Interval Training - Does this look right?

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TrefG
TrefG Posts: 112 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Hi,

Have recently started interval training using the treadmill at the gym. Currently have it set to the following:

3min @ 6kph to warm up
then:
1min @ 12.5kph
1.5min @ 6 kph recovery
1min @ 12.5kph
Repeat for 30 mins

I am male, 30 years old and am currently at 272 llb. Am looking mainly to shed fat.

How does that programme look in terms of adequacy and speeds for what I'm after?

Any help much appreciated.

Tref

Replies

  • 76tech
    76tech Posts: 1,455 Member
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    About to go run so I can't get into a lot of details...but are you wearing a heart rate monitor also?

    If you'er new to running, c25k is a great plan, there's another one I used which is similar but definitely geared to treadmill running. PM me if interested I'm sure I can dig it up. (And will post back here so others can use it, too)
  • jodibelle
    jodibelle Posts: 79 Member
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    I don't know if its "right", but I do something very similar (as long as I'm figuring mph to kph correctly lol). I do a 5 min warm up at 3.2 mph and then do 1 min at 7mph and then 1.5 min at 3.5 mph. I repeat for 30 minutes.
  • TrefG
    TrefG Posts: 112 Member
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    About to go run so I can't get into a lot of details...but are you wearing a heart rate monitor also?

    If you'er new to running, c25k is a great plan, there's another one I used which is similar but definitely geared to treadmill running. PM me if interested I'm sure I can dig it up. (And will post back here so others can use it, too)

    I dont have a HRM myself currently, although the machines at the gym all have them integrated and tell me my heart rate is generally between 140-165 throughout.
  • NatalieBrooke88
    NatalieBrooke88 Posts: 240 Member
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    Hi there,
    I am a personal trainer and I love, as well as HIGHLY recommend, HIIT training (High Intensity Interval training). And this is why:

    1) You get your work out done quicker
    2) You burn more calories AFTERWARD - google "Hiit training" for cited research
    3) It feels Awesome!

    However, it should not be easy- actually it the "Push" interval should be extremely challenging

    For a beginner:

    2 minutes warm up
    1 minute moderate
    30 SECONDS PUSH (as you increase endurance, this will be increased up to 1 minute)

    Repeat moderate and push until you hit 22 minutes

    For me, I like using the spin bike and increasing resistance and standing up on the push interval. Or, I like running hill sprints on the treadmill.

    I highl recommend you google this and incorporate it into you schedule 2-3 times per week. If you are eating right, you will lose weight with this program.

    You will know if you are doing right if you are sweating profusely and the push intervals seem almost impossible..

    Hope this helps..
    NBH
  • TrefG
    TrefG Posts: 112 Member
    Options
    Hi there,
    I am a personal trainer and I love, as well as HIGHLY recommend, HIIT training (High Intensity Interval training). And this is why:

    1) You get your work out done quicker
    2) You burn more calories AFTERWARD - google "Hiit training" for cited research
    3) It feels Awesome!

    However, it should not be easy- actually it the "Push" interval should be extremely challenging

    For a beginner:

    2 minutes warm up
    1 minute moderate
    30 SECONDS PUSH (as you increase endurance, this will be increased up to 1 minute)

    Repeat moderate and push until you hit 22 minutes

    For me, I like using the spin bike and increasing resistance and standing up on the push interval. Or, I like running hill sprints on the treadmill.

    I highl recommend you google this and incorporate it into you schedule 2-3 times per week. If you are eating right, you will lose weight with this program.

    You will know if you are doing right if you are sweating profusely and the push intervals seem almost impossible..

    Hope this helps..
    NBH

    Thanks Natalie, that really helps.

    Do those speeds look ok to you. I find that after the intense parts, I am sweating buckets and it takes me almost the entire 90 seconds to recover. Hopefully that sounds about right from what you said?

    Thanks
  • TrefG
    TrefG Posts: 112 Member
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    I don't know if its "right", but I do something very similar (as long as I'm figuring mph to kph correctly lol). I do a 5 min warm up at 3.2 mph and then do 1 min at 7mph and then 1.5 min at 3.5 mph. I repeat for 30 minutes.

    Well at least someone else is doing similar :happy:
  • ansonrinesmith
    ansonrinesmith Posts: 755 Member
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    Save the intervals for when you hit a plateau.
    For now, just get your heart rate up for 20-30 minutes and go from there.
    Most treadmills and ellipticals will have Interval Training options built in.
  • Di3012
    Di3012 Posts: 2,250 Member
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    Hi,

    Have recently started interval training using the treadmill at the gym. Currently have it set to the following:

    3min @ 6kph to warm up
    then:
    1min @ 12.5kph
    1.5min @ 6 kph recovery
    1min @ 12.5kph
    Repeat for 30 mins

    I am male, 30 years old and am currently at 272 llb. Am looking mainly to shed fat.

