HIIT for fitness?



RocketRodGuy

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May 16, 2006
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So, in theory I understand what HIIT is. However, in practice, I don't really understand it. Does anyone have any suggestions on what I can do on a bike at the gym to do this? I've heard it's great to lose fat and raise endurance. Right now, as the bike I acquired needs a bit more in repairs than I can afford, and winter rapidly approaching, the gym bike is readily available. If anyone can offer any suggestions, I would greatly appreciate it. I'm trying to get myself back into cycling condition by next August (I know, it's a ways away, but I'm 10 years out of it, and weigh a lot more than I did then, too) to try to do the Portland Bridge Pedal.

Thanks!
 
RocketRodGuy said:
So, in theory I understand what HIIT is. However, in practice, I don't really understand it. Does anyone have any suggestions on what I can do on a bike at the gym to do this? ...
Well, "High Intensity" the basis of HIIT is subject to a lot of different definitions. Some folks take it to mean gut buster short anaerobic intervals, some mean 5 minute VO2 Max intervals and some are referring to longer Threshold repeats aimed at improving core aerobic fitness. Count me in that last camp. I'd focus on 10 minute to half hour blocks of steady intensity. Hard enough to make you breathe deep and steadily but not so hard you can't take a swig from your water bottle or your breathing gets out of control and ragged. Exactly what to dial in the exercise bike depends on where you are with your own fitness. I did a lot of that sort of work last winter when I was travelling for business and it's a great way to build aerobic fitness indoors.

I don't bother with any of the fancy "fat burn" or "hill climb" or "random" programs on the exercise bikes, I just select "manual workout" and dial in the power (wattage) that I want to work. Last winter I started around 220 watts and by spring I was regularly riding those 20 minute efforts at 280 watts and it just kept climbing from there when I got outdoors on my bike and showed up at spring races. Check out this online case study to get some motivation and insight into this kind of indoor training: http://www.cyclingforums.com/t314849.html
or this one for an update: http://www.cyclingforums.com/t397725.html

Good luck,
Dave
 
Thanks for the quick reply. I suppose the biggest question I have is this. Is it 5 minutes of pace, and 1 minute of sprinting, 30 minutes of pace with 5 minutes of sprinting, or just 30 solid minutes of busting butt? That I think is what I don't understand the most. How do you find your FT, and then how do you utilize said FT to get to the fat burning stage?


Thanks again to all involved to answer.
 
RocketRodGuy said:
.... or just 30 solid minutes of busting butt?
Yep, that's pretty close. But it's not necessarily busting butt. It's hard steady work that you can sustain for 10 to 30 or more minutes at a shot, it isn't easy mindless spinning but it shoudln't be impossible to finish either. A typical workout a lot of folks like to do is 2x20 minute repeats at 90-105% of your best one hour pace. IOW FTP is defined as the best pace you could hold for about an hour on a well rested and highly motivated day. For folks that race that translates to your best pace for a 25 mile time trial.

You can find your best pace by simple trial and error. Dial in say 150 watts on the exercise bike and see if you can hold it for 20 minutes. If you can, drop the wattage down a bit spin easy for a few minutes to relax mentally and physically then try another 20 minutes. If the first effort felt pretty easy then dial up the power to say 175 watts or the next level on your particular exercise bike and try to hold that for 20 minutes. At the beginning just two efforts is plenty after a few weeks or months try 3 efforts or 2 longer efforts on a given day. If both efforts felt fine then start your next day (might be the following day, might be a couple of days later depending on your weekly schedule) a bit higher in power. It won't take long to find the level that's hard but not impossible.

You don't have to do every workout right at your limit for the duration. It's o.k. to do some days right up at what you can maintain and back off maybe 10 to 25 watts another day. A typical midweek block I ran last winter was something like 2x20 at 95-100% FTP on Tuesday, 2x25 @ 90-95% Wednesday, and 2x30-45 @ 85-90% on Thursday. Then I'd rest Friday, do similar stuff or outdoor stuff(like ski skating) over the weekend take Monday off and repeat the pattern. Over the weeks the actual wattage numbers went up(that's the basic idea of training after all) but the percentages of my best effort stayed pretty much the same during winter base building.

...and then how do you utilize said FT to get to the fat burning stage?
You'll burn plenty of calories, both glycogen and fat doing these workouts. There is no magic zone for fat burning, you do burn a higher percentage of fat at lower intensities but you burn a higher total amount of fat at higher intensities and you increase your fitness faster at the higher intensities as well. And the big bonus comes as you get fitter and ride faster. Each time you increase your sustainable power and bump up the wattage on your exercise bike you burn more calories per hour. Sure you've got to replenish a part of those calories(the glycogen burned) to be able to workout again the next day but the net result is burning more fat in the same amount of time. I dropped 40 pounds on a plan like that last winter and entered the race season at a very competitive weight.

Good luck,
Dave
 
All year, I've done nothing but zone 1 riding with sprints thrown in all the time. I'm just about as fit (endurance wise) as I've ever been. I guess that could be called HIIT. But it's probably more like easy rides with some sprints.
 
