Just finished my first HIIT session, few questions - Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community

cait987 · 02-08-2004, 02:20 PM

Well, I just finished my first HIIT session and enjoyed it honestly, I hated sitting there for a hour just walking and doing nothing and never being really tired.

I did my first session for 7 minutes on a treadmill and it was pretty fun honestly.

Did a 1 minute warmup on 4.5 MPH
then 30 seconds on 5
then 30 seconds on 7 - 7.5
then back to 30 seconds on 5

did this until 5:30 then I sprinted at 8.5 MPH for 35 seconds then cooled down for about a minute

I really enjoyed it but I have a few questions if possible

1: My treadmill said I burned only 135 calories but I know I burned a whole lot more then that can anyone explain this?

2:Ive been reading alot about HIIT and some people say you shouldnt eat for up to a hour after you finish, others say you should eat right after anyone clarify? (Im trying to burn fat) and Ide like to avoid having to get up at 4:30 to do my session since I want to eat breakfast still, and since you cant eat for 3 hours before doing a HIIT for max results I figure getting up earlier will be the best way to do this

3: Some people say you should do HIIT 7 days a week and have had success with it (John Stone) and others say you should only do it 3 - 4 days a week anyone wanna clarify?

Also, I plan to do my sessions like this if anyone has any suggestions :

Day 1: 7 minutes 0 elevation
Day 2: 7 minutes 1 elevation
Day 3: 8 minutes 0 elevation
Day 4: 8 minutes 1 elevation

And so on until I hit 15 - 20 minutes

Would this be better since people say your body burns more calories being suprised I figured I could change things around a bit.

Any suggestions/advice would be great, and thanks for the great idea im hoping for as much success as some people seem to have with it

Plan9Senior · 02-08-2004, 02:54 PM

dont ever rely on what the computer says on those machines. HIIT wont burn as much during the workout, but burns more calories though-out the day. Here is a link to teach you all about HIIT complete with links to a few nice tables at the bottom of the page to get you into a nice routine: http://www.musclemedia.com/training/hiit.asp

There are a lot of varieties on how you can do it. I love to do HIIT using a jump rope. When I do, this is the way I do it:

15 Minute jump rope HIIT
1 minute warmup
2 minute warmup at 60% effort
1 minute at 100% effort
1 minute at 60% effort
1 minute at 100% effort
1 minute at 60% effort
1 minute at 100% effort
1 minute at 60% effort
2 minutes at 100% effort
2 minute cool-down at 50-60% effort
2 minute cool-down walk

According to The Tremblay study demonstrated that calorie per calorie, HIIT stimulates bodyfat loss much more efficiently than endurance cardio.

Quote:

