HIIT - Should I or shouldn't I? Guidance please!

[staziaw]

Okay, for the past four weeks or more (my internal calendar has been acting up lately), I've been working out like a good girl. However . . .

NO MOVEMENT ON THE SCALE OR TAPE MEASURE.

None
Nada
Zip
Zilch

Depression!

So, I've been looking into switching things up. Seriously.

I'm doing a water fitness class on Tuesdays and Thursdays for an hour, which I love. I'm also doing 30 minutes of aqua jogging at least 3 times a week -- which I also love!

On Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, I've been doing 30 minutes on the bike and 15-30 minutes on the treadmill. I'm not talking about lollygagging, people -- I'm working the speed, the incline and the resistance like a fiend. I have the achy muscles to prove it! And, yes, I've been downing water like a drowning fish!

So . . . why no lose in pounds or inches? Grrrrrrrr . . .

Anyone have any advice? Would HIIT be a good option? How do you start? What do you do? What's the protocol? I've research this on the Internet, but I really want to hear from my fellow Atkineers.

I've been reluctant to do weight training, since I'm already really strong and deathly afraid of becoming too "built." Should I reconsider this stance? Would weight training help me out here? How much should I be doing, how often?

Good lord, I have a lot of questions!

Help. Help. Double help!!

I thank thee in advance for your wisdom and guidance.

Stacy

[ValidRouge]

Re: HIIT - Should I or shouldn't I? Guidance please!

Stacy, I saw this post yesterday and meant to answer it, but then I didn't get to it.

I apologize.

I'm in the same boat...I keep losing the same 4-6 lbs over and over again. It's frustrating to say the least.

Not2late told me to switch up my exercise and I've been trying to do that, but I haven't gotten any movement...well...I did after TOM, but only back down to where I'd been over a month ago. Today, back up again. Grrr! Anyway, the theory is that our muscles get very efficient at doing the same movements over and over and over. When they get efficient at it, then it doesn't take as much energy (calories) to make those movements anymore. Soooooo, changing up the routines is the only thing to do that. HIIT is great because you really put the pressure on your muscle groups. It's what I'm trying to experiment with....but it's been so danged HOT here that I'm lucky to even get in a run.

I guess, basically, I don't have any concrete answer for you. But, misery loves company right? LOL

Umm, I *LOVE* weight training. I'm still morphing my body even though I'm not losing pounds...so I think that is due to the weight training. However, when I go up in weights or change the routine around, I'll gain weight (like I did last night--I went up to 20 lb weights for my arms AND I added tricep dips to my routine--today I'm up a pound). So, while I would absolutely recommend weight training...it probably would NOT make the scale go down--it would most likely go up. Oh, and getting 'bulked up' is a myth. At least for women. I lift as heavy as I can....I don't use the girlie weights...I lift the same weights as the big boys (although not as much as they do) and I'm not bulky at all. I'm loving my sexy muscles.

[ValidRouge]

Re: HIIT - Should I or shouldn't I? Guidance please!

Oh, Oh, Oh.

How much are you eating???? I had my Resting Metabolic Rate tested and I wasn't eating ENOUGH. According to my RMR, I need to consume between 1700 and 2100 calories per day for weight loss.

If you are exercising like a mad woman and not eating enough calories, you could be going into that starvation mode where your body is holding onto fat like crazy.

[ConfusedAndNeedHelp]

Re: HIIT - Should I or shouldn't I? Guidance please!

You loooook great!!!

[ValidRouge]

Re: HIIT - Should I or shouldn't I? Guidance please!

This was a PM I saved from last year when I was just getting into lifting and HIIT.
I probably should go fix all the typos....but I'm not that motivated. Read from the bottom up. LOL

NOPE I'd ignore it cause when you lift heavy reps you are doing anerobic work and the heart rates can some times freak folk out.

You will be amazed at how fast you will elevate your speed for the recovery and for the max rates. may recovery is 4.5 MPH now! when I started 2MPH was tongue hanging out sweat pouring off.

you will be amazed at how much we will see changes cause you see the microscopic change daily and don't realize how much the total is

Ok, that's what I've been doing while waiting for your answer...otherwise I would be spending my whole routine up in the max rate. I'm liking the workout, it certainly mixes things up and makes the time seem to go faster than just chugging along. I'm amazed at how slow I have to go to be in my aerobic range!

The heart rate monitor I got is pretty cool too. It has all sorts of programs and stuff I'm still trying to figure out. But it keeps track daily, weekly and total of all my workouts with time, calories burned etc.

Do you think I should be monitoring the heart rate during my lifting routines too? I notice that my heart rate gets up doing that too...I thought about doing it because at least then it would count those calories burned as well.

I really appreciate your advice. I'm going to be posting some pics this weekend because I'm at the end of six weeks of my "beginner" lifting routines. I can see the difference, I just hope it shows up in the pictures too.

sorry I've been off the computer for a few days.

