Has anyone tried HIIT (high-intensity interval training)? I read about it here (http://www.musclemedia.com/training/hiit.asp#tabl es). Basically, it suggest that instead of low intensity exercises, you do intervals of high and low intensity cardio exercises 3x a week (with weight training on the "off" days). I've looked in other forums and people says that it's a good fat burner, and wanted to know if anyone here had experience with it.

It's a good way to burn fat in a shorter amount of time.

Studies have been done showing that HIIT burns more fat than traditional endurance training within the same 30 minute to 45 minute window of continuous effort. (See reference links in the Wikipedia article.)

It's a matter of preference for some. I'd rather run 30 minutes, with 10-120 min or walking before and after, than do HIIT because HIIT just wears me out too much. Then again, I may always change my mind if I try HIIT long enough -- who knows?

Personally, I became consistent with exercising only because of HIIT. I love elevated heart rates and steady state running was boring to death for me. I HIIT 2 or 3x a week with Cardio Coach. Amongst aerobics videos, I prefer Step just because it kept my HR elevated. OF course, regular floor aerobics can also elevate HR, but it is easier to cheat to a lower intensity with that. With the step, just jumping on and off the step was enough to keep my endorphins flowing. But as with everything else, HIIT has to be done in moderation.. not more than 3X a week.

As far as fat loss, I cannot tell because it is very dependent on what you eat.
And I don't eat clean

In the world of fitness competitors and bodybuilders (supposedly some of the best built people in the world) that is all that is recommended.

I'm actually getting to the point now where I'm going to try and incorporate HIIT into my workouts.

I'll keep you posted on my trials.

yeah i tried HIIT yesterday and was pretty satisfied with how i felt afterwards. I'm going to try the 8 week workout on the site I posted; go us!

Here's a page with a bunch of articles on it:
www.bodybuilding.com.
Ignore all the ads for chemicals on the site -- but some of the articles are worth reading.

I've found that HIIT has finally enabled me to break through a plateau that lasted for 5 weeks. The claims are that you will burn more calories in a shorter time, and that your metabolism will stay elevated for many hours after the workout.

The first claim is not true, from my experience. I have measured calorie output with a heart rate monitor for both steady state cardio and HIIT, and they were very close - within 50 calories. Of course, I do my steady state cardio at 80% of max HR, so I'm not in the "fat burning zone" anyway, and that may be the difference.

That said, here is what I've seen from doing HIIT for a month now:
1) I think it is true that your metabolism stays elevated for hours after a workout.
2) I do my workouts in the afternoon, and after an intense workout, I'm actually far less hungry for dinner, so I eat less.
3) My resting pulse dropped from 63 a month ago, to 52-55 now.
4) My systolic BP has dropped 5 to 8 points, and my diastolic BP has dropped 4 to 5 points.
5) Very Important -- for the first time, I actually enjoy my cardio workouts!

Some of these might have happened with regular cardio, but #5 certainly would not. I use the hour long tracks from www.cardiocoach.com.

Have fun!

There has been some good research on the subject.



Actually I've read quite the opposite.

From what I understand, the theoretical calorie burn during HIIT bouts is lower than with long, steady cardio. This is what makes its "total" calorie burning and long-term cardiovascular benefits seem counterintuitive. Clearly, there is a lot of anecdotal evidence to the contrary.

Yeah the science behind it seems pretty clear, but i've never heard one person say," HIIT sucked, I didn't lose a pound or any fat, it felt like crap, and i can't run anymore."

you know what i mean? Every article I've read by a fitness competitor or bodybuilder says HIIT (usually for like 20-25 minutes, instead of 4-15) is what keeps them at 12% bf when bulking. eating 6000 calories a day and remaining pretty lean. I'll take it. I just don't know if I can do it on the treadmill or elliptical, it says you can, but that seems odd to me. i want to try it outside on the street, with some real 'leg room.'

If you want to do it in the gym but not on a treadmill/elliptical, try a bike. You just jack up the resistance for a minute, then recover for a minute at low resistance. Repeat. Very effective.

I wouldn't do it on a treadmill because you can't really do it effectively. HIIT relies on changing intensity quickly and often, and 1. you cant change speed really quick on a tread mill and 2. it's a bit dangerous to go really fast on a treadmill.

The bikes or running outside work much better.