Angelo Tremblay, Ph.D., and his colleagues at the Physical Activities Sciences Laboratory, Laval University, Quebec, Canada, challenged the common belief among health professionals that low-intensity, long-duration exercise is the best program for fat loss. They compared the impact of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise and high-intensity aerobics on fat loss. (Metabolism (1994) Volume 43, pp.814-818)
The Canadian scientists divided 27 inactive, healthy, non-obese adults (13 men, 14 women, 18 to 32 years old) into two groups. They subjected one group to a 20-week endurance training (ET) program of uninterrupted cycling 4 or 5 times a week for 30 to 45 minutes; the intensity level began at 60% of heart rate reserve and progressed to 85%. (For a 30-year-old, this would mean starting at a heart rate of about 136 and progressing to roughly 170 bpm, which is more intense than usually prescribed for weight or fat loss.)
The other group did a 15-week program including mainly high-intensity-interval training (HIIT). Much like the ET group, they began with 30-minute sessions of continuous exercise at 70% of maximum heart rate reserve (remember, they were not accustomed to exercise), but soon progressed to 10 to 15 bouts of short (15 seconds progressing to 30 seconds) or 4 to 5 long (60 seconds progressing to 90 seconds) intervals separated by recovery periods allowing heart rate to return to 120-130 beats per minute. The intensity of the short intervals was initially fixed at 60% of the maximal work output in 10 seconds, and that of the long bouts corresponded to 70% of the individual maximum work output in 90 seconds. Intensity on both was increased 5% every three weeks.
As you might expect, the total energy cost of the ET program was substantially greater than the HIIT program. The researchers calculated that the ET group burned more than twice as many calories while exercising than the HIIT program. But (surprise, surprise) skin fold measurements showed that the HIIT group lost more subcutaneous fat. "Moreover," reported the researchers, "when the difference in the total energy cost of the program was taken into account..., the subcutaneous fat loss was nine fold greater in the HIIT program than in the ET program." In short, the HIIT group got 9 times more fat-loss benefit for every calorie burned exercising.
How can that be?
Dr. Tremblay's group took muscle biopsies and measured muscle enzyme activity to determine why high-intensity exercise produced so much more fat loss. I'll spare you the details (they are technical and hard to decipher), but this is their bottom line: "[Metabolic adaptations resulting from HIIT] may lead to a better lipid utilization in the post exercise state and thus contribute to a greater energy and lipid deficit." In other words, compared to moderate-intensity endurance exercise, high- intensity intermittent exercise causes more calories and fat to be burned following the workout. Citing animal studies, they also said it may be that appetite is suppressed more following intense intervals. (Neither group was placed on a diet.)
The next time someone pipes up about the fat-burn zone, ask them if they are familiar with the Tabata and Tremblay research reports.
Warning
The Tremblay group ( and Dr. Tabata in his e-mail response to Richard Winett) does, however, offer a word of warning: "... High-intensity exercise cannot be prescribed for individuals at risk for health problems or for obese people who are not used to exercise."

cait987 · 02-08-2004, 03:34 PM

Wow, I knew HIIT was nice but that read really added alot to motivation haha, Thanks Plan, If you could answer my other 2 questions also that would very helpful, also do you think adding a bit of elevation every other day to my workout then removing it when I do my extra minute would be helpful?

I plan to lift 4 days a week (monday, Wed, Thurs, Fri or Sat) and then do HIIT on Tues, Thurs, Sat, Sun) Then maybe do a bit of biking on a random day (I already do alot of sprinting and pacing on Mon/Wed so really dont need to do anything else on those days personally)

thed00t · 02-08-2004, 03:40 PM

I gotta second the jump rope. You can do it any where and it rocks.

When I try to cut I could, in the past, usually never get below 11-10% bf without really blowing my diet. I don't want to skimp on food because I want to keep my muscle mass. My cardio was just about running endurance 1 day, and then 2 days of HITT. I switched to jump rope and watched the BF drop down to 8-9 in no time. Abs much more defined as a result...

Jump rope = awesome.

Plan9Senior · 02-08-2004, 03:50 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by cait987
Wow, I knew HIIT was nice but that read really added alot to motivation haha, Thanks Plan, If you could answer my other 2 questions also that would very helpful, also do you think adding a bit of elevation every other day to my workout then removing it when I do my extra minute would be helpful?

I plan to lift 4 days a week (monday, Wed, Thurs, Fri or Sat) and then do HIIT on Tues, Thurs, Sat, Sun) Then maybe do a bit of biking on a random day (I already do alot of sprinting and pacing on Mon/Wed so really dont need to do anything else on those days personally)

Although you sound totally motivated (which is GREAT!) you should stick to doing it only 3 days a week especially if you plan on lifting weights as well. You need to give your body rest. All of that exercise is very hard on your CNS (central nervous system), not only that but overtraining is a good way to get burned out fast, injured, or sick.

Some things to note about overtraining:
Up to 90 signs and symptoms of OTS have been identified, of which the most common are:

Decreased physical performance
General fatigue, malaise and loss of vigor
Insomnia
Change in appetite
Irritability, restlessness, excitability, anxiety
Loss of body weight
Loss of motivation
Lack of mental concentration
Feelings of depression.

Recovery from it can take 6-12 weeks. It is just something everybody should be aware of when pushing yourself too hard. You have to push yourself as hard as possible, yet if you train too hard, you could burn out, and set your training back by weeks.

