HIIT and 5k Worries

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Forgive me bloggers for I have sinned. It has been 19 days since my last blog post.

I have to tell ya's. I don't know how you all do it. Most of you blog everyday and a very good portion of the time it's very interesting stuff. I on the other hand, can't seem to come up with read worthy stuff on a consistent basis (at least about health/weight loss). I think I have pigeon holed myself into this health blog category. I have a bunch on my mind as of late, but only a little portion of it has to do with me going to the gym or eating this and not eating that. I think I may need to start another blog to release some of the pressure on my brain.

Anyway...back to this health stuff. I have added some HIIT (high Intensity Interval Training) to my workouts and so far I think I like it. Don't get me wrong, it kicks my ass in a major way, but I feel really good after it. I do it on Monday's, Wednesday's and Friday's after my weight routine and it looks like this:

Warmup = 5 mins (getting heart rate to about 60%-70% max BPM)
Sprint for 30 seconds
Rest for 1 min (by rest I mean slow jog or fast walk)
Repeat this cycle for 8 intervals.
(Right now I have my sprinting up to 8mph and my rest at 3mph. Not bad for a fat guy I think :p)

Now, I could not do 8 intervals right from the start. In fact, I still can't but I am working my way up. I started at 4 intervals and now I am at 6. The goal here is to get your heart rate as close to max as possible. The first sprint, will be easy as your heart is just warming up. By sprint 4 it really starts to hit you. So by the time you are at sprints 5-8 your heart rate is not dropping as fast during your rests and it tends to stay way up into cardio level.

It's called Peak 8 training and you can get more info here from Dr. Mercola.

Peak 8 Training

There are also a lot of other HIIT programs out there and they all follow the same principal. Keep your heart rate high for a specific period of time. Keep in mind though to work up to the high levels. Seriously...this stuff kicks your ass in a very short period of time.

So, now on to this 5k stuff. I am not sure I'm progressing as planned. As a big guy this running long distance stuff is really giving my legs a pounding. I am not giving up on my training by any means, I will complete this 5k. I just don't think I am going to finish in my goal time of 40 minutes. I realize walking will be involved in this, but I really didn't want to do too much of it. As it looks right now though, I think walking might be the large majority. I can usually keep a good pace at 5mph-5.5mph but for only about 2 to 3 minutes. By that time my legs are killing me. My calves feel tight and my quads start to burn a bit. After that, it takes me about 5 minutes or so for my legs to stop hurting and then I can muster up some jogging for about a min or 2 before my legs start hurting again. My legs feel much better when I run at faster speeds (longer strides I think help) but my stamina keeps me from doing that for any long period of time.

So far my fastest 5k is 49:20

I'm not sure I will be running anymore 5k's after this one. I really just wanted one under my belt to say I did it. I do however think I will stick to some sort of sprinting routine. There's something about it that makes me feel really good after doing it that i just don't get from trying the long distance thing. I'm also going to take up biking as well (just bought one off a friend) and when I lose weight I will start swimming again.I just don't think long distance running is in my blood.

 Here is the bike I just bought off my friend. It is no pro mountain bike, but it will do the trick I believe.

So, what do you all think? Should I start another blog for stuff not related to fitness/health? this just doesn't seem the place for all the other stuff that goes through my head. Also, do any of you do any kind of HIIT training? If so I would love to know what you do.

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