Do You HIIT? Here's How!
There's no doubt about it, High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) burns serious calories. And compared steady state cardio, HIIT can really help you shed fat. But that's not all! There are many reasons to do HIIT and that's what this article is all about. If you want to learn about when to use HIIT and how to do HIIT effectively for different goals, then read on.
When most people think of HIIT, they think of losing fat. And indeed, HIIT can be very effective for losing fat. But I also use HIIT when gaining weight (i.e. bulking). What?!? HIIT for gaining weight?!? Yes, you read that right.
HIIT for Bulking
When I bulk, I reverse diet to increase my metabolism and gradually gain weight to minimize fat fat while trying to build muscle. And I use HIIT to (1) incorporate a healthy amount of cardiovascular exercise into my weekly training and (2) serve as a starting point when I begin cutting fat. How do I do it?
Whenever I do HIIT, I aim for a short duration workout with spurts of intensity injected in (hence the name, high intensity). So, what is short duration? I shoot for around 20-40min. When bulking, I will do 3-4min cycles, consisting of 5-6 intervals.
Example: 5 4min cycles, 30second intervals
5min warmup
30sec sprint
3min 30sec recovery
...
30sec sprint
5min cooldown
Total time: 25min 30sec
HIIT will burn additional calories. That's why it's important to be consistent about doing HIIT on a bulk, if you are going to do it. Most people will still be able to gain weight even with a little HIIT mixed into a weekly bulking routine. And over time, it just becomes part of your net caloric expenditure for the week.
How to do HIIT
I execute warmups, cooldowns, and recovery periods at moderate intensity. Sprints, on the other hand are done at 100%. When people ask me how hard they should go on sprints I typically tell them that they should feel like they gave everything they had and they were ready roll over and die after every interval. In other words, hold nothing back.
Another common question is what type of cardio should be done using HIIT. And the answer to that question is very subjective. Sprinting, cycling, stationary bike, and the elliptical machine all work well. Basically, you just want something that you can recover from easily and that you can use to almost instantly crank up the intensity. Personally, I use a stationary spinning bike. The manual resistance dial lets me turn up the intensity and really grind. And the lower impact exercise doesn't hurt my back.
HIIT for Cutting
When I cut fat, I don't change too much when it comes to HIIT. Essentially, I just decrease the recovery period. This is a trick I learned during contest prep last year. And decreasing the recovery period allows me to increase the overall intensity (and the calories burned) over the same duration. Here's an example.
Example: 6 3min cycles, 30second intervals
5min warmup
30sec sprint
2min 30sec recovery
...
30sec sprint
5min cooldown
Total time: 28min 30sec
It's important to note, that the above example is just an example. You could decrease the recovery period a bit more. However, as a general rule, I keep my recovery periods at least 5 times as long as my sprints. This allows me to adequately recover between intervals so that I can keep the intensity as high as it will go.
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