Phaenx · 02-09-2004, 07:36 AM

I did it Saturday on a bike like this:

50% 1 min
60% 1 min
70% 1 min
80% 1 min
90% 1 min

20 minutes. It was nice, I liked it a lot.

Plan9Senior · 02-09-2004, 11:07 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Phaenx
I did it Saturday on a bike like this:

50% 1 min
60% 1 min
70% 1 min
80% 1 min
90% 1 min

20 minutes. It was nice, I liked it a lot.

That isn't HIIT what you are doing. High intensity is no less then 80% effort. Also, what do you mean by nice? At the end of a HIIT session you should be completely spent. It should wipe you out.

SiNai · 02-09-2004, 05:51 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Plan9
That isn't HIIT what you are doing. High intensity is no less then 80% effort.

Quote:

Originally posted by Plan9
When I do, this is the way I do it:

15 Minute jump rope HIIT
1 minute warmup
2 minute warmup at 60% effort
1 minute at 100% effort
1 minute at 60% effort
1 minute at 100% effort
1 minute at 60% effort
1 minute at 100% effort
1 minute at 60% effort
2 minutes at 100% effort
2 minute cool-down at 50-60% effort
2 minute cool-down walk

Please elaborate? Both your schedule and his seem to be viable HIIT plans from over here.

Oh, and the first time I did HIIT it hurt like freakin hell. I was down and out.. But it really a good feeling as well, like reaching the summit of the mountain after climbing for days (about 15 minutes in my case :P) Anyway, maybe thats what he meant by "nice"..

Plan9Senior · 02-09-2004, 07:03 PM

Well, that is what I hope he meant by nice

. I didn't want him to think "oh this is nice because it is a lot easier".

Anyhow, can you see that most of his workout is done at a low intensity? Only at the end 2 minutes is he even hitting the high intensity mark. That is why it wont work well for fat loss.

Sleepyjack · 02-10-2004, 12:14 AM

heh, sorry, but how exactly do you quantify how intense you're going at a given time

As for myself, i am actually at the stage of getting back into high intensity stuff and some strength endurance stuff. I don't know if my amatuer program would be accepted by someone above the crowd, but what i like to do is some stair (or hill) climbing. Run up, pretty much 100 per cent (i guess

) and then run down again (of course at a lower rate). Rinse repeat.

Also i do some running on the spot, raising my kness as high as possible and vary intenstiy, by going hard and then back to a jog. Similar to a jump rope, probably. Although i probably should get one of those!

Finally, another is some boxing, or air boxing

. Punching the air with 2*2->3kg dumbell weights for a minute or so, just cutting sick and then just some slower softer stroke inbetween. Do until i am fucked (after about 10-15 minutes). It'd be good to get an actual bag though

Plan9Senior · 02-10-2004, 12:59 AM

You are telling me you don't know when you are giving about 50% effort as opposed to 90% effort and the difference between the two? Common Sleepyjack

*note for the slower people* 100% is balls out hard as you can possibly push yourself. 50% would be a normal running pace.

Sleepyjack · 02-10-2004, 01:39 AM

Quote:

Plan9 said
You are telling me you don't know when you are giving about 50% effort as opposed to 90% effort and the difference between the two? Common Sleepyjack

heh, i was just joking. Just whenever i hear some sports star or anyone else really, quantify (rather precisely) the amount of effort they're putting in, i wonder how they actually do it? (cause it's a little absurd to think, ok i am doing 80% etc of my capacity)

Also, how do they quantify it?

in terms of heart rate, energy spent etc, how can you objectivley measure it so precisely?

I just like the subjective descriptive efforts instead.

eg -> 100% is balls out hard as you can possibly push yourself

That's better

Sorry to get so pedantic, it's part of the humour or lack thereof

Also, i recommend music whilst working out as it helps trigger your flight/fight response! well for me anyway

I actually measured that i can do just that little bit more whilst listening to music. So put your favourite tunes on and plug away!

