. Check it out, you can go back to her earlier workouts before she added equipment and most smart phones have an interval timer app.
  • Whitneylol
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    Hey,

    I train a fair bit at the gym..do a lot of spin and high impact aerobics and combat. I often find i'm in the gym doing cardio for quite a while, especially if i do some additional cardio before a class.

    I've heard HITT is really effective in burning fat and improving fitness. Just wondered what others thought on this and any ideas on how to go about it? My fitness levels are generally good so would say i'm intermediate.

    Bump

    Interested to see what others say, I've done it before but it was on a DVD and in a bootcamp setting. I dont really know how to do this on my own!
  • Emma1903
    Emma1903 Posts: 195
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    Hit is great for fat loss, just get on a bike or treadmill for 15mins do a 2:1 ratio. So walk for 2 mins then go as fast as you possibly can for 1 min then back to walking for 2 mins and repeat. Sounds easy but if you make sure you go as hard as you can on the sprint you will be sweating! I believe the best way to loose weight is 80% diet, carbs under 100g and only from veg and potato, protein high. Fats under 50g unless you are going below 50g carbamazepine then fats can be higher. Do this along with 2-3 hit sessions a week and 2-3 weight sessions concentrating on compound lift and you will burn the fat
  • Whitneylol
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    Hit is great for fat loss, just get on a bike or treadmill for 15mins do a 2:1 ratio. So walk for 2 mins then go as fast as you possibly can for 1 min then back to walking for 2 mins and repeat. Sounds easy but if you make sure you go as hard as you can on the sprint you will be sweating! I believe the best way to loose weight is 80% diet, carbs under 100g and only from veg and potato, protein high. Fats under 50g unless you are going below 50g carbamazepine then fats can be higher. Do this along with 2-3 hit sessions a week and 2-3 weight sessions concentrating on compound lift and you will burn the fat

    I think you summed it up awesomely right there!
  • sugarbone
    sugarbone Posts: 454 Member
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    HIIT is kind of a blanket term for any sort of interval based cardio. You can really do it however you like, but some ways are obviously more effective than others. Basically, you "jog" for one interval, then "sprint" your ABSOLUTE hardest for another interval. You can do this on a run (literally jogging and sprinting) or on an elliptical or any other machine really. For example, I do HIITs on the elliptical and I go at a medium resistance/pace for 1 minute, then boost the resistance to max and go as hard as I possibly can for 1 minute, then repeat for ~15 minutes.

    This can be really gruelling so you can make your jogging intervals longer or your overall training longer/shorter to suit your needs.

    The science behind it is that your body has energy stored as both fat, and glycogen (a type of carbohydrate). Some exercise uses up your glycogen stores whereas other exercise cause your body to deplete fat instead. This is why you'd think high intensity training would burn more fat than low intensity, but your body reaches into its glycogen stores for high intensity work first, like going for a run.

    However! Doing HIITs means that 50% of the time (or whatever interval you use) your body is going all out, 100% effort. Your body eats up your glycogen but very, very fast, and must begin turning fat into glycogen, which it does for many hours after your workout.

    HIIT are a very quick way to get some fat burning done! And it involves your muscles a bit more than low intesity cardio too. I only do it on days I *don't* lift weights because of this.
  • DizzyLinds
    DizzyLinds Posts: 856 Member
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    Think i might do this prior to my weights sessions just for 15-20 minutes. I tend to just go at 6mph for the 15 mins before a workout but i'm going to add in HITT now just for that extra burn. I suppose spinning is a form of HITT too where the resitance is up and down all the time.
  • sugarbone
    sugarbone Posts: 454 Member
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    Think i might do this prior to my weights sessions just for 15-20 minutes. I tend to just go at 6mph for the 15 mins before a workout but i'm going to add in HITT now just for that extra burn. I suppose spinning is a form of HITT too where the resitance is up and down all the time.