My HIIT site.

I've done HIIT sprinting on the track, running uphill, on the eliptical machine, on the treadmill, and on a stationary bike. I FAR prefer the stationary bike as it is easier on my joints, and you can set it to change resistance with the "hills" workout. I would not use a reclining bike, but the upright style. And as others have said, it's hard to turn down the settings on an eliptical and treadmill when you finish your sprint and are so tired you can't stand; keeping on running while holding that little button is terrible. ALSO, I think the stationary bike is far more conservative looking. I don't feel self-conscious at all doing it, while felt stupid on a treadmill or eliptical.

I've also had great success with HIIT, as it's way more interesting, my energy level during the day is sky high (so long as I drink enough water), and I know I've completely taxed my body in a short amount of time. It's also fun to see progress as you push yourself harder and harder, while recovering faster and faster. During 30 minute, steady-state running, I just wanted to shoot myself.

I've also been tracking my progress at a site called badrunner.com.

I first did HIIT workouts when I was using the Body for Life workout routine. Besides what others have mentioned, I like HIIT for two reasons: 1) It proved to me that I could do more than I thought I could do. I pushed myself with HIIT, and I reached levels that I never would have in my regular routine; 2) HIIT routines are great stress reducers, in my opinion. I feel as if I've sweated and worked off a good deal of tension by the end of a HIIT workout.

and sprinting is way more fun than jogging for an hour.

Also, running for long periods of time is very catabolic (muscle eating, so to speak). So for someone losing weight, you want to lose fat not muscle, running or jogging longer than 20-30 mins for some can be damaging to the muscle mass you already have.

Look at the physique of a sprinter, versus the physique of a marathon runner.

Training article

Scroll down and you'll find a pic of each.

i love hiit - i think it feels great when you have enough energy for it. i did it quite regularly for a while and found that it VASTLY improved my endurance and made the rest of my workout a lot easier. however, i did not notice much change in terms of my weight or muscle tone.

i stopped focusing so much on it because i realized that my goal wasn't to be a better athlete. i had much better weight loss and muscle tone results doing my normal mid-intensiy cardio workout. i still do it sometimes, though, when i have a lot of energy to burn. this is what i used to do (i actually learned it from this webiste):

30-60-90s

warm up by walking briskly.
jog for 30 seconds.
sprint for 30 seconds.
jog for 60 seconds.
sprint for 60 seconds.
jog for 90 seconds.
sprint for 90 seconds.
walk for 60 seconds.
repeat.

each cycle should take seven minutes. i got up to being able to do three without puking from exhaustion

Mark P, I totally agree with you. For a while I tried the HIIT on the treadmill with 8 sets of 0.25 mi. at 10-12 mph and 2 min off at 6mph. While it was a hell of a workout, I couldnt shake the thought of a slight misstep resulting in shattered limbs.

When you are moving on that thing at flank speed, even a tiny perturbation in your stride is enough to keep you in a constant state of anxiety.

You all need to give up the elliptical, stationary bike, and running and hop on the ergo. 8x500 is the only HIIT workout you will ever need. At race pace, a 160lb man can burn about 40 to 50 calories in the 90-95 seconds to complete each 500m. That level of anaerobic torture cannot be found on any other machine.

Hell, if chuck liddell and the entire cast of 300 used it to turn into monsters, it's good enough for you.

What is the ergo I've never heard of it??


Dawn

The concept 2 ergometer, or rowing machine:



Info:

URL

Mistress, beacon of pain, torture device, whatever you chose to call it, the erg is the single best piece of cardio equipment every created, hands down. Correct application of technique and form with a healthy dose of cardiac ambition and slight mental perturbations will invite you into a cadre of athletes who eat gunpowder.

training guide via UK site (much better than US)

URL

The "pete plan," the best rowing training regime:

URL


Maybe a little justification.... (anyone every done squash? sounds simply awful)

URL

Nothing truer has ever been said by Man. Amen.

Any updates from anyone using HIIT to burn fat? I'm considering it as i ditto Jason G's comment, "During 30 minute, steady-state running, I just wanted to shoot myself." And feel HIIT would be something i could get into if for no other reason than to break up the cardio monotony. I'd like to hear from real world results, but have enjoyed the articles posted here referring to HIIT training.