Phaenx · 02-10-2004, 08:09 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Plan9
That isn't HIIT what you are doing. High intensity is no less then 80% effort. Also, what do you mean by nice? At the end of a HIIT session you should be completely spent. It should wipe you out.

Was wiped out the first time I did it, that's what I was refering to. I just did it again and it wasn't so bad though, so I think I'll take a look at what I'm doing, this was how it was explained when I looked it up though.

Evil Milkman · 02-10-2004, 08:36 AM

Don't forget to stretch, all!

thed00t · 02-12-2004, 05:55 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Evil Milkman
Don't forget to stretch, all!

Yes! Before and AFTER your workout.

Blackthorn · 02-14-2004, 05:13 PM

One thing that seems to be a common theme is that you should wait at least about an hour before eating anything after a workout. After reading the article in plan's post I may incorporate a run through HIIT to see how it works out. If nothing else it will give me a little variety and help shock the body a bit from something new.

Spanxxx · 03-29-2004, 10:26 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by thed00t
Yes! Before and AFTER your workout.

WARM UP FIRST and NEVER STRETCH COLD MUSCLES. Many people forget this rule. Do 3-5 minutes at a moderate pace on a bike or treadmill... something to get the blood flowing and your system started.. .. THEN do your stretching... and also stretch AFTER your workout as stated above.

apeman · 03-30-2004, 03:50 AM

good, that's what I've been doing! I've just started what we call interval training, sounds similar to this HIIT thing. Jog 10 seconds, sprint 10 seconds, walk 10 seconds - repeat until death

still experimenting with it but it is a lot harder work than straight running, so must be better exercise. Also I found my muscles aching quite a lot after the first time I did it, and I'm used to running so must have been harder work. Also also, it makes you realize you usually can work harder than you think.

02-08-2004, 02:20 PM	#1 (permalink)
cait987 Insane	Just finished my first HIIT session, few questions Well, I just finished my first HIIT session and enjoyed it honestly, I hated sitting there for a hour just walking and doing nothing and never being really tired. I did my first session for 7 minutes on a treadmill and it was pretty fun honestly. Did a 1 minute warmup on 4.5 MPH then 30 seconds on 5 then 30 seconds on 7 - 7.5 then back to 30 seconds on 5 did this until 5:30 then I sprinted at 8.5 MPH for 35 seconds then cooled down for about a minute I really enjoyed it but I have a few questions if possible 1: My treadmill said I burned only 135 calories but I know I burned a whole lot more then that can anyone explain this? 2:Ive been reading alot about HIIT and some people say you shouldnt eat for up to a hour after you finish, others say you should eat right after anyone clarify? (Im trying to burn fat) and Ide like to avoid having to get up at 4:30 to do my session since I want to eat breakfast still, and since you cant eat for 3 hours before doing a HIIT for max results I figure getting up earlier will be the best way to do this 3: Some people say you should do HIIT 7 days a week and have had success with it (John Stone) and others say you should only do it 3 - 4 days a week anyone wanna clarify? Also, I plan to do my sessions like this if anyone has any suggestions : Day 1: 7 minutes 0 elevation Day 2: 7 minutes 1 elevation Day 3: 8 minutes 0 elevation Day 4: 8 minutes 1 elevation And so on until I hit 15 - 20 minutes Would this be better since people say your body burns more calories being suprised I figured I could change things around a bit. Any suggestions/advice would be great, and thanks for the great idea im hoping for as much success as some people seem to have with it

02-08-2004, 03:34 PM	#3 (permalink)
cait987 Insane	Wow, I knew HIIT was nice but that read really added alot to motivation haha, Thanks Plan, If you could answer my other 2 questions also that would very helpful, also do you think adding a bit of elevation every other day to my workout then removing it when I do my extra minute would be helpful? I plan to lift 4 days a week (monday, Wed, Thurs, Fri or Sat) and then do HIIT on Tues, Thurs, Sat, Sun) Then maybe do a bit of biking on a random day (I already do alot of sprinting and pacing on Mon/Wed so really dont need to do anything else on those days personally) Last edited by cait987; 02-08-2004 at 03:36 PM..