    Yep, you could probably consider that HIIT. I bet that's why spinning classes work wonders for so many people haha! If you lift heavy weights (aka as heavy as you can) you might find HIIT will sap your strength and you won't lift as well, but that might just be me.
  • mrdee555
    mrdee555 Posts: 178
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    Hitt cardio should improve explosive strenght while weight training, but doing it before you weights session could fatigue you through your weights so poss less power, will all depend on the person.
  • Inna05
    Inna05 Posts: 1 Member
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    Lots of cardio is always good, but if you don't want to or can't spend 4 hours a day doing it, interval is defintely just as if not more effective. I am training with a personal trainer now and he only has me do 15 minutes of cardio per session, and only 3 times a week. The catch is that it's very high intensity interval cardio. It's a high incline/moderate speed concept. For example: 4 incline/14min/mile pace for 2 min; 4 incline/10 min/mile pace for 2 min; 6 incline/14min/mile pace for 2 min; 6 incline/10min/mile pace for 2 min; 8 incline/16 min/mile pace for 2 min; 8 incline/11 min/mile pace for 2 min; 10 incline/16 min mile for 2 min; 10 incline/12 min/mile; cool down. It's a walk 2 minutes then run 2 minutes kind of thing. I've already started noticing a difference and I've only done it for 2 weeks. the high incline makes your muscles work much harder than just a regula jog and it has the intense cardio component.
  • DizzyLinds
    DizzyLinds Posts: 856 Member
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    I tend to do Bodypump for my weights session so it could shatter me out if i do HITT before then. I might give it a try and see how i go. Do you think changing incline and speed together is a good combo?
  • mrdee555
    mrdee555 Posts: 178
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    I tend to do Bodypump for my weights session so it could shatter me out if i do HITT before then. I might give it a try and see how i go. Do you think changing incline and speed together is a good combo?

    As long as you are at 80% full power during your peak 1min and say 50% your 1min rest incline or speed or both its into you i find that incline burns my calfs out so i would keep it more at a shallow incline and up the speed, try the different combos for yourself and see what works best for you:)
  • KavemanKarg
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    Yes, HIIT is awesome.

    To get the most from it, do different variants of intensity vs relief, such as total intensity followed by total relief, or 90% intensity followed by 70% intensity relief (work relief).

    Fartleks, etc...

    You can incorporate HIIT into so many things.

    But you can also overdue it. I wouldn't spend your entire routine focused on HIIT, you will just drain yourself. Unless you are in a sport where intervals rule the day (boxing, rounds, etc...) 2 to 3 good solid HIIT workouts a week is just fine, and daily cardio stacks well with it.

    Incorporate a week in four where you back off and go less hard, and you will super compensate after, resuming with even more intensity and power! RAWR!
  • DizzyLinds
    DizzyLinds Posts: 856 Member
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    Thanks for all this info...def going to try and incporporate it into tonights workout. I'be been spending so long down the gym and it's nice to be able to find a method of training that is effective and also not time consuming.
  • mrdee555
    mrdee555 Posts: 178
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    How did the hitt go for you done a bit this morning myself??
  • DizzyLinds
    DizzyLinds Posts: 856 Member
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    I was umpiring at a netball tournament until quite late so didn't get a chance to get it in before my bodypump class! I've got bodycombat tonight so going to get a 20 min HITT in before i hope!!!!
  • mrdee555
    mrdee555 Posts: 178
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    I was umpiring at a netball tournament until quite late so didn't get a chance to get it in before my bodypump class! I've got bodycombat tonight so going to get a 20 min HITT in before i hope!!!!

    20mins hitt then body combat your mad lol
  • DizzyLinds
    DizzyLinds Posts: 856 Member
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    To be fair...it'll prob be a 'trial' HITT sesh tonight before combat!!! I think i might start properly next week. I'm on half term from work so i can mx my training up and see if it makes a difference. How was your sesh?!
  • mrdee555
    mrdee555 Posts: 178
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    Not so bad done 45mins at 3-4mph on treadmil the then 15mins on the eliptical hitt 1 min pretty hard 1min off then 10min cool down back on treadmil do it all on empty stomach at 6ish in morn before work thats 19 days straight cardio on empty lol was ment to do cardio 5 days a week but ive got an addiction lol break yourself in easy if you can i find it hard all or nothing kinda person.