Please Help with HIIT!

teschuette · 11-19-2008, 08:13 PM

Could some people please clear up HIIT for me. Some people say do it for 30sec./30sec. some say no no it's 2min./2min. Everyone seems to use different numbers. I am assuming that it's the raise and lowering of heart rate that matters. So... would it be better to do it by watching your heart rate and not a clock? Lets say... my heart rate after running gets up to 160... how long should I keep it at 160? Or as soon as I hit it should I slow down until my heart rate would hit say... 110. Maybe I'm getting to "scientific" on it but I figure that if it's worth doing it's worth doing right.

polifter88 · 11-19-2008, 08:33 PM

well basically you need to do what works for you...with that being said im sorry but ppl who say they do "true" HIIT 2min/2min is full of ****...theres no way you can ALL OUT SPRINT for 2 mins, rest 2 mins and do that over and over.....sorry just dont see it happening....

as for me i warm up for 5 mins. right when the 5 min mark hits i sprint i do the 30sec on/30 sec off...UNTIL the 17 minute mark then i cool down.....my HR stays around 170BPM right where i need it...i guess thats what you were asking...if not post up n ill try to help man!

JinKazama23 · 11-19-2008, 10:29 PM

LOL i want to see any bodybuilder sprinting for 2minutes at full pace. Unless someone's name is Ben Johnson haha.

I would say 10seconds of sprint, 20 seconds of jog is fine. Remember all you want to do is to get your maximum heart rate(actually an oscillating heart rate). if you do 5x 10/20s you will throw up unless you have some previous athletic preparation. Start from 3x and than rise 1up every 1-2 weeks. This is how I do it when I cut. When you start to feel dizzy and throwing up then you know you did it properly.

cadengrant · 11-19-2008, 11:13 PM

It depends. HIIT is some hard ass ****. You should run 5 minutes to warm up then do whatever works for you. There's a bunch of ways. First you can sprint then walk, or you could sprint then jog, or jog then walk. Just try different ones until you find whats best for you. Don't start out too hard, if youre not in good shape dont start doing 30jog/30spring as you will probably fail like I did. Maybe 10 sprint, 50 jog, or 20 spring, 40 jog, or whatever.

LaiaLona333 · 11-20-2008, 07:39 AM

that does seem hard. my hr gets to 170-180ish after a few minutes of jogging, then i walk until it gets to 150 and then i go back up to 170ish. i guess thats not the right way. 10 second sprint and 50 job seems easier to do but harder to time and keep up with.

in10city · 11-20-2008, 07:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by teschuette

Could some people please clear up HIIT for me. Some people say do it for 30sec./30sec. some say no no it's 2min./2min. Everyone seems to use different numbers. I am assuming that it's the raise and lowering of heart rate that matters. So... would it be better to do it by watching your heart rate and not a clock? Lets say... my heart rate after running gets up to 160... how long should I keep it at 160? Or as soon as I hit it should I slow down until my heart rate would hit say... 110. Maybe I'm getting to "scientific" on it but I figure that if it's worth doing it's worth doing right.

Personally I don't like to be a slave to HR when doing HIIT since HR is a crapshoot when performing short duration intermittent anaerobic and power activities. It will lag effort - your max might not occur until you're in the off portion and it might not drop below a certain level, if it even does after several intervals, for a longer than necessary off time. Add to that core body temperature changes, hydration, hormones, etc... will muck things up with cardiac drift. I like to use time & perceived exertion / speed over HR alone.

Ideally you want to sustain a high percentage of your VO2max and generate exercise metabolites. While the on and off times will vary with your level of conditioning, the interval should be going all out for at an effort that makes convering the goal time VERY, VERY challenging to complete.

SocratesTX · 11-20-2008, 10:49 AM

It all depends on fitness level. I can do "HIIT" for about 45-50 minutes at 60 second sprints, 90-100 second recovers. For a lot of people. they couldn't get through 15 minutes of that. And with distance running, I can hold an 85-90% HR for about 20-25 minutes during threshold runs, a lot of other people can barely run 10 minutes at 75%. It's all relative to your fitness level. Just set a goal for yourself. Do 1 minute sprints, 1 minutes recovers and say you'll do 7 cycles. If you are too tired after that, you need to keep working. If you feel fine, up the cycles or decrease the recover times.

oLaNuTTs · 11-20-2008, 11:13 AM

i agree to the fitness level. i usually start with a 5 min warm-up...then do 3x 30/30...then 3x 60/60...then try to keep a good jogging pace...for me at 270 pounds...it works for me...kills my legs...and then like Jin said...if you throw up or feel like throwing up...youre doing it right...but thats just my opinion...

le_diable · 11-20-2008, 11:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by polifter88

well basically you need to do what works for you...with that being said im sorry but ppl who say they do "true" HIIT 2min/2min is full of ****...

not true. Many athletes condition with this interval and the 2 minutes "on" is done at the fastest possible pace for 2 minutes. In essence, performance at their highest level to achieve 'failure' in a 2 minute span. For competitive athletes, this is an extremely difficult routine, but as the saying goes "train hard, race easy".

chef316 · 11-20-2008, 11:42 AM

Here is my specific HIIT routine:

One day a week i do elipitical with the interval setting for 30-45mins
One day a week i do stairs for 30-45 mins

Two days a week on the treadmill i do this:
5 incline 3.8 Speed for one min
10 incline 3.8 speed for one min
15 incline 3.8 speed for one min
3 incline 5.5 speed for one min
4 incline 5.5 speed for one min
5incline 5.5 speed for one min
5 incline 3.8 speed fo one min
Repeat untill you feel like you can't do anymore. then do one more "jog" rotation. After the last "jog" take your incline down to 0 increase speed to 6.5 and go for 2-3 mins.

This is done wonders working for me, it keeps your body guessing (two days a week I work with a trainer who is body weight/lifting in a cardio format).
You might need to change the speed, the "slow" is a fast walk, and the fast should be a jog, the final 2-3 mins should be sprint.

Again this is just to give you a specific ideas; its working wonders for me!

Lector606 · 11-20-2008, 01:05 PM

Really depends on your fitness level! For starts try 15 seconds sprinting, 45 seconds rest (or really any 3:1 ratio approximately) and see how it goes. You'll have to tweak it according to your fitness, but as long as you progressively improve your fitness you will probably be getting leaner simultaneously.

forumdwarf · 11-20-2008, 02:22 PM

I started doing hit about 2 months ago. I couldn't even run a mile before I started. What worked for me was to start with 30 second sprints x5 (at about 80%) 1 minute walking. Instead of monitoring your heart rate, you'll start to build a memory of how your chest feels when your heart is where it should be. I was up to doing 30 second sprints x8 (at about 100-90%) and 1 minute jogging. I only monitored my HR twice, and I just payed close attention to my chest. At my max it felt like my heart was beating out of my chest, but the pain wasn't quite intense enough to slow me down. When I needed to start sprinting again I had a feeling like someone had just scared the hell out of me. Once you develop the feel for where your heart should be u can modify your own routine.

CLIFFS:
-If you want to monitor your heart rate to start you can.
-develop a feel for the pounding in your chest at the highest and lowest.
-modify your routine to meet your needs.