When you are a beginner you will be doing 1 min high and several min recovery. you want to get all the way back down to the fat burning level and stay there for a min

so say it takes 3 min to get there now then you will do 1 min all out and then 3 min to recovery 1 min in recovery and then back up to 1 min max. nobody starts out at full speed. as long s you have the speed set for where your max will occur it doesn't matter right now that you need 15-20 sec to get there but you might want to take it up a notch so it takes 10 sec to get there and then finish the min. As you get in bettter shape you will recover faster and get there faster. Just do as many as you can and rtremember to always cool down if your last one was an intense one.

Good morning 2big! I got my Heart rate monitor and this morning I did my first workout on it. I could only get 30 minutes (else be late for work) but I'm going to do some more tonight. I have a couple questions.

1) Once I get my heart rate up, and I feel like I'm going to die, and my tongue is hanging out of my head...and sweating like a pig LOL . It takes me almost 2 minutes for my heart rate to recover to the high end of the range (145 bpm). Do I then start counting my one minute at that rate, or do I just get it down and then immediately take it back up for one minute?

2) It takes me about 10-15 seconds to get my heart rate up to about 165 bpm...do I count my full minute from the point it gets to that rate or when I actually start to raise it??

Otherwise I'll be exercising all day to get 20 alternations in. 2 minutes warm up, 1:15 max rate, 3:00 aerobic rate, 1:15 max rate, 3:00 aerobic rate

Hopefully my question makes sense. And thanks for your help.

Depending on how much money you want to spend you can get either a beltless one or a belted one. Tom had a link that supported ADBB if you bought it there but the link doesn't work any more. Polaris is a very good brand. I think TTDRIVER had a link for a place to get them cheaper. I made a few changes in red but you got it. the heart rate thingie is 220 minus yur age is supposed to be max ( you can actually go more so don't think you are going to explode your heart if you do) then fat burning is that number times .6 or 60% of your max normal cardio is 70-80 percent.you are going to find as you get in better shape your heart will adjest and you will need to change the resistance on your machine for your target rates. I know in Nov 2003 I was motoring along at 7.5 MPH flat and 5.0 and the fellow on the treadmill next to me ask what I was doing and I said HIIT and he said nope and ask me if I wanted to know why he knew I wasn't. Of course I said yes and he said cause you are nose breathing the whole workout. LOL so I slowed the speed and added mega incline and then was tongue hanging holding the rails after the high part and took over a min to recover. pay attention to your monitor so you don't waste your time thinking you are HIITing when you are just areobic working out!

Thanks 2big! Can you recommend a good heart rate monitor? I'd been contemplating getting one. There is a pulse monitor on my ellip, but I haven't been able to get it to work...

Let me repeat back to you so you can see if I'm understanding you right. Once I get the Heart Rate monitor, it should have the instructions which will tell me how to find my fat burning rate and my max rate. Once I find those, then I will warm up, then go for one minute at a resistance/speed that increases my heart rate to my max level. Then I go down to a resistance/speed (as fast as possible tp get to the fatburning level )amd when (until) my heart rate recovers to the fat burning level. I do one min in the fatburning rate Then I do one minute back up to max heart rate. I want to do at least 20 alternations in each workout. Is this right? yep

Good morning 2big. I was wondering if you could talk to me a little bit about what you do for HIIT and how I could work it into my elliptical workout?

you can do HIIT on any aerobic workout style.

If you have ever seen the Gatorade commercial where all the jocks have nose and mouth tubes on and are running on a treadmill that machine was measuring their oxygen usage. Since most of us don't have that equipment we use heart rate monitors to do HIIT which it high intensity interval training.
you need to know your fat burning range and your max level.

since you know your conditioning better then I do what you need to do is select a setting that is your fat burning range and use that as your low intensity recovery setting. you will need to experiment a little and find the setting that will cause your heart to work at your max number for me it is incline 7.5 MPH 7 right now but when I started it was flat 6MPH.
You warm up just like regular cardio thenyou increase to your max and go for one full min with your heart at the max which will equate to your V02 max you will burn all the glucose stores in your muscles that are working during this time doing anerobic work. then you immediately slow down and do a min in recovery heart rate. as you get in condition it willtake you more then one min to get your heart rate down there so don't worry if you need 2 or 3 min to recover. During this time your body has said I need fuel!!! and fat is being moved quickly to be burned and the glucgenesis is working to make more sugar ( that happens every time we exercise even atkins fueling).

now as the glucose supply in the muscles are replenished the insulin triggers should be turning on but cause you are about to burn off all that glucose made in the muscles and the liver it will switch back fast to burn more fat! If you do the high part too long the organ reserves of glucose will be released too and that is bad for fat burning. so it is important to only do 1 min each time at that high rate. your tongue will be hanging out and you may need to hang on as you start your recovery part but that is good cause it means you got to the max level.

alternate recovery/max start out with 20 of each and as you gt better shape you can increase it a few more min each week until you have a full workout.

This was shown to burn more fat working out then either fatburning workout or high intense workout so have fun doing it on your eliptical.

