HIIT Head Count?

From  recent posts, it looks like we have at least 5 men doing HIIT. Wonder if I could get a count in?

Please post a line or two if you are doing HIIT on bike or track.

Also, If you don't mind, please tell us about your steps for safety and injury prevention.

Me? I started on the bike, then jumped to the track because it feels so out of control and powerful. Then got minor injuries, so went back to the bike and combinations of track and bike for a couple of weeks.

I had a stress test, which came out okay, have somewhat low blood pressure and low cholesterol and started being sure to warm up before HIIT. I also combine flat sprints with something that is rhythmically controlled and less likely to injure, such the bike, stairs or hills. About every third session will be an exercise like these which "control the wild legs" I get from flat ground sprinting. 

Dave 

 

sorry Dave, count me out! i just wanted to reply because i'm so amazed that you seem to have started something here. HIT and HIIT are great tools but man, you've got to be on your game to handle it. as a matter of fact, i've gone the opposite way. i train just a single body part per day. i need all the recuperation i can get at my age and the condition of my joints. having said that i run, swim and lift so i'm pretty intense, just not all at once.....lol. i sometimes wish i could do high intensity because you'll burn a lot more calories just sitting around. it's amazing you can do sprints and burn more energy laying around after you've sprinted. hours after actually. so let's see how many of the guys are HIT.......carbonblob

No problem, CB. I started this just to get more leg development and it's gotten out of control. I really like it. With your back, I think you really have to temper your training to get the best benefit (combination of least pain and most gain!). Still hitting the weights hard, just resting two whole days from each workout.

We're up to at least 6 guys so far.

Dave

I guess I'm part of your five.  I'm doing it on a recumbent bike, at home, with a heart monitor.  I may try some running when it gets cooler, and also when my weight gets lower (think injury would be really like right now repeatedly sprinting at 260).  I may also try doing it on the ellipticals at the gym. I don't take a lot of steps to prevent injury, other than some minor stretching and a five minute warmup, because I perceived (correctly or incorrectly) that injury is unlikely on the bike.  (I am slightly injured in my lower back right now, but it's thanks to deadlifting a bit too much and then compounding it by playing racquetball today.) By the way, can I just observe that this is a thread that would gain absolutely no traction on the main board/state boards?

Ellipticals sprints? That might be interesting - could be a good running speed drill, too. It's true, you don't have to be as careful about injury prevention on the bikes and maybe even moreso on a recumbent (wanna try that, too). If you've got sufficient resistant and good seat height set up on the bike, it should be pretty difficult to "whip" the joints. Back strain is a possiblity, too. That can be painful and strike at any age. Be careful.

Dave

Hi Ard,

Sprints and weights are often seen as a testosterone booster, so a lot of women stay away from it. While male testo levels are somewhat controllable, from what I'm reading, estrogen levels are not. Fortunately, though test and estro levels are not nearly as closely tied to health and youthfulness as are natural  levels of Growth hormone.(Emphasis on natural, supplemented growth hormone is only a short term "fix" that will leave you GH depleted!)

Since growth hormone has been unmistakenly tied to many aspects of youthfulness in double blind studies and estrogen has not, many women could likely benefit from the GH boost that HIIT is said to give.

Dave

You know, there must have been a reason the coaches made us run wind-sprints and "bleachers" back when I was teen. (well, a rotund, wee-lad, more like a ‘weeble.’) I guesss the High intensity workouts did get us in shape pretty fast… I had always attributed it to youth and peer pressure to impress girls. I have ramped up to full out running a mile or two sprint, or as close to a sprint as I can, but not as part of my regular routine. Last summer I was able to clip along at a fairly quick 3 miles before I felt like I needed to stop "or fallout and puke." Over the last 3 months I’ve slowly started building back up toward that as my regular. I now walk 4 days a week, and run with two of those. I’m about halfway back to my last summer’s regime. If the weather will break a bit and get out of the hundreds for a while, I’d do better. I’m still a small weights, not regular training sort when it comes to upper body work. That’ll be my next area of improvement to target….. maybe by next summer? :haha: Best Wishes- Dx

Hi Dx,

Sounds like you've been doing some of it already. How's that rotator cuff treating you? Hope it's not too severe and you're seeing some improvement.

The HIIT next summer will be a good celebration. The nausea is a good sign that you've "made it" in your HIIT training.

Dave

Yeah, The shoulder still kinda suks, But no time to fix it till next summer. My Thanksgiving/Christmas break is already booked solid With work out of town…. The combined treatments of deep tissue massage, NSAIDS, and pulse stimulation, Are all "helping," But it still hurts like hell about 5 days out of every month. That, I can tolerate for now. The shoulder did sort of put the brakes on my weight work for now. I still do "Exerciser-Bands" to keep some tone But no increases there at all. Great to see the number of guys here taking the ‘exercise component’ Of long-term success so seriously. Particularly all of you Young folks! (I crossed over to 51 last week) I feel "younger" than I have in years, But know that building muscle mass is naturally a slower process at my age. (and I am watchful that I’m not using that as a cope-out.) Keep up the Great Work! Best Wishes- Dx

Happy Birthday!

5 days out of the months is pretty good, considering it's basically a ripped joint. But, hope you can get back to 100% by next summer.

It's amazing work that you do, I can't blame you for not wanting to rest more.

Dave