I agree with Dave and Rapdaddyo. I use a spin bike at the gym during the week because of work time constraints. I started attending a spin class that is HIIT oriented with a lot of seated / standing intervals and as someone that was new to cycling it helped me bridge the gap from the slower club team to the faster team in less than one year. My body composition also change for the positive, but then the dynamics begin to change and my progress was starting to stall out on the road. I wasn't getting any better and I was still struggling on long climbs. (proving that most things will work when you are at the starting level)

I now sit in the spin class (to use the cadence music), but I do not follow the teacher. I do not have the luxury of power output on the gym spin bike and unfortunately at the moment have to go by perception, but after a warm up period I increase the tension to a point where my legs begin to burn and stay at that level. I also stay seated rather than stand when the teacher directs so that I maintain a constant load. I also find most of the time after a few minutes of burning it will disipate and I will again increase the tension more until my legs begin to burn again and will continue to do this as long as my cadence does not drop below 60. It is about a 45 minute effort and I can tell a significant difference on the road. Also I am consuming more calories and my body composition is still changing. I believe either method works for changing composition if the diet is appropriate, but I am finding that a constant sustained level of effort is working just a little bit better out on the road and my climbing ability is improving big time.

Disclaimer: I would rather be using power output readings, but perception is all I have at the moment.
 
Well, here's where I stand today. I did 1x20 and held 103watts with about 80-85 rpm. I had originally intended to do 30 miunutes, but my legs were buuuuuurning. =) All said and done, I don't have rubber-band leg, but I can tell I worked them today. Up to this point I had been doing lower tension levels (with a burn after a long period of time) and holding 90+rpm. It's kinda funny, I was used to seeing a 2 min/mile going on, and today it dropped to 4 min/mile. I don't know if this is heading in the right direction or not, I suppose only time will tell. And, now I really feel pathetic because I see all of you guys at 200+ watts, and my little piddly 103. LOL


Thanks again to all those who posted!
 
RocketRodGuy said:
.... I suppose only time will tell. And, now I really feel pathetic because I see all of you guys at 200+ watts, and my little piddly 103. LOL...
Don't be too hard on yourself, the important thing is that you got on the bike and made the effort. You also completed a 20 minute effort near your limit which takes some folks a few tries since it ends up harder than most realize in the first few easy minutes.

Exercise bikes are also all over the map in terms of power calibration. That's not necessarily a problem. If you use the same bike it's likely to be pretty repeatable from session to session. If you have to use other bikes or even other gyms while travelling then just tune into the effort that you can just manage 20 to 30 minutes. If the first effort feels too easy on a given bike you can bump up the level after four or five minutes(usually takes that long to know if the level you've chosen is good) and likewise you can drop down a notch late in the effort if you need to. Ideally you have well calibrated exercise bikes and you can just dial in the appropriate power for each session and each effort but either way it works as long as you keep your eye on the main goal.

That goal is to complete two or more 20 minute or longer efforts that get you up into steady deep breathing and focused effort. 10 minutes should be your absolute minimum if you struggle at this point in your training and longer is better. After a few months you can start working other systems like VO2 Max but for now focus on your core aerobic fitness with long repeats at or slightly below your best pace for the time. Remember it's cool to follow a day like you just had with a day where you bump down one wattage level on the bike and hold the efforts a bit longer. You definitely don't have to push right up to your limit every time you train.

Keep us posted,
Dave
 
You say two efforts like I did before, e.g. 2x20. What do I do between them? Lift weights, a "cool down" session, or walk away, and come back later in the day? I suppose a better title for this thread would have been "Please walk the newbie through what HIIT is?" lol

Thanks again for the help, Dave, I appreciate it.


daveryanwyoming said:
Don't be too hard on yourself, the important thing is that you got on the bike and made the effort. You also completed a 20 minute effort near your limit which takes some folks a few tries since it ends up harder than most realize in the first few easy minutes.

Exercise bikes are also all over the map in terms of power calibration. That's not necessarily a problem. If you use the same bike it's likely to be pretty repeatable from session to session. If you have to use other bikes or even other gyms while travelling then just tune into the effort that you can just manage 20 to 30 minutes. If the first effort feels too easy on a given bike you can bump up the level after four or five minutes(usually takes that long to know if the level you've chosen is good) and likewise you can drop down a notch late in the effort if you need to. Ideally you have well calibrated exercise bikes and you can just dial in the appropriate power for each session and each effort but either way it works as long as you keep your eye on the main goal.

That goal is to complete two or more 20 minute or longer efforts that get you up into steady deep breathing and focused effort. 10 minutes should be your absolute minimum if you struggle at this point in your training and longer is better. After a few months you can start working other systems like VO2 Max but for now focus on your core aerobic fitness with long repeats at or slightly below your best pace for the time. Remember it's cool to follow a day like you just had with a day where you bump down one wattage level on the bike and hold the efforts a bit longer. You definitely don't have to push right up to your limit every time you train.

Keep us posted,
Dave
 
RocketRodGuy said:
You say two efforts like I did before, e.g. 2x20. What do I do between them? Lift weights, a "cool down" session, or walk away, and come back later in the day? ....
I generally bump the power down a couple of levels and spin easily for four or five minutes while sipping water, sitting up and relaxing, mopping sweat with a towel etc. But as RapDaddyO pointed out a year or so ago, it's the time in level (those 20 minute efforts) that really counts. You could go home and have a cup of tea is how he put it if I recall correctly. When I'm working longer efforts like multiple 45 minute blocks(a bit lower power typically) or more than two 20 minute efforts I often get off the bike and stretch for a couple of minutes, get back on and spin a few and then start the next effort. You don't want to get too cold between efforts. Speaking of which, you want to have 5 to 10 minutes of steady easy to moderate spinning before your first effort as a warmup and after your final effort as a cooldown. Don't just jump on the bike and start hammering at threshold then jump off and go home. Your body will thank you for decent warmups and cooldowns.

-Dave
 
Thanks again, Dave. I was able to go in and duplicate it again this morning. I feel the burn while I'm riding, but I'm starting to lose the rubber-band legs during the day. I guess that's a step in the right direction. =)