Getting back into lifting after a couple of years of injuries, illnesses and surgeries, I want to try incorporating HIIT for fat loss.
I am a female turning 62 – but truly youthful & highly energetic 62 – most people take me for my mid to late 40’s. (Avatar is my picture from 3 years ago.)
So I don’t want a response treating me like an oldster…
I’ve always done fasted medium intensity cardio – I am an ex-Swolecat client. My workout schedule is MWF cardio, Tu, Th weights with a 2 day split. I would like at least one of the cardios to be HIIT.
I don’t know if there is an ideal time of day to do HIIT? Somehow mid-day seems right to me but I am open to suggestions.
Mostly I want to know what the recommended food consumption, macro proportions and timing for doing HIIT. Search here came up with nothing.
Due to back, knee and shoulder issues (just recovered from 4 months of bicep tendinitis in right shoulder which occurred right after a year of recovering from rotator cuff inflammation in the left shoulder), I can’t sprint so I am thinking of doing Troy Anderson’s Vertical Power Interval that combines DB with incline cardio walk around 3.5-3.8mph.
I’m no cardio expert. In fact, I HATE any type of cardio with a passion. Although I do sprint on occasion, usually barefoot on sand in nice weather, I run only if a mad dog or the police are chasing me. That being said, I do a bastardization of the Tabata method for HIIT.
If you are unable to sprint, you can do kettlebell or dumbbell swings. Don’t swing past your shoulders, you don’t want to re-injure yourself. Use a light to medium weight and perform 20 seconds of max effort or 100% work level followed by 10 seconds of medium to low level work. Do this cycle for 4 minutes and tell me that ain’t HIIT!!!
As far as the ideal time to do it? Any regular interval of time you can spare is the ideal time to do any exercise. I lift at the gym early in the morning. While experts say that’s not ideal, well, it’s the only time I can cut out of my busy day, so it’s ideal for me.
Sorry I can’t be much help, because I don’t do diets, either. I eat healthy, but I don’t count calories or macros anymore. I keep a rough estimate, that seems to work for me. Strength training demands a lot of calories, and that has kept my weight in check for years, and I’m 56. In any case, you look good at 62, so you must be doing something right.
There is no special Diet for HIIT. Just keep following your own Diet plan if it is working.
What is a “Swole-cat” ?
I might be biased here but when I put together a program for ahem “mature” not old individuals I have 3 weight days/2 HIIT cardio days/ 3 low intensity cardio days done after the weight session. That is based on how good a shape a person is in.
Kettlebell work is awesome if done with intensity and some weight.
Tabata is brutal if done as a compound exercise.
But as you stated you are getting back into it right? So start off easy on the cardio, dial in your diet and slowly ramp everything up.
Again diet is most important for fat loss-Cardio is just more fun to theorize and talk about alot. It all boils down too really is you just got to due it.
Ask any questions you like,
Rick
ps: current stats would be helpful-you can PM me if that is easier.
My main query for the moment… and I realize I wasn’t clear… was when the last meal before HIIT should be - and should it be a certain type (i.e.,protein/fat, protein /carb).
I’ve always done low intensity cardio first thing in the AM fasted. That worked well for me for a number of reasons – one of which is that it is hard for me to eat first thing in the morning. Doing cardio first put me in the right mood to eat breakfast afterwards. But I was initially motivated b/c of the fat-loss associated with fasted cardio (being well aware of the debate between that and HIIT)
But I know I will not have the energy to do HIIT in the Am. SO if I do it mid-day – how long should I wait after my previous meal? 30 minutes? 60 minutes? And is there considered a particularly useful meal to have then?
The workout plan I have has more to do with my schedule and energy. I am a pretty high level professional and I work long days and often 6 or 7 days a week. My job has very irregular hours. I have to pick a work-out schedule that I know I can do, so I will meet my goals.
30-60 minutes of some liquid meal before training seems to be the rule of thumb.
60 min plus if it’s solid eats, though that may not save you if you really put the pedal to the metal. Lactic acid build up can make you upchuck regardless of when your last meal was. I’ve made myself sick training hard and having eaten two hours beforehand.
[quote]FISCHER613 wrote:
What is a “Swole-cat” ?
[/quote]
Chris Janusz. He contributed to some articles here on T-mag awhile back. He was more of a pre-contest diet guru, but he offered programs for normal people also. I was one of his clients for a long time. His program SGX worked really well, but it was fairly tough to stick to for long periods of time. That is a “Swole-cat”
[quote]Justitia wrote:
My main query for the moment… and I realize I wasn’t clear… was when the last meal before HIIT should be - and should it be a certain type (i.e.,protein/fat, protein /carb).
[/quote]
Is the timing of a meal before HIIT that important? I would focus more on the quality of the HIIT session, and the post-workout meal.
On the other hand, if you’re going for competitive levels of body fat, then perhaps the minutiae of timing makes a difference.
BTW, you look awesome in that avatar - no matter what your age is. Your significant other is a lucky person.
