Intense HIIT Cardio Program

[AZtrainer]

It?s no secret that H.I.I.T is an incredible way to lose body fat fast and get into great shape. For those of you who want an intense workout and want something extra to push you over the top to get you to that ideal BF, try this on. This workout helped me get fit enough to start playing semi professional football again. I use this for the clients I train as well and scale it to their weight and tolerance so it?s not a rigid guideline as much as it is a blueprint for an intense treadmill cardio workout. I will often change the start incline % to change things up as well to make things interesting.

3 Minute Warm-up
8mph @ 0% Incline

1 Minute Cool Down

45 seconds
8mph @ 4% incline

1 Minute Cool Down

45 seconds
9 mph @ 6% incline

1 Minute 30 Second Cool Down

45 seconds
10 mph @ 8% incline

1 Minute 30 Second Cool Down

45 seconds
11 mph @ 5% incline

1 Minute 30 Second Cool Down

45 seconds
12 mph @ 3% incline

3 Minute Cool Down



In 12 to 14 minutes you?ll burn more calories than most people do in 30 or more minutes doing their steady cardio. I toy with this program a lot both in the incline and speed, but the idea is adding incline to your HIIT program will take it up a notch that can make a HUGE difference!

[MAGUI]

Wow that looks intense. I've been doing a steady cardio routine for about 4 months now and I'm starting to plateau. If you don't mind, I'd like to take your routine and try it out =]

[AZtrainer]

Yah this program is fantastic for destroying plateaus completely. I personally do this 5 days a week but I would recommend 2 to 3 times a week until it feels managable. Keep in mind I am much taller than most people so my stride is pretty big so if you can't hit the same speed that's fine. Running sprints at an incline will kick your butt fast so if you need longer breaks in between that's fine as well.

The goal is that after each group of sprints you get your HR to your max % for your age. I get my HR to 195 sometimes when I do 10mph @ 10% incline for a minute. It's kind of fun to watch the calories burn at a rate of 2 per second...

The big key with this kind of cardio is a clean diet. If you are eating right and eating enough (6 portioned meals a day) you'll be rocking it in no time. I see the same people doing the same stuff and they look the EXACTLY same after months of being in the gym. I do my HIIT program and they look at me like I'm insane, well I'm the one with the 6 pack (almost an 8!) and they are the ones reading books on the elipitical.

YOU CHOOSE!

[MAGUI]

haha amazing, well since i'm a girl I'm not planning on having an 8-pack (but I'd like my abs to be visible still) so I'm going to try your workout on Friday. The hardest part for me to burn is my waist area, so hopefully this'll help.

Do you do this in the mornings? Also, what kind of diet do you have, because mine consists mostly of grains and protein (plus multivitamins because I don't have the luxury to buy all the right foods).

[AZtrainer]

I workout in the evenings on my work weeks out of necessity, but it wouldn't really matter when you do this. I dont care what any person says, morning cardio is no different than evening cardio in terms of overall benefit.

I eat extremely lean on a budget. I eat eggs white, chicken breast, tuna, peanut butter, fat free cottage cheese, and walmart veggies in the bag. My diet is 6 portioned meals a day with most of my carbs comin the morning from fruits, or the occassional wheat toast with peanut butter.

I'm cutting to 5% over the next 8 weeks, but here is the crazy part. A year ago today I was 304lbs @ over 40% BF. With severe asthma, a heart arrhythmia and severe knee tendonitis I have broken all expectations

[MAGUI]

You've come a long way, I was at 150lbs and 28% BF in September, now I'm at 133lbs and 23.3% BF!! I'm happy but I really would like to reach a far better goal.

Your diet sounds near similar to mine, minus the veggies, I might buy some in a bag too since it's cheap.

I'll HAVE to do your workout in the morning, at night I'm working from 6pm til 11pm as a UPS truck loader.

[AZtrainer]

Well no matter when you do it, it will kick your butt :P Good luck and be careful!

[MAGUI]

Thank You! =]

[SUPERMAN1523]

On the cooldown part what speed do you have it at?

