HIIT Cardio

[Shawn "Future" Bellon]

Who has tried this? What types of cardio did you use? Pitfalls? How effective? Effects before and after leg days?

[mark mcgwire]

This cardio approach is what works best for me. I usually use the treadmill alternating between running hard (maybe 80-90%) and then a light jog for about 30 minutes.

Another variation I tried was running for maybe 1-2 minutes and then a fast walk for 1-2 minutes and then back running for another 1-2 minutes. Each time I run I increase the speed of the treadmill by .5 mph. I do this also for 30 minutes.

I don't believe I had any pitfalls....

Do cardio the day after legs also helped ease the pain from my workout the day before.

[ski]

I use it on the eliptical machine and have gotten great results.

On the day following leg day,I just walk on an inclined treadmill, as I think the intensity generated by HIIT would be detrimental.

I do legs on Monday after a day of rest on Sunday so it doesn`t affect mer there and I do no cardio on leg day.

this is at pre-contest BTW as I have done no cardio at all this off-season.

HIIT rules IMO .

[eric89]

I havew tried it, but my legs end up hurting all the time and leg progress didn't budge. But thats me. I prefer a moderate pace

[slide]

When I do cardio (rare) I do HIIT. Typically on the cross-trainer and I like to do it after leg day as it seems to get the blood flowing in there and help a little with pain. But maybe thats mental for me?

-slide

[lionel]

Who has tried this? What types of cardio did you use? Pitfalls? How effective? Effects before and after leg days?

Future.. another option would be racing up the stairs.. aim for no. of flights that you'd wanna complete in say 30-60s and go.. take the lift down, get your rest and start again

I feel this helps my quads recover from a previous workout from all those blood that rush into the legs during stair climbing.. aids in recovery especially when i'm leaving out the eccentric portion

[Creator_11]

I did it for a year. It worked pretty good but cut way to much into my recovery and I saw some of my lifts start to stagger, so after time I dropped the HITT cardio and started just doing 30-45min at 65-70% hear rate, and been doing it ever since.

Everyones different, I say try it for a few weeks, but pay close attension to your logs and review them, and see if its right for u.

[ncsports]

i do it on the bike as i can speed up and slow down faster than on a treadmill.

i love doing HIIT and i have found no pitfalls other than doing it too hard the day before legs.

[Sparky]

I did HIIT cardio for about 2 years straight and saw great results in terms of my cardiovascular health. I also found it great for fat burning. However, the HIIT cardio does take a toll over time. I'd recommend mixing up how you do HIIT as much as possible.

1) Treadmill - 0 Incline/vary speed, vary incline/constant speed
2) Stationary Bike - vary speed or vary resistance (I like to stay at 90-100 RPMs and vary the resistance)
3) Elliptical Trainer - vary speed or resistance
4) Stair machine - vary speed

I would not do HIIT day in and day out. I think a fat burning range for 30-45 minutes is a nice alternative, especially around leg day.

Sparky

[Shawn "Future" Bellon]

Thanks guys. Sparky, you sealed the deal. HIIT it is. Thanks for your replies guys. Much appreciated.

[gravityfighter]

I do whats called Anerobic threshold training...
you take 220 minus your age times .65 (gives you your lower aerobic threshold)mines 114 bpm
then you take 220 minus your age times .85 (gives your anerobic threshold, when you become anerobic)mines 149

OK, now with a heart rate monitor on.. when you get to your lower limit raise the resistance(I use an elliptical trainer) till you hit your anerobic threshold then back down till you hit your lower threshold, then back up plus 5,then back down, then plus 10, then back down...you get the picture. I've been to plus 40 a few times man is it a bitch ...it actually trains your heart to recover faster...after a few months you'll really notice your recovery on your big lifts(squats/deads) GOOD LUCK!
GF

[nemo]

i find interval style cardio to be the best for cardiovascular health. i have been doing 2 half hour sessions a week on the elliptical machine of 2 minutes at a slower pace and lower resistance and 1 minute at a higher rate and resistance level with my heart rate averaging out at 80-85% overall. i do one more cardio session a week that is just 30-40 minutes of steady cardio at about 70% of my max heart rate. usually this session is for the day after i train legs

i have not noticed any strength decreases but overall i feel much healthier and my resting heart rate is coming down nicely. i would suggest mixing some of this type of cardio in to everyone for health reasons.

[In-Human]

F, It really matters how long you have had the muscle and its maturity if will come off or not and how low your BF is, I did it for over a year at almost 2 hours a day on the Step Mill, and I lost no muscle but the fat came off big time, sure I did have a hard time with keeping energy up, but it was very efficient. I know we are all different when it comes to how much and how long we do cardio so its a trial and error thing...

[pudge]

i've tried the HIIT route.....not what i expected...keeping it simple for me is what works. Precontest i do 30-40 min on the treadmill at an incline of 6 and at a speed of 3.0 walking in place...

i do that 6 times a week precontest and twice a day 4wks out... and the diet takes care of the rest...simple...but like most of u stated, everyone is different...im just simple lol..

pudge