Gibala is not an Internet guru or influencer. He's the real deal, and is one of the world's leading HIIT researchers who has collaborated with other exercise scientists around the world conducting numerous primary and secondary research studies over a period of many years. He's a professor at McMaster University in Hamilton, Canada, which is probably the center of the HIIT universe. I've been doing HIIT-adjacent work along with my HIT resistance training for some years now, but after reading his book, I'm going to add the real deal to my weekly regimen. Really worth looking into. The author goes into the science of it and has shown that HIIT is superior to moderate steady-state cardio of much longer duration. The steady-state moderate cardio that I find mind-numbingly boring and unchallenging has nothing on HIIT.
I enjoy long(5 mikes) fast walkings and hikes, his “interval” idea will be incorporated. Thank you for the post!
INSTANT DRINK, INSTANT FOOD, INSTANT WORKOUT, INSTANT GRATIFICATION, INSTANT MARRIAGE, INSTANT SEX.... The list goes on and on. Of course, the book publisher is happy with free publicity. I will go for at least one-hour physical & mental workout. One minute workout is for impatient people, & people who are not committed to working out. If no time to exercise, don't bother to exercise!
You haven't read the book. You didn't even watch the brief interview. You evidently don't even understand the basic premise or concept of HIIT. But thanks for your insight.
So since I finished the book yesterday, and today was not a resistance training day, I did a bit of HIIT. Five intervals of 30 seconds each. First, I warmed up with about 15 seconds of bodyweight squats at a leisurely pace. Then I did 50 in 30 seconds, going down to parallel and not locking out at the top. That was followed by 15 seconds of rest. Then I did squat thrusts for 30 seconds. I had not done them before, and I didn't count them, so I don't know how many I did, but I did them as fast as I possibly could. (I'll probably count them next time to establish a benchmark, as I have for the bodyweight squats.) Another 15 seconds of rest, then another interval of squats, rest again, squat thrusts, rest again, and then a final 30-second interval of squats. So, 3 intervals of bodyweight squats interspersed with 2 intervals of squat thrusts. It was fairly exhilarating. In time, I plan to work up to 8 intervals in total, 4 of each movement. Maybe increase the intervals to 40 seconds if possible. But I may have to increase the rest time between intervals to 20 seconds or more. Time will tell. The cool thing about intervals is the practically limitless variation possible, in terms of the exercises involved, the duration of the intervals, the duration of the rest between intervals, and the intensity. There's something for everyone at every level of fitness. So since I presently do my resistance work 3x/2wks (meaning twice one week and once the following week) I plan to do the HIIT to complement that routine with the same frequency. So If I do resistance Monday and Friday, then I will do HIIT on Wednesday. And when I do resistance the following Wednesday, then I will do HIIT that Monday and Friday. I just hope I can tolerate it, because I will try to go at full intensity throughout. As a final thought, I've seen a couple variations of squat thrusts online. I'm not doing the ones where you stand up at the end of the rep, because that just seems like resting. Rather, I did it this way, but again, at max speed:
Phones probably have this facility these days but here is an example of a free app. We used to do 20 sec on and 10 off on the heavy bag. Doesnt sound like much but it burns.I think it came in at 4 minutes. An excellent finisher. https://exercisetimer.net/tabatatimerOnline Tabata Timer A very simple Online Tabata timer for your interval training Break 00:10 round 1/8 Active Duration 00:20 Break Duration 00:10 Rounds 8 Enable Sound
The author discusses Tabata's work as well in the book. There's something about intense intervals that works magic on the body. World class athletes have been doing variations of interval work for decades. Even Roger Bannister, who broke the 4-minute mile, did interval work. As Gibala explains it, moderate intensity long duration cardio causes the body to adapt because energy is being depleted. However, interval work speeds this up because it is the rate of depletion that the body responds to. And, apparently, the response is superior to that of steady state moderate intensity cardio by all measures, from VO2 max to chemical reactions noted in muscle biopsies. This is all above my paygrade, but the conclusion is within my grasp. As with resistance training, intensity trumps duration and frequency.