[AZtrainer]

I slow down as low as needed. The key for me is to get my heart rate down to my normal zone (120 to 130 bpm). I slow down to 2mph usually and walk because in most cases I'm completely exhausted.

I remember the first time someone asked me what I was doing. They thought I was insane and ridiculed me for it. I invited him to join me. About 10 minutes later he had to excuse himself to throw up. I dropped 110lbs in 6 months doing this off and on. Considering I was never a runner, never a fit athlete, had severe asthma, and HATED running...yah I think I can say definitively this was a large part of why I'm nearing 9% BF and getting close to an 8 pack.

[Subidriver90]

I am a relatively skinny fellow, and this seems ideal for me. While I am not nearly as ambitious as a lot of the people on here, I am trying to cut the small amount of fat I do have, so my abs are actually visible, while building a little muscle in my chest and triceps at the same time. I'll be following your plan up here, but do you have any suggestions as far as putting on some chest and arm mass?

Also, I've heard the afternoon is a better time to do cardio than the morning, is that myth or fact?

[iiyama32]

Hah, this sounds quite intense. The one time I tried HIIT was on the treadmill in our basement, and after the second cycle, I had to stop and lay down for 2 minutes, I thought I was going to die. I'm definately going to practice this though for my cutting cycle though. Hopefully I can make it past the second sprint. =p

[xhkxstunna]

This seems sick. Right now im doing regular HiiT running a 10 and walking at 3 and its pretty killer for 20min and it works awesome. I bet this would work even better

[nkh]

So wait, you weigh 215 pounds and your estimated 1RM is 366 pounds?

Your avatar picture doesn't do you justice!

[greenbox]

our gym is using life fitness treadmill machines and the incline number goes by 0.5
how do u calculate the % incline?

[kitarpyar]

AZtrainer, did you note whether HIIT ends up burning more muscle as compared to steady cardio? There is an article by Bob Cicherillo on HIIT vs slow cardio ( http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/bobchic3.htm ).

As far as I understand from this:
1. HIIT is more effective in burning fats and dropping weight
2. HIIT also results in burning up muscles more than slow cardio.

Did you end up burning a fair amount of muscles while doing a HIIT routine?

[AZtrainer]

Yah my Avatar pic was taken about 3 months ago, I went from 300+ lbs of fat to that pic of me around 16% BF. I'm waiting to take my final pictures because I want them to shock the hell out of people when they see what I looked like a year ago. That was my first picture when I noticed I actually had abs. I am much larger with less BF now...

[AZtrainer]

AZtrainer, did you note whether HIIT ends up burning more muscle as compared to steady cardio? There is an article by Bob Cicherillo on HIIT vs slow cardio ( http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/bobchic3.htm ).

As far as I understand from this:
1. HIIT is more effective in burning fats and dropping weight
2. HIIT also results in burning up muscles more than slow cardio.

Did you end up burning a fair amount of muscles while doing a HIIT routine?

HIIT will absolutely burn more muscle in the long run that steady cardio. HIIT 5 times a week is NOT for body builders prepping for a show... HIIT is for people who want to lose BF faster than people who do long amount of low intensity cardio.

Frankly I don't lose enough muscle to notice any difference in my workouts. But if you are trying to gain mass and build an 8 pack at the same time, it will be difficult at best.

[AZtrainer]

I am a relatively skinny fellow, and this seems ideal for me. While I am not nearly as ambitious as a lot of the people on here, I am trying to cut the small amount of fat I do have, so my abs are actually visible, while building a little muscle in my chest and triceps at the same time. I'll be following your plan up here, but do you have any suggestions as far as putting on some chest and arm mass?

Also, I've heard the afternoon is a better time to do cardio than the morning, is that myth or fact?

Diet, supplements and heavy weight. When I do chest I always do max weight low reps (8 to 10). I've added 2 inches to my chest in 2 months just keeping the weight as heavy as I can lift and always trying to add to it each time. Intensity and heavy weight is what brings gains when you have your diet in line with the right supplementation.

