HIIT Training Timings & frequency

[WelshWarrior]

When leaning out I've always done 20mins cardio at 70-80% MHR immediately after weights on training days and 45minutes first thing in the am before food on off days.

I want to incorporate HIIT training for a while but I am concerned about possible muscle loss.

Will I be okay to switch to HIIT for half of my cardio (say 3 times per week)?

Will I need to avoid HIIT pwo or first thing in the am to avoid muscle loss?

Appreciate your input folks.

[abbot138]

I might take a little heat for this, but i have done HIIT first thing in the morning and had good results (i dont do it anymore bc it kills my knees). Just make sure you get 10-15g BCAA's 30 mintues before you get on, keep it at 20min, and get some food in ya quick as soon as you're done. 3 times a week is what i did. Its a nice break from the monotony of steady-state cardio and it's pretty intense, it'll get ya goin in the morning. If your still really freaked out about muscle loss, then doing it PWO would be fine.

[WelshWarrior]

So is it less likely to consume muscle PWO than first thing?

[abbot138]

I would have to say yes. It looks like your already pretty lean, so if your more concerned with the protection of LBM I would go with PWO.

[WelshWarrior]

Cool thanks, Abbot.

Anyone else care to chime in with their opinions?

[M302_Imola]

I believe that mixing up your cardio, on top of clean diet, is the key. I have just started to incorporate HIIT into my pwo cardio sessions. I will be doing 2, 30 minute 60% MHR steady state cardio sessions as well as 2, HIIT cardio sessions per week. HIIT cardio in the am seems like a bad idea, in the sense of catabolism. I am not sure that BCAA's and a protein shake prior to HIIT in the am would help either. Tough to say cause everybody is different and respond to different stimulus.

[gettingBIGGERfast]

apparently the main benefit of HIIT is that is elevates your BMI for the next 24 hours, similarly to how weight lifting does.

Being that this is the case, it seems to me that the best days to do HIIT would be on non-workout days around the time you normally lift. That way you always have that elevated metabolism.

I'm sure doing HIIT PWO is still good, but since the increase in BMI from HIIT is not near what it is from resistance training, it seems like you wouldn't be optimizing the effects.

I haven't every really done HIIT for any extended period of time so my opinion is purely speculative, but this is how I plan on running my next cutting session.

HIIT on non-workout days, and normal slow cardio pwo.

[WelshWarrior]

OK now presuming I'm doing 45 mins cardio on a non-workout day in the evening is 45 mins HIIT too much? I'm finding it so much more fun than 70% MHR. Currently I'll do 25 mins HIIT then 20mins 70% on these days.

Appreciate peeps input.

[soulstealer]

I'm planning on take a shake during my workout with waxymaze starch and dextrose/whey and doing HIIT PWO once a week so my body has fuel for the workout real HIIT burns so much glycogen you need a low GI carb beforehand IMO..

[BIGMAC250]

from what i have read and if i read correctly, HIIT cardio actually helps to not lose muscle while doing cardio....and boosts your resting metabolism....cause you get your heart rate up and then it goes down by taking it easy...... 1:1 ratio thats how i do it except i do it after my lifing but i think im goin to start to do it in the morning to speed things up and you dont have to do it as long......like 15 mins of HIIT is = to 30 mins of regular cardio with more fat loss and little to no loss in muscle.....im gonna look it up again and double check my info and explain it a lil bit better