HIIT - How much is too much?

[LetsGo]

Hi everyone.

Current Routine
I do 3 days of HIIT per week (my non-lifting days), 6 sprints per session, with 3 minutes in between each sprint. I discovered a great place for sprinting near me, around a long pond, and being around ducks, geese, flowers, trees, and other runners makes this so much better.

Side Tangent
The other 4 days are my lifting days. My gym is closed on the weekends, so those end up being my HIIT days. On lifting days, it generally takes me about 40 - 45 minutes to complete 15 sets (3 lift types, 5 sets each,) for that day's muscle group. There are 2 minutes in between sets, and some time is wasted waiting for a bench or machine to become available. If it’d be better to do 20 sets, or add some drop sets for the last sets of each exercise, then I can do that. I don’t go to failure on each set, I’m usually a few reps short of that.

Summary of HIIT Protocol
The protocol calls for 2 - 3 days of HIIT per week, 6 to 8 sprints with “a few minutes” in between the sprints. So at the maximum, in each week we’ll have 3 HIIT sessions of 8 sprints, with 2 minutes of rest in between sprints. I’m not quite there yet but at least I have the 3 days part down.

Possible Expansion? What is the most I can do, to get the best results?
In a few months I expect to have more flexibility and time as my business keeps ramping up and the money keeps flowing.

I could do HIIT in the mornings 6 days per week, and lift in the evenings 6 days per week. My philosophy with fitness and training is that you get out what you put in, and I feel that if you eat and sleep enough, overtraining is not really an issue. I would still get 5 days of rest for each muscle group (instead of my current 7 days,) so that I wouldn’t be overworking any one group. Would this be overdoing it, even though 6 days per week is recommended by many mainstream bodybuilders? I don’t feel weak post-workout.

Or is the recommended HIIT protocol the maximum that we can do before it becomes counterproductive? I feel like the answer to that is no, nobody has tested the absolute maximum but generally the more you put in, the more you get out. If you did 30 sprints and spent 4 hours in the gym every day, I’m sure that would be too much, I know there’s an upper limit but I feel like I’m nowhere close to it.

Basically, I’m willing to go above what the protocol calls for if it’ll help me get better faster. I feel like I’m not doing enough on the workout front. Thanks for any feedback / comments / suggestions.

[Cdsnuts]

Hi everyone.

Current Routine
I do 3 days of HIIT per week (my non-lifting days), 6 sprints per session, with 3 minutes in between each sprint. I discovered a great place for sprinting near me, around a long pond, and being around ducks, geese, flowers, trees, and other runners makes this so much better.

Side Tangent
The other 4 days are my lifting days. My gym is closed on the weekends, so those end up being my HIIT days. On lifting days, it generally takes me about 40 - 45 minutes to complete 15 sets (3 lift types, 5 sets each,) for that day's muscle group. There are 2 minutes in between sets, and some time is wasted waiting for a bench or machine to become available. If it’d be better to do 20 sets, or add some drop sets for the last sets of each exercise, then I can do that. I don’t go to failure on each set, I’m usually a few reps short of that.

Summary of HIIT Protocol
The protocol calls for 2 - 3 days of HIIT per week, 6 to 8 sprints with “a few minutes” in between the sprints. So at the maximum, in each week we’ll have 3 HIIT sessions of 8 sprints, with 2 minutes of rest in between sprints. I’m not quite there yet but at least I have the 3 days part down.

Possible Expansion? What is the most I can do, to get the best results?
In a few months I expect to have more flexibility and time as my business keeps ramping up and the money keeps flowing.

I could do HIIT in the mornings 6 days per week, and lift in the evenings 6 days per week. My philosophy with fitness and training is that you get out what you put in, and I feel that if you eat and sleep enough, overtraining is not really an issue. I would still get 5 days of rest for each muscle group (instead of my current 7 days,) so that I wouldn’t be overworking any one group. Would this be overdoing it, even though 6 days per week is recommended by many mainstream bodybuilders? I don’t feel weak post-workout.

Or is the recommended HIIT protocol the maximum that we can do before it becomes counterproductive? I feel like the answer to that is no, nobody has tested the absolute maximum but generally the more you put in, the more you get out. If you did 30 sprints and spent 4 hours in the gym every day, I’m sure that would be too much, I know there’s an upper limit but I feel like I’m nowhere close to it.

Basically, I’m willing to go above what the protocol calls for if it’ll help me get better faster. I feel like I’m not doing enough on the workout front. Thanks for any feedback / comments / suggestions.

That's very admirable that you're willing to go above and beyond what the protocol calls for seeing as it requires alot of effort as is. But the thing is, you don't. If you are going ALL OUT when doing your HIIT, two days a week is more then enough. You're better off putting more time into lifting then in HIIT.

And remember, you're not fully healed yet, so you can put yourself into a position where you are over doing it. Two days a week is perfect. As long as when you're done you feel like you couldn't possibly do another sprint, then you're doing it correctly. You should be completely gassed when finished with HIIT.

It's also better to split the days so that they are equal distance from each session. So if you do HIIT on Sunday, you shouldn't do it again until Wed. or Thurs. You need proper rest in between HIIT as well. The other days should be spent on moving heavy objects. If you can fit it in, it's also fantastic to do yoga one or two days a week regardless of what other exercises you're doing. If adding this in, I would do it on my HIIT days as opposed to my weight lifting days.

Either yoga or balance training which is also great for the brain.

[LetsGo]

That's very admirable that you're willing to go above and beyond what the protocol calls for seeing as it requires alot of effort as is. But the thing is, you don't. If you are going ALL OUT when doing your HIIT, two days a week is more then enough. You're better off putting more time into lifting then in HIIT.

And remember, you're not fully healed yet, so you can put yourself into a position where you are over doing it. Two days a week is perfect. As long as when you're done you feel like you couldn't possibly do another sprint, then you're doing it correctly. You should be completely gassed when finished with HIIT.

It's also better to split the days so that they are equal distance from each session. So if you do HIIT on Sunday, you shouldn't do it again until Wed. or Thurs. You need proper rest in between HIIT as well. The other days should be spent on moving heavy objects. If you can fit it in, it's also fantastic to do yoga one or two days a week regardless of what other exercises you're doing. If adding this in, I would do it on my HIIT days as opposed to my weight lifting days.

Either yoga or balance training which is also great for the brain.

Thanks for the tips, I will keep the HIIT to only 3 days per week.

When I sprint, I go absolutely all-out for 30 seconds at maximum speed, and then I’m winded afterwards. As a teenager I was a sprinter on the track and field team, and that may be why 6 or 8 sprints will not leave me feeling like I can’t do any more. That would probably take 10 or 12 sprints, but I don’t know because I’ve been stopping at 6.

So, I can add more sprints and possibly drop the third day and just do wednesday and saturday for HIIT.

They do say that yoga was partly meant to be an aphrodisiac, for what that’s worth. Sending more blood downstairs and whatnot.

I wish my gym was open on weekends during covid, so I could do a proper 5-day split instead of this 7-day split I’m on.

[Zonz]

You overthinking this a tad bit just do what feels good. Stop compartmentalizing stuff.

[Cdsnuts]

You overthinking this a tad bit just do what feels good. Stop compartmentalizing stuff.

Heroin feels good......So does blow, etc.

Everyone has their own process internally despite doing the same protocol. I'd rather someone share/ask about something in particular then have them do it wrong.

But yes, some guys over analyze.