I use HIIT, on the elliptical and the rowing machine, as part of my overall workout. I do the cardio coach 6 program when on the elliptical (I usually do 22 minutes workouts or sometimes a 45 minute session that has a number of rest periods). Otherwise, I do 10 minutes on the rower, 15 seconds at top effort, followed by 45 seconds at moderate effort. I do these three days a week, plus weight training/calisthenics on the other two days.

Have been doing this for 7 months, dropped BF% by about 10% and lost 50 lbs. I am a big believer in HIIT--I only want to be in the gym for about an hour, so it is a time-saver as well. Husband has done the same weight loss--but his BF% is now 18% and mine is 30%--sucks to be a girl!

HIIT, or interval training, is as old school as pullup bars but it's the stuff that makes you strong and lean and although it can make you blow chunks on a really hot afternoon, it's a blast. We have a cinder fifth mile track that we divide into four sections. Sprint the straightaways and dog the corners. Warm up for two laps, then it's two fast sprints on the next lap, two faster sprints on the fourth lap, and two fastest sprints on the fifth lap. The idea is to get yourself going from a dead stop as quickly as you can. Then we repeat the cycle for three more sets (two warm up laps, three sprint laps) and finish with a victory lap (three miles total). Slower people get a head start on the sprints--a much of a handicap as necessary to make the others of us have to bust it out to chase them down so we all have a chance of winning the sprint. It's fun, it's horrible, it makes you work harder than you otherwise would think you could. So far as fat burning, I can't think of anything more effective. The interval training applies to just about any exercise--from swimming laps (better for heavier people who should worry about their knees) to efx machines to rowers, steppers, treadmills etc. If nothing else, blasting it out gives you a taste of what it's like to really go. And that's something that keeps me, at least, coming back for more.

tell you what, i'll do 30 minutes of HIIT tomorrow morning on the stationary cycle and make a post here.

i wish i had an ergo. maybe i should invest in one. someone posted a link before, i wish i could find it.

Great! good job and thanks for the reply, thats exactly the kind of response i was hoping for- real results from using this program. I am also assuming you watch your diet, trying to eat healthy? Another question that arose after reading this thread but is Off-Topic is about the Ergo (rower) machine and whether others find this contraption to be really good. I've always thought that swimming would be the ideal all body workout, but i don't have a pool.

My main considerations for trying HIIT is the shorter time duration and enjoyable "rush" of performing high intensity workouts. A gentleman here mention the 300 Spartan workout devised by the Gym Jones organization for the cast of 300, a cool article with video is at http://joshsgarage.typepad.com/articles/2006/11/fr ank_miller_mo.html

what a cool way to workout!

More real world results please, its great inspiration. I'm wanting to battle off the middle age pregnant man look that my sit down job, not the best diet, and sedentary lifestyle has gained me.

That'd be me. It is hell. But it's not really something I like to make a habit of, not because of it's difficulty, just because it thoroughly screws your other workouts for the weeks since it's high intensity, total body, burnout to the max.

You can't do the 300 then expect to do chest or back, or legs the next day. Which kind of blows for me. Still, I think it's a fun thing to do about once a month just to keep you on your toes. High intensity sweat bomb routines like that are pretty necessary to keep you motivated and primed. Muscle memory is the silent killer and the secret ingredient to plateau and boredom.




It is really good. I'll say it again, and keep saying it again until the question never needs to be asked again. It is the ONLY cardio machine you need, and the best total body cardio workout. That contraption is the most calorie frying, sweat inducing, cry for your mother, bleed out your ears routine you can engage in

IF

you push yourself.

Unlike running on the treadmill, where you press a couple buttons and hang on for dear life until you can't keep up and fly off the back, you are responsible for your own level of effort. You can sit on the ergo and paddle for 20 minutes and think it's an absolute waste of time, or you can sit down for 20 minutes and watch your vision slowly become black as all the blood in your body scavenges to your legs.

Read my links above for more info.

I was doing a hitt workout 3 times a week on my treadmill. I personally liked using the treadmil because I could quickly change speeds. I know everyone thinks it dangerous but I like to live dangerously lol.


I started with 4 intervals and workout up to 8. First week I did 4 intervals and the 3rd day I increased it to 5. Then 5 intervals twice the following week and the 3rd workout goes to 6. etc


I did it for several months and increased my fitness quite a bit plus dropped fat. Each week my body fat % went down (Ihave a scale that measures it). However, you will never cut much body fat no matter how much you exercise unless you follow it with a healthy diet.

