Fitness

so I tried 20 minutes cardio today. I don't if I can call this HIIT or  it is just regular  cardio intervals??

what is the difference? if any? how do you determine your max speed for doing HIIT??

well, my lungs were about to brust ( like Melkor:)) ) but my speed is not very high. (overall duration is 20 m. ) 2m./ 6.5 mph, 2m./3.5mph.

it is interesting that my weight today is 170. yesterday 174. a week ago, 177.

what a pain.

 Speed doesn't matter, it's all in the effort - and it sounds like you're doing it right. There's no clear transition between plain interval training and HIIT, and there's no set criteria for how to do it. Well, at least no real-world useful criteria - the Tabata protocol from the research paper for example calls for a 170% supramaximal aerobic effort which is fine if you're in a lab setting and can measure power output and aerobic threshold precisely.

 In practice, the rigid precision of a research protocol is unneccesary - to see improvements it's only neccesary that you vary your efforts between "as much as you can" and "low enough that you can recover from your maximal effort".

Thanks, Melkor. I don't really know how to determine my max efforts. any suggestions? maybe the VO2max test would be useful for that purpose??? what do you think?  you said that HIIT is all about efforts. how would I know if I am just lazy or this is my real max efforts?

is the duration important for max fat loss? for example, doing 30 m. is better than 20 m.? or it doesn't matter?

My third question :   would you do HIIT and weight training in the same day? one in the mornings and the other in the evenings???

Thanks again.

Here is what I have found about Astrand Treadmill test. I am not sure if it is accurate like the one offered in my gym.

http://www.brianmac.co.uk/astrand.htm

I don't think what you are doing would be considered "high intensity" and it is not simply because "high intensity" is a completely relative term.  If you can hold a work interval for 2 minutes, than it isn't the high intensity that HIIT is all about.  HIIT involves running all out so hard that the max you could do is about 30-40 seconds.  Then you do a rest and recovery interval, whose time varies depending on fitness level.  A person new to this sort of interval training may rest for 1 min to 1.5 min while a very fit person may only have a 30 second rest.  However, a 2 minute work interval is obviously not the maximum speed you could attain.  If it was your all out 100%, 30 seconds would seem like a lifetime.  Don't get me wrong.  What you are doing is great interval training and is very good for your health, but I don't think it can be called HIIT at this point.

Original Post by safina1:

I don't really know how to determine my max efforts. any suggestions?  

If you could not possibly go any faster, you're at your max effort.  If you could go faster, you're not at your max effort.

thanks for the replies. I am just wondering if a VO2 Max test will help to determine my max efforts??

Dakatz, I think you are right. I will try to adjust the speed and push harder for a 30 sec then recover for 1-2 m. I am just out  of shape these days.

Out of shape?  Yeah, i can relate.  But don't worry.  Just go as hard as you can for 30 seconds.  It doesn't matter if your max is 8 mph or 12 mph.  If it is the absolute hardest you can go, then that is great. 

As for determining your maximum, just try out different speeds.  If you feel like you can hold it for a minute, then it is too slow.  If you feel like you will never make it to 30 seconds, then it is too fast.  Don't think about it so much.  Just go out there and try some different speeds and I'm sure you will find the right one. 

thanks. Yes, I am very out of shape :) I am still waiting for answers to my other questions. like the effects of doing  HIIT and weight training in one day, what can VO2 Max test in this regards and the total duration for the entire HIIT session. 

 Waiting for Melkor to get me some answers:)

Right now, my dice are trying to kill me - I'm doing  The strong and ripped program  that CalorieCountingMe suggested a while back, and I rolled HIIT as my finisher for the second time in a row.

 Yes, it's entirely possible to do HIIT on days you lift, you don't want to do it more than 2-3 times a week though since it's as intense and CNS-draining as strength training. It's the fastest way to see improvements in your cardio shape and running speed as your body adapts faster and more thoroughly to intense challenges and high levels of effort, so if your personal goal is to improve your running speed along with your cardio shape, you're on the right track. And it will burn a whole lot of fat while you're at it - as long as you don't overdo it and push yourself harder than your body can recover from.

 I wouldn't combine HIIT with squats, for example - or not very often at any rate. And the highly regimented HIIT model might not be optimal for you - I think I like the Fartlek-style interval training better because you get roughly the same benefits. You're doing high intensity intervals, but you're doing it in a natural rythm instead of by the clock - which is a better way for most people.

 If you're a competitive athlete on a training schedule for the olympics you need the rigorous model to make sure your shape is peaking at the right moment, but for the rest of us I think the less regimented models that are more play-centered are better.

 Duration matters only in the context of calories burned - all other things being equal 30 minutes of expending x calories per minute will beat 20 minutes expending x calories per minute. But that's where it breaks down, because 20 minutes of HIIT will beat 30 minutes of steady state cardio - HIIT burns more calories, and more fat grams than steady state cardio does.

 It's all about intensity of effort and calorie balance - work as hard as you can, for as long as you can, and try to improve on what you did last time, and you're doing it right. All the rest is details, really - as long as you're doing your best on the macro-level no-one can ask or demand more from you.

 As for VoMax tests, I like the Rockport Walk Test better than the alternatives - it's the test that's statistically closest to a metabolic performance test in a sports science lab.

oh thanks, Melkor :)) I am tagging that one so I can get to your answers when I need to.

I love reading CalorieCountingMe's replies. She supports lifting very heavy weights so I decided to do that and increase the weights tonight and actually my body is just killing me.

I would love to give that strength program a try :) but I have an issue. My lower body is much more stronger than my upper body. Tonight, I did deadlifts 110 pounds 3 sets/12 reps but I couldn't handle the bar to do bench press.

I am going to follow the interval program that you suggested but I am just wondering if the strong and ripped program is right for me?

 Probably not yet - I've twice come close to throwing up while following it, and it took about 5 days for the DOMS from the first workout to go away; it's not a workout you want to start doing while deconditioned.

 I'd rather see you start with phase one of The New Rules of Lifting for Women or something equally sensible if you're doing a strength training program at all - your local library should have that book so you don't need to buy it, just borrow it for long enough to set up your own workout plan.

 Having stronger legs than upper body is completely normal - most women do. It's nothing to be too conerned about, as long as you're striving to improve on what you did last time you'll get to where you want to be in time.