    How does that programme look in terms of adequacy and speeds for what I'm after?

    Any help much appreciated.

    Tref

    It's fine, if you find you need more walking time in between reps at the beginning, just lengthen it to two minutes.

    Interval training like you have set out there is excellent for gradually getting fitter.
  • TrefG
    TrefG Posts: 112 Member
    Options
    Save the intervals for when you hit a plateau.
    For now, just get your heart rate up for 20-30 minutes and go from there.
    Most treadmills and ellipticals will have Interval Training options built in.

    I was in a plateau, that's why I started it !
  • NatalieBrooke88
    NatalieBrooke88 Posts: 240 Member
    Options
    Thanks Natalie, that really helps.

    Do those speeds look ok to you. I find that after the intense parts, I am sweating buckets and it takes me almost the entire 90 seconds to recover. Hopefully that sounds about right from what you said?

    Thanks


    Then, Absolutely! Your heart rate should be up high (80-90 percent max). In your recover let your heartrate come down to 50-60 percent. So, in other words, do not come to complete rest, but rather, let your heart rate come down to a bit more comfortable level. Great job.. keep pushing and keep making your rest intervals smaller and your push intervals longer! Best of luck!!
  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,293 Member
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    looks like you are attempting HIIT, but HIIT is supposed to be at a really high intensity so that 15-20 minutes is all you can do. Since you are doing 30 I would suggest either increasing your sprint speed, lowering your recovery periods 1:1, increase the speed of your recovery, or a combination off all 3.
  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,293 Member
    Options
    Save the intervals for when you hit a plateau.
    For now, just get your heart rate up for 20-30 minutes and go from there.
    Most treadmills and ellipticals will have Interval Training options built in.

    What??? HIIT is great for everyone, why wait til you hit a plateau?
  • garbanzalo
    garbanzalo Posts: 61 Member
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    If you can afford it, I would seriously recommend buying a HRM. A good HRM like the Polar FT7 can show whether your hear is in the fat burn zone or cardio zone and can warn you when you are going outside your limits.
  • lizsmith1976
    lizsmith1976 Posts: 497 Member
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    That sounds good - HIIT training is the best! Not just for losing weight, although it does wonders, but it is also great for your heart and overall cardiovascular health and increases your endurance and recovery speed. Don't save these for a plateau, I always do interval training. If you hit a plateau, increase the intensity. It can and should get easier to do what you are doing as you continue. If your heart rate starts not getting up as high, increase the speed on your moderate and your push phases. I have also started adding more incline to my warm-up and recovery phases, which keeps my heart rate slightly up buut not where I am out of breath.
  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,293 Member
    Options
    If you can afford it, I would seriously recommend buying a HRM. A good HRM like the Polar FT7 can show whether your hear is in the fat burn zone or cardio zone and can warn you when you are going outside your limits.

    zone are a crock of S$^T, the HRM is good so he can see when his HR has come down to start the next interval but zones, don't get me started on those.
  • H_Factor
    H_Factor Posts: 1,722 Member
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    here is a blog on how I do sprint interval training. I couldn't begin to tell you what speed to set a treadmill at because I couldn't do this on a treadmill without risking harm. I go all out, pushing from my *kitten*, during the sprint...that's the speed. and the rest interval is a true rest interval...I walk. as you will see from my blog, I like to combine sprint+bodyweight exercise+rest as one interval...and repeat that for up to 12 intervals.

    The sprint/walk interval is something I usually do as a finisher to a resistance training circuit. So I do my dumbbell circuit inside and then go outside and rock out 4-6 15 second sprints, walking back to the starting line in between each one. The feeling is amazing.

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/H_Factor/view/short-and-efficient-work-out-ideas-156906
  • jamielise2
    jamielise2 Posts: 432 Member
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    Clearly you're doing something right...way to go on your success. When I do the interval training on the elliptical they do it in bursts of about 3 minutes for the low and then 2 for the high intensity. I have no idea whether that makes a difference or not.
    Hi,

    Have recently started interval training using the treadmill at the gym. Currently have it set to the following:

    3min @ 6kph to warm up
    then:
    1min @ 12.5kph
    1.5min @ 6 kph recovery
    1min @ 12.5kph
    Repeat for 30 mins

    I am male, 30 years old and am currently at 272 llb. Am looking mainly to shed fat.

    How does that programme look in terms of adequacy and speeds for what I'm after?

    Any help much appreciated.

    Tref
  • NatalieBrooke88
    NatalieBrooke88 Posts: 240 Member
    Options
    I recommend all my clients get the POLAR FT4- extremely accurate and affordable. It isa motivation in itself to see all the calories you are burning. Just as well, the machines tend to grossly overestimate caloried burned.
  • TrefG
    TrefG Posts: 112 Member
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    Thanks everybody for the imput. This place is awesome, no sooner do I pose a question than I have lots of informative answers. Great stuff !

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