Thread: HIIT on empty stomach?

Originally Posted by C0ck D1es3l

Ok, currently I am doing a 6 day a week training split I do that for the next 4 weeks before I switch but mon-thurs I work all day then train in the evening and I want to incorporate HIIT into my training so I plan to do it on Fri, sat, and sun.

Why not switch your training now? There is no need to train 6 days a week.

I would also re-consider doing 3 days of HIIT in a row - especially if one of those days is the day you do not train - you should try to have at least one day rest/week.

I figure I will get up first thing in the morning and do this but I have been reading to do it on an empty stomach and then wait an hour to eat afterwards. Is this alright?

I wouldn't - there is no proven benefits to doing HIIT on an empty stomach. Infact, it can actually be detrimental. You may want to read this thread from another board. It goes through some of the research regarding fasted cardio.

Eating something will allow you to perform the cardio better/more effectively and will not have an impact of the calorie expenditure - which is what counts at the end of the day.

Will I risk losing muscle by doing this I know in the morning your body is craving nutrients. Also, if I do HIIT in the morning and then train in the early to mid afternoon will this be ok?

"Muscle loss" will depend on many things (eg: the intensity of the cardio session, your leanness/fatness, the length of cardio, how aerobically/anaerobically fit you are, endogenous hormone levels such as cortisol, GH, testosterone, thyroid hormone) so it is hard to say... However, I will say that many people place much more emphesis on this "muscle loss" issue than what is necessary.

But doing HIIT in the morning and training mid-afteroon would be fine. Although I would be cautious about doing HIIT the morning of lower body training...

Thanks I may throw hiit out on Fridays becuase it is my lower body day.

Ok its Friday I decided to do HIIT anyways I was to anxious from all the rumors not to do it. I woke up and had breakfast I had flax seed pancakes made with rasberries and strawberries with sugar free low cal syrup and 16 oz skim milk waited an hour and a half and did hit. How does this look? I went to a roller hokey ring and jogged up, back, up, back then sprinted up, back, up, back and did each one 3 times then I walked 2 laps around the whole ring then jogged 1 lap around then sprinted one lap around then I walked home about a block away. I pushed my self to exhaustion and the whole thing only lasted 20 minutes. I havn't felt that tired and out of shape but yet so awake and alarmed since high school football practice. But I deffinetly think you guys blow HIIT way out of proportion I deffinetly feel like I can go do my leg training in a couple of hours I have plenty of stamina.

Treat your HIIT session as a workout itself, the only thing i do on HIIT day is 5- maybe 10 mins of abs, then do HIIT, cuz it is too intense to do with lifting.