Another question concerning HIIT training

[MXQdRacer]

Has anyone succesfully done, or in the midst of loosing weight doing HIIT on an elliptical machine? I have been doing it for about 2 weeks now along with some weight training. Just wondering if anyone has had any success with this... I am going normal for 30 seconds, and then flying about as fast as I can for 30.....intensity level is on 6.... Started off with 4 mintues, now I am up to 6 minutes.......Any input would be appreciated! Thanks!

 

[P-funk]

Who cares if anyone else is loosing weight doing it!! Are you loosing weight doing it?? That is the only important question you have to ask....."Is this working for me??" If not then change it. In my opinion cardio is cardio, doesn't matter which machine you use (bike, treadmill, stepper, elliptical etc..)

 

[MXQdRacer]

Well, I am doing something correct, I do know that much just by looking at my physique......As far as numbers, I am not losing any weight, and I assume that is due to lifting. Cardio may be cardoi, but I know when I start running my ass off, my strength decreases on everything....lol

 

[P-funk]

Don't worry about the scale. go by the mirror. I rarely ever weigh mylsef. HIIT sprints on a treadmill are great for losing fat, I highly recomend them.

 

[CowPimp]

Originally posted by P-funk
Don't worry about the scale. go by the mirror. I rarely ever weigh mylsef. HIIT sprints on a treadmill are great for losing fat, I highly recomend them.

I think combining the mirror and the scale works well. If you don't have additional fat and you gained 2 pounds, then you know it's muscle. Maybe it's just a mental thing with me, but it takes quite a bit of muscle gain before I actually notice it. However, if I gain a pound or two of fat I can easily tell.

 

[LAM]

Originally posted by MXQdRacer
Well, I am doing something correct, I do know that much just by looking at my physique......As far as numbers, I am not losing any weight, and I assume that is due to lifting. Cardio may be cardoi, but I know when I start running my ass off, my strength decreases on everything....lol

IMO...when dieting you should get your body fat checked periodically. that way you "know" for sure where the gains and/or losses are occuring and you can make changes to your diet and or training regimine...

 

[MXQdRacer]

I wish I could do them on the treadmill, but the speed increases and decreases way too slow on ours at the gym...it would take 30 seconds to go from 6.0-10.0...lol

as of the beginning of last month, I am going to have it checked once a month.....Is that too frequently? If I start doing it too frequently and don't notice a difference, that could be misleading or discouraging....

 

[P-funk]

When I do them on a treaddmill I just set the speed up at the fastest I am going to sprint (after warming up properly ofcourse) and then I do my 20sec srpint. Then I grab the side bars and lift myself up and jump off and stand with my feet on the side of the machine for 40sec. Once 40sec is up I grab the side bars and lower myself down and sprint. Problem solved.

 

[MXQdRacer]

SO, you sprint for 20, and stop for 40? How long do you do this for?? The one I was trying out was sprint for 30, jog for 30.....you start off at 4 minutes, and increase one minute per week up to 15 minutes...... I assume there are about a billion types of ways to do it though...

 

[LAM]

Originally posted by MXQdRacer
I wish I could do them on the treadmill, but the speed increases and decreases way too slow on ours at the gym...it would take 30 seconds to go from 6.0-10.0...lol

as of the beginning of last month, I am going to have it checked once a month.....Is that too frequently? If I start doing it too frequently and don't notice a difference, that could be misleading or discouraging....

use the semi-recumbant bike. it is perfect for doing HIIT indoors

 

[V Player]

Wow P-Funk! That is definately some ingenuity there my man! I had never thought of that. Personaly, Im not doing HIIT, but I know someone who does and he looks incredible! So I cant personaly may not be able to answer MXQ's question, but I think you did a good job of it by saying that ist doesnt matter if anyone else is having success. I believe this because as we all know, what works for you might not work for me. I'll be getting a treadmill soon and Im going to incorporate your method, P-funk. Big BUMP.

 

[MXQdRacer]

I don't mean to sound like a do do, but, what is a semi recumbant bike? Obviously some sort of stationary, but is that it? What is a good workout time LAM?

 

[CowPimp]

Originally posted by MXQdRacer
I wish I could do them on the treadmill, but the speed increases and decreases way too slow on ours at the gym...it would take 30 seconds to go from 6.0-10.0...lol

as of the beginning of last month, I am going to have it checked once a month.....Is that too frequently? If I start doing it too frequently and don't notice a difference, that could be misleading or discouraging....

Even so, you can still do it. If it slows down gradually that isn't going to hurt anything.

If you're cutting, then one month should be enough to notice a substantial difference. You can lose approximately one pound of fat per week without too much loss of lean body mass according to many on these forums. So, if you lose 4 pounds per check, or more if you don't care about losing a little bit of LBM, then you know you're doing good.

 

[LAM]

Originally posted by MXQdRacer
I don't mean to sound like a do do, but, what is a semi recumbant bike? Obviously some sort of stationary, but is that it? What is a good workout time LAM?

the semi-recumbant bike is the stationary bike where you sit down but you legs are out in front of you vs underneath...

personally for safety reasons I think they are the best for HIIT as you never had to worry about falling down or off a piece of equipment...

 

[MXQdRacer]

I haven't tailored a diet or workout for a "cutting" type phase or anything, I am just trying to lose a bit of a beer gut, and add some mass to my body..

Ok, LAM, thanks for the explanation....We have a few of those at my gym.....WHat would be a good workout on the bike though LAM? Like what I am doing now? 30seconds at normal pace, then 30seconds cranking???

 

[LAM]

Originally posted by MXQdRacer
I haven't tailored a diet or workout for a "cutting" type phase or anything, I am just trying to lose a bit of a beer gut, and add some mass to my body..

Ok, LAM, thanks for the explanation....We have a few of those at my gym.....WHat would be a good workout on the bike though LAM? Like what I am doing now? 30seconds at normal pace, then 30seconds cranking???

that is the basics of HIIT...check out the links that I have posted

here are 2 types of high-intenstiy cardio that will help you to burn some fat. Both of them work, see which one is best for you...

http://www.musclemedia.com/training/hiit.asp

http://www.ast-ss.com/articles/article.asp?AID=97

 

[MXQdRacer]

I am going to continue the 30second sprint/jog on the ellipitical until the beginning of May, check my body fat percentage, and see what it is....If it didn't move, I need to do something else.......It should of moved with almost a month of training, shouldn't it have? I am not sure how much I can expect, but at least something I Would think....