{"id":60773,"date":"2017-08-07T07:15:33","date_gmt":"2017-08-07T11:15:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/?p=60773"},"modified":"2017-08-13T22:36:56","modified_gmt":"2017-08-14T02:36:56","slug":"hiit-workout-mistakes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/fitness\/hiit-workout-mistakes\/","title":{"rendered":"7 HIIT Mistakes You\u2019re Probably Making"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"7
Photo: John Towner<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Considering HIIT<\/a> \u2014 or high-intensity interval training \u2014 is known to burn fat<\/a>, improve metabolic health<\/a> and increase VO2 max<\/a> levels, you may have jumped on board enthusiastically. After all, it\u2019s known to fire up your gains rather quickly and efficiently. \u201cPeople like HIIT because it removes one major barrier to not working out: \u2018I don\u2019t have time,\u2019\u201d says New York City-based fitness coach Laura Miranda<\/a>, DPT, CSCS.<\/p>\n

HIIT involves alternating between \u201cwork\u201d intervals of high intensity with \u201crecovery\u201d or rest periods of lower intensity. Most HIIT workouts<\/a> call for work periods of 20 to 30 seconds (even up to 90 seconds), explains Craig Weller, exercise specialist at Precision Nutrition<\/a>. The work to rest radio may be 2:1 (like in a traditional Tabata-style workout<\/a>), 3:1, 1:2 and so on, he says.<\/p>\n

No doubt HIIT is one amazing workout, but there are some aspects of the workout that you may be doing wrong. These mishaps could sabotage your efforts and diminish your results. Here\u2019s how to ensure you get the calorie-torching sessions right.<\/p>\n

RELATED: <\/strong>HIIT It Hard with These 25 Workouts and Tips<\/a><\/p>\n

7 Mistakes That Are Hurting Your HIIT Workout<\/h2>\n

1. Failing to Warm Up<\/h3>\n

HIIT is demanding, and it\u2019s not a good idea to pop into the gym right from bed or immediately after sitting for a full day. \u201cAt that time, your neuromuscular connections are not firing as well as they should be,\u201d says Miranda. If you skip the warm-up, you may only be able to push at max effort, starting halfway through the workout. (Womp, womp.) Prepare your body with dynamic functional movements<\/a> that are similar to the moves you\u2019ll do in a workout. For example, slow and controlled side lunges in prep for skater jumps.<\/p>\n

RELATED: <\/strong>The Dynamic Warm-Up You Aren\u2019t Doing (But Should!)<\/a><\/p>\n

2. Planning Long Workouts<\/h3>\n

When done correctly, a HIIT workout doesn\u2019t have to be long \u2014 it can actually last anywhere from four to 20 minutes, says Weller. Miranda caps her clients at 30 minutes per HIIT routine<\/a>. The catch: You shouldn\u2019t be able to do more than that if you\u2019re truly pushing yourself during the \u201cworking\u201d intervals. Schedule a longer workout and you\u2019ll likely hold yourself back during the intense pushes in order to conserve energy. \u201cAt a point, you\u2019re getting diminishing returns. You\u2019ll be working out longer but not as efficiently,\u201d says Miranda. Don\u2019t you want to spare a few minutes with HIIT, anyway?<\/p>\n

3. Not Going Hard Enough<\/h3>\n

\u201cMost people would often benefit from more recovery time between intervals.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

During the intense intervals, \u201cscience shows that you have to push at 80 to 90 percent of your max heart rate to achieve results,\u201d says Miranda. If you don\u2019t have a heart rate monitor, think of this on a rate of perceived exertion scale (or RPE), meaning how hard you feel like you\u2019re working. On a scale of zero to 10 (zero being asleep and 10 meaning your heart feels like it will explode), go for an eight or nine, she says. \u201cYou should be extremely breathless<\/a>, your muscles should be burning, and you know mentally you can\u2019t push any harder,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

RELATED: <\/strong>Design Your Own HIIT Workout with This Perfect Formula<\/a><\/p>\n

4. Forgetting About Recovery<\/h3>\n

HIIT workouts are hard by nature, but that doesn\u2019t mean you need to short-change yourself on rest. \u201cMost people would often benefit from more recovery time between intervals, so that they\u2019re able to recover well enough to produce a high level of force or intensity during the next work interval,\u201d explains Weller. If you cut off your recovery time<\/a>, you can\u2019t go as hard when it\u2019s time to crank up the intensity. The result: \u201ca homogenous slog of gasping for breath between half-hearted repetitions,\u201d he adds.<\/p>\n

If you typically hate HIIT, this may could explain why. Your recovery period should be long enough to drop your heart rate below about 130 bpm before the next round. It should also be long enough that you can do each work round at full intensity.<\/p>\n

5. Picking Complex Movements<\/h3>\n

During your first work round of a HIIT session<\/a>, you can probably perform the exercises with proper form and speed. After all, it\u2019s likely you\u2019re not tired yet. But subsequent rounds will increase stress and reduce your motor skill function, says Weller. If you\u2019re doing complex moves, your form can suffer, putting you at a risk for injury. Rather than doing, say, an Olympic lift like a squat clean<\/a>, go for a simpler goblet squat. \u201cHIIT workouts should be done with exercises that you can perform well, even with your brain turned off,\u201d Weller says. Similarly, if you find you\u2019re sacrificing form at the end, Miranda recommends dropping any weight you\u2019re holding to finish it out.<\/p>\n

RELATED: <\/strong>How Low Should You Squat? (And How to Improve It)<\/a><\/p>\n

6. Progressing Too Fast<\/h3>\n

If you\u2019re choosing a HIIT workout, chances are you\u2019re going all in. But doing too much too quickly can set you up for injury<\/a> \u2014 even during that initial session. \u201cYou really need to start slowly and gradually because this allows your musculoskeletal system to adapt,\u201d says Brad Roy, PhD, FACSM, executive director of The Summit Medical Fitness Center and Kalispell Regional Medical Center in Kalispell, Montana. If your first workout is, say, eight minutes long, try 10 minutes the next week. Keep progressing when you can perform the high-intensity intervals at your full capacity throughout the entire workout.<\/p>\n

7. HIITing It Too Often<\/h3>\n

The most important HIIT rule: More is not necessarily more. Try to fit in a high-intensity interval workout like this two or three times per week, says Miranda. \u201cIf you\u2019re doing it the way it was designed, you won\u2019t be able to do more than that,\u201d she says. Doing HIIT most days of the week means you run the risk of an ineffective recovery. And an ineffective recovery means you miss out on other aspects of fitness like heavier lifting<\/a> or flexibility. HIIT is one part of an all-around routine \u2014 not the only one.<\/p>\n

Read More
\n<\/strong>3 Quick HIIT Workouts for Beginners<\/a>
\nAre You Doing The Deadlift All Wrong?<\/a>
\nHIIT It Hard with These 25 Workouts and Tips<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Snag seven tips for turning up the intensity on your HIIT workout \u2014 without dialing down your results. It\u2019s time to train smarter. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":71,"featured_media":60778,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[21,24,6,14],"tags":[288,289,139,281,341,343,100],"class_list":["post-60773","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cardio","category-exercise","category-fitness","category-strength-training","tag-cardio","tag-exercise","tag-hiit","tag-strength-training","tag-tax1living-well","tag-tax2exercise","tag-workout"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/60773","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/71"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=60773"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/60773\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/60778"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=60773"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=60773"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=60773"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}