02-09-2004, 07:36 AM	#6 (permalink)
Phaenx The Northern Ward Location: Columbus, Ohio	I did it Saturday on a bike like this: 50% 1 min 60% 1 min 70% 1 min 80% 1 min 90% 1 min 20 minutes. It was nice, I liked it a lot. __________________ "I went shopping last night at like 1am. The place was empty and this old woman just making polite conversation said to me, 'where is everyone??' I replied, 'In bed, same place you and I should be!' Took me ten minutes to figure out why she gave me a dirty look." --Some guy

02-10-2004, 12:59 AM	#11 (permalink)
Plan9Senior Banned Location: Orange County, California	You are telling me you don't know when you are giving about 50% effort as opposed to 90% effort and the difference between the two? Common Sleepyjack note for the slower people 100% is balls out hard as you can possibly push yourself. 50% would be a normal running pace. Last edited by Plan9Senior; 02-10-2004 at 01:02 AM..

02-14-2004, 05:13 PM	#16 (permalink)
Blackthorn Beware the Mad Irish Location: Wish I was on the N17...	One thing that seems to be a common theme is that you should wait at least about an hour before eating anything after a workout. After reading the article in plan's post I may incorporate a run through HIIT to see how it works out. If nothing else it will give me a little variety and help shock the body a bit from something new. __________________ What are you willing to give up in order to get what you want?

02-08-2004, 03:40 PM	#4 (permalink)
thed00t I'm a fool.	I gotta second the jump rope. You can do it any where and it rocks. When I try to cut I could, in the past, usually never get below 11-10% bf without really blowing my diet. I don't want to skimp on food because I want to keep my muscle mass. My cardio was just about running endurance 1 day, and then 2 days of HITT. I switched to jump rope and watched the BF drop down to 8-9 in no time. Abs much more defined as a result... Jump rope = awesome.

02-09-2004, 07:03 PM	#9 (permalink)
Plan9Senior Banned Location: Orange County, California	Well, that is what I hope he meant by nice . I didn't want him to think "oh this is nice because it is a lot easier". Anyhow, can you see that most of his workout is done at a low intensity? Only at the end 2 minutes is he even hitting the high intensity mark. That is why it wont work well for fat loss.

02-10-2004, 12:14 AM	#10 (permalink)
Sleepyjack Fast'n'Bulbous Location: Australia, Perth	heh, sorry, but how exactly do you quantify how intense you're going at a given time As for myself, i am actually at the stage of getting back into high intensity stuff and some strength endurance stuff. I don't know if my amatuer program would be accepted by someone above the crowd, but what i like to do is some stair (or hill) climbing. Run up, pretty much 100 per cent (i guess ) and then run down again (of course at a lower rate). Rinse repeat. Also i do some running on the spot, raising my kness as high as possible and vary intenstiy, by going hard and then back to a jog. Similar to a jump rope, probably. Although i probably should get one of those! Finally, another is some boxing, or air boxing . Punching the air with 22->3kg dumbell weights for a minute or so, just cutting sick* and then just some slower softer stroke inbetween. Do until i am fucked (after about 10-15 minutes). It'd be good to get an actual bag though

02-10-2004, 08:36 AM	#14 (permalink)
Evil Milkman Addict Location: Illinois	Don't forget to stretch, all!

03-30-2004, 03:50 AM	#18 (permalink)
apeman Wah Location: NZ	good, that's what I've been doing! I've just started what we call interval training, sounds similar to this HIIT thing. Jog 10 seconds, sprint 10 seconds, walk 10 seconds - repeat until death still experimenting with it but it is a lot harder work than straight running, so must be better exercise. Also I found my muscles aching quite a lot after the first time I did it, and I'm used to running so must have been harder work. Also also, it makes you realize you usually can work harder than you think. __________________ pain is inevitable but misery is optional - stick a geranium in your hat and be happy