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HIIT - How much rest is too much?
I recently snagged an Airdyne for $75 on Craigslist and I'm planning on doing two HIIT sessions a week. Main goal is to drop some body fat.
After doing a forum search and reading some threads it seems like a common mistake with HIIT is to try to do a 1:1 or 1:2 work/rest ratio when in fact that eliminates the "high intensity" part of the equation. I noticed you mentioned that it's better to err on the side of more rest to enable maximal intensity during the work portion. I've only done two sessions so far, the first one was 20 second sprints with 1:30 rest periods. I only got four rounds before I was forced to lay down on the floor and contemplate my own mortality for several minutes. Tonight I increased the rest periods to 2:00, and I was able to get five rounds but even then the last sprint was significantly slower and even on the earlier ones I could feel myself slowing down about halfway through.
So is there a maximum time one should rest between sprints when doing HIIT for the goal of increasing BMR/losing fat? Would it be better to rest until fully or nearly fully recovered before starting the next sprint? For me, at this point, that would be a lot longer than 2 minutes. Aside from the long workout that would result, would it be better to do something extreme like 10 minutes of rest between sprints if it meant that you could do them at a higher intensity and get more of them done? Or is it important to not be fully recovered to stress the body's energy systems in the proper manner?
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Honestly, the answer to your query requires a lot more information to answer. I think the 1:4-1:6 work to rest ratio is the sweet spot, but I could make an argument for much much greater rest periods if intensity is looking to be maximized. It really depends on overall goals and "increasing BMR/losing fat" isn't enough info. How much conditioning does the person have, how much training are they currently doing, what is their recovery capacity, etc.
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I'm 31, 5'11", and my weight is currently fluctuating around 245ish. Just finished a run of HLM that got my squat (highbar) up to 405x5 but I also gained some fat doing it. Other recent PR's are 555x3 deadlift, 252.5x3 bench, and 190x3 press. BF% is in the high 20's I would estimate. I would like to get it down to the 15-20% range while maintaining as much strength as possible. Eating 3000 cal/day right now, getting 8 hours of sleep a night. Outside of training I'm mostly sedentary, working from home at my computer the majority of the time. Just started a 5/3/1 program for a change of pace so I'm lifting 4 times a week, MTTF, and and planning on doing HIIT on the airdyne twice a week on Monday and Friday and doing a 17 mile bike ride on Wednesday. As far as current level of conditioning, I guess it's pretty low since I can only do 5 intervals with a 1:6 ratio. Not sure how else to gauge that.Originally Posted by Jordan Feigenbaum
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Is "enough rest to maintain intensity (based on average watts)" a good starting point? For me that is 15'':2' for 7 rounds.
✓ Member
I think considering all of this, your squat is a bit undertrained compared to your deadlift and you could use significantly more pressing volume- though you're at a great starting point for sure! Given all this, I'd probably start with either 1 HIIT and 1 long ride/steady state session per week vs. 2 HIIT and 1 steady state sessions.
That's a good proxy, yes.
✓ Member
I think considering all of this, your squat is a bit undertrained compared to your deadlift and you could use significantly more pressing volume- though you're at a great starting point for sure! Given all this, I'd probably start with either 1 HIIT and 1 long ride/steady state session per week vs. 2 HIIT and 1 steady state sessions.
That's a good proxy, yes.
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How about for a 53 yr old, 5'10", 215#, BF 23%? I'm currently trying to lean up and would like to shoot for 15-18%, no hurry. Been fighting a knee injury so trying to make my way back up on Squat (currently 185), DL's 290, Bench 220, Press 120 (shldr issue). Approx 3000 cals, depending on craft beer intake. Not training for anything other than slow & steady strength increases.
I also have an Airdyne and was doing a 1:2-1:3 ratio... didn't know any better. Also, how long of an overall session with a 3 min warm-up and 3 min cool-down would you recommend for a Geez? Thanks Jordan!
✓ Member
I'd focus more on lifting than cardio for your demographic. Low intensity stuff is probably where I'd start you if you can't tolerate more weight training (e.g. a novice) and don't have a good base of conditioning (e.g. not been involved in an endurance related activity consistently over the years).
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Currently running LP again, haven't done anything cardio-wise outside of once or twice per wk Airdyne hiit. So when you say low intensity stuff are you saying no hiit at all? I thought this would be my best bet for getting a little more lean. By low intensity do you mean just easy Airdyne rides and/or walking?
✓ Member
I just think that it's highly likely HIIT type training is too much stress for you (just general demographic stereotyping) since you're on LP so my cardio recommendations would be to maybe to some low intensity stuff IF you really, really need it. I kind of doubt you really, really need it unless you're extremely sedentary outside of training/work life.
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