[AZtrainer]

Hah, this sounds quite intense. The one time I tried HIIT was on the treadmill in our basement, and after the second cycle, I had to stop and lay down for 2 minutes, I thought I was going to die. I'm definately going to practice this though for my cutting cycle though. Hopefully I can make it past the second sprint. =p

Yah this isn't for the average low intensity runner. I remember the first time I ran 12mph at an incline I thought I was going to fall off...your body eventually figures it out. Eventually you'll get to the point where it doesn't seem that hard for the first 20 to 30 seconds...but once you near a minute and slow down you won't be able to utter a word for a while :P

I'm redefinining my Vo2 threshold all the time

[AZtrainer]

our gym is using life fitness treadmill machines and the incline number goes by 0.5
how do u calculate the % incline?

Most machines do so I go by the whole numbers not the halfs... (1 = 1%, 5 = 5%, etc)

On some occassions I'll have a "run the mountain day"

I'll start off at 15 (15%) and run a pace of 6 to 7.5 mph for a minute. It looks slower but it's just as if not harder than the faster version of this.

[svillasenor]

Dude I did it this morning....i toyed with it a bit.... we have woodway treadmills here at my school so I can preset intervals so it is pretty fun...I ran for 22 minutes total with a 2 minute warm-up and 3 minute cool down and went 3.2 miles...i went hard.... good work out.... I am an avid fan of HIIT training so i enjoyed your routine very much...

[AZtrainer]

Dude I did it this morning....i toyed with it a bit.... we have woodway treadmills here at my school so I can preset intervals so it is pretty fun...I ran for 22 minutes total with a 2 minute warm-up and 3 minute cool down and went 3.2 miles...i went hard.... good work out.... I am an avid fan of HIIT training so i enjoyed your routine very much...

3.2 miles in 22 minutes is impressive indeed especially when you are doing it on inclines and a quick pace. I think what I enjoy the most about it is you know when you step off the treadmill you just completed a phenominal high intensity cardio workout that rivals any of them out there...the results in terms of BF reduction come FAST when diet is in line.

Nice work Svillasenor!

[svillasenor]

3.2 miles in 22 minutes is impressive indeed especially when you are doing it on inclines and a quick pace. I think what I enjoy the most about it is you know when you step off the treadmill you just completed a phenominal high intensity cardio workout that rivals any of them out there...the results in terms of BF reduction come FAST when diet is in line.

Nice work Svillasenor!

yea... definitely... working out 5 days a week and running 6... i have to consume like 4000 a day to gain anything but I am and have been for 2 months now.... weighted in at 206 today actually... goal is 220..... but my legs got stupid strong doing HIIT as well. I leg pressed 20 45pd plates for 6 reps of 4 sets yesterday. overall HIIT is the way to go for bf reduction and overall strength improvements.

[SUPERMAN1523]

So I tried this today and it whooped my ass. I couldn't even finish it. I'll just have to build up to it.

[AZtrainer]

So I tried this today and it whooped my ass. I couldn't even finish it. I'll just have to build up to it.

That's the idea. This is designed to test your physical limits and then some. Think of the Russian on Rocky...haha

HIIT is an incredible tool that if you use right will get you far!

[AZtrainer]

yea... definitely... working out 5 days a week and running 6... i have to consume like 4000 a day to gain anything but I am and have been for 2 months now.... weighted in at 206 today actually... goal is 220..... but my legs got stupid strong doing HIIT as well. I leg pressed 20 45pd plates for 6 reps of 4 sets yesterday. overall HIIT is the way to go for bf reduction and overall strength improvements.

Man I wish I had your metabolism. I look at a piece of bread and gain 7 lbs :P That's impressive leg pressing bro. Hit that dead lift and squats and you'll be a beast in no time!

[AZtrainer]

Remember that it is critically important that you eat right for this kind of intense cardio. No amount of exercise in the world will get you where you want to go if you arent supplying your body with the right diet and supplements.

[AZtrainer]

So yah wow. I tried this with a 20lb weight vest on. That's officially a new definition of intensity for me.

WOW!

[Josephits]

hello to everyone...
I'am a college student in Peru and i really don't have any money to join a gym, because i'm already paying for Boxing and BJJ classes. Can anybody help to get a HIIT routine based on street running?

Thanks in advanced.