I started with 5 minute warm up, 30 second sprint followed by 1 minute quick walk, followed by sprint etc. You really need to give it your all so even the rest periods aren't that easy (not a leasurally stroll). Its a very quick workout but you definately feel like you did something.

After you complete you first round of intervals working up to 8 you start over and increase your sprint to 45 seconds and decrease your rest to 45 seconds. Its not boring and I think its fun myself. I love high intensity workouts, the harder the better. If you can sprint longer than 30 seconds then you are not going fast enough and need to run faster or petal or whatever. If it doesn't kick your butt you ain't working hard enough.

You should skip a day in between each workout. You can lift weights on those days. I was sore and tired when I first started it but my body adapted pretty quickly.

Dawn

my butt cheeks are killing me!! but the pain after a good workout is one of the most enjoyable things in life...

i started with the resistance high and cycled for 2 minutes at 8meters/sec. then i did 1 minute at 15-20 m/sec. i have a horizontal bike (i know that's not the technical term). you sit down, have back support, and the pedals are straight in front of you, rather than below, so you don't get any help from gravity.

30 minutes and my heart was racing. i'm glad i finally tried it out.

Thanks for the replies. Hearing of people implementing a routine and having it actually WORK is great inspiration. Sure, there are websites that blare "it'll transform you" montages but I'm way too skeptical to take most websites at face value. Hearing from you all in a forum like this is much more believable since you are offering up your actual experiences (more the better to see how people of varying body types do with HIIT).

I plan to implement the muscle media's HIIT routine found here: and see how i fare. Planning on doing this upon getting up early before work around 6am. My goal is to burn off some waist fat that is ever present in my 31 yo computer nerd/work lifestyle.
Thanks again for everyone's posts. I'll have to look into those Ergo's too, i used a cheap crappy rowing machine when i was in HighSchool and remember thinking even then that such machines do hit several muscle groups in a good nonimpact fluid motion. I'll have to look at the expense/footprint factor. Maybe i'll get brochures for them and subtly drop em around my work's fitness center in hopes that mgt will get the hint and purchase one!!

i have a whole new respect for HIIT. the burn brings you to the edge of tears. it's fantastic. i feel like i have a lot more energy, everyday now.

i'd suggest this to everybody. it's also a good idea to work your way in. the 30 minutes i did friday was really great, but my back was killing me until sunday. i'm the kind of person that enjoys pain, but some people out there might not. i can't really think of a good way to work yourself in though. so you might want to try HIIT on a thursday or friday, when you know you'll have a few days to recuperate, if needed.

I did intervals today on the gauntlet, and while it thouroughly kicked my ass this morning, I felt great right after my cool down. It was actually amazingly invigorating to really put out maximum effort repeatedly. It was rather like the buzz I get from lifting heavy. I'll definitely be back at it tomorrow, though I think I'll teach myself how to use the ergo. I'm really intimidated by it, I have NO idea how to use the silly thing. But, I'll do some reading today and we'll see how I fare.

Hi All,

After a few months of on-and-off adherance to "almost HIIT" (45sec/45sec 4mph/10mph on the treadmill), I've recently decided that I really should do it properly, i.e. outside where I can really sprint.

I'm starting off with 30sec/15sec jog/sprint for 5 minutes. Had my first session yesterday and got completely dominated, which is more or less what I expected. Looking forward to session 2 tomorrow morning

Anyway, one of the things I organised before starting was a set of HIIT workout mp3's which have beeps inserted into them to let me know when to start/stop intervals (so I don't have to look at my watch all the time). Each track is 45 seconds long and has a beep after 30 seconds (start sprinting) and another beep at the end (stop sprinting).

To make things a little more interesting however, I decided to overlay the beeps into musical clips that already have high/low intensity periods where the musics builds up and then suddenly begins a more intense part of the song. This way the music really feels like it's in tune with your workout, and is an excellent motivator to really go for it during that sprint.

So i figured that since i've already created them I may as well post them around a bit in case others can get some benefit out of them. If you'd like to give them a go, you can download them from my blog at URL.

Best of luck to everyone attempting HIIT!

Brendan.