[staziaw]

Re: HIIT - Should I or shouldn't I? Guidance please!

Hey Joy . . . nice to see you! Your pictures look great . . . and I love the one with your DH's hand on your a@@!! LOL.

Thanks for all the information. I really miss having 2Big around -- she was always full of information . . . you fill that role now!

Okay, so 220 minus my age (42) is 178. Multiplied by .6 is 106.8. What the heck does all of this mean? What's fat burning, what's my max? I'm a mathematical moron!

Where did you get your heart monitor? The heart monitors on the equipment at the gym are fairly unreliable.

Good Lord, what am I getting into?!

Foodwise, I have been crap. Eating crap. Feeling crap. Thinking crap. Lots of emotional stuff going on and I'm eating . . . everything . . . everywhere . . . all the time. I trying to get back on track. I know, I know, that's BS. "Trying" has nothing to do with it. I need/want to just do it.

I have to start not carrying money or a debit card. I find it too easy to go out to lunch and get something dastardly. I start my day with the best intentions, and then go into the poopchute midday. Cripes.

Joy, you have done so well, and look amazing! We aren't that far apart physically -- I just want to look as good as you!

Thanks again for responding. Much appreciation.

Stacy

[ValidRouge]

Re: HIIT - Should I or shouldn't I? Guidance please!

Polar brand make the best heart rate monitors. Walmart and Target both carry the simple versions. Sports Authority and stores like that carry more sophistocated models. The one I have probably has more functionality than I really need.

Basically 220 - 42 = 178 This is the number you don't want your heart rate to go too much over. This is what is considered to be your max heart rate.
The "fat burning mode" is 60% of your max. So, 178 * .60 = 106
The "cardio" range is 70-80% of your max. So 125 -142

So, you want your HIIT one minute to be between your 80% and your max 142-178. Then you want your recovery minute(s) to be between 106-125.

Here is Polar's website for how to calculate this stuff manually
http://www.polarusa.com/targetzone/default.asp It talks about intervals too.

I have the Polar F11. The F6 would do everything (and more) than what I use on my F11. Target Sells the Fs1. This is just fine too. Only you'll have to keep an eye on it for your one minute. Maybe get a cheap stop watch to use as well...Oh wait, you can use the timer on the machine. That would work. Just know your heart rate zones before you start your workout. Sometimes when my brain is oxygen depleted I can't count or tell time or anything. That's why I like my F11--it knows what my target zones are and it beeps when my heart rate is too low or too high.

Now, keep in mind that I STILL cannot SPRINT for a full minute. I do 30 seconds or 45 seconds or whatever I can and then use the rest of the minute bringing my heart rate down. Plus however many minutes it takes to get the heart rate back down to the low zone. Then do one full minute AT that heart rate before taking it back up again.

I'm ALL about working out efficiently. I don't want to be like a gerbil on a wheel for hours and hours.

So, weight training and HIIT are a great combination.

So, what can we do to get your eating back on track? The weekend is coming up. Can you prepare a full week's meals ahead of time and make sure to take them with you? That would be a lot easier than even the debit card. Plus, instead of trying to see the forrest...just focus on one stinkin tree right now. Pick a moment and say I'm going to get through today. Just today. Worry about tomorrow, tomorrow.

[staziaw]

Re: HIIT - Should I or shouldn't I? Guidance please!

Thanks for all the words of wisdom, pumpkin.

I starting clean today. Tomorrow will be challenging because I have school all day and then a bachelorette party, but I think I can make it! I wasn't planning on drinking anyway, so that's not me worry. It's staying away from the nibbly stuff that is challenging. But today . . . the goal is to be clean. Sunday, I'll cook. Maybe LC lasagna (which I love), hard boil some eggs, make LC cheesecake squares . . . whatever I have do to have food ready and on hand for next week.

Drinking water with lemon - lots of it -- hoping the puffy puffiness will go away.

I will have to look at heart monitors! I want one! I did a modified sort of HIIT last night in the pool. I was early for my water fitness class and the water was COLD! So I jogged in place for 30 seconds, then ran for 30, and so on. 30 seconds is a freakin' long time when you're watching the clock! During the running part, I definitely was out of breath. So, I did that for about 5 minutes. That counts, right? I hope so!

Tonight, I'll do 20 minutes HIIT on the treadmill and a circuit on the weight machines. I'll keep track of everything and see where that gets me!

Thanks again for all your help. I need to get back to doing my Journal Stats. I've been MIA for a while now. Oh dear . . .

XO
Stacy

[ValidRouge]

Re: HIIT - Should I or shouldn't I? Guidance please!

That's great news, Stacy. Just get through one day at a time and on Sunday, you can prepare lots of stuff ahead of time.

There's a thread in the STAC every day where we check in on each other. Start reporting in with us.

There's another one in there called "Check out these bad boys...Cheese Danish" that are FABULOUS. You should make up a batch of those for next week. Completely induction legal.