Too much HIIT?

[Emevas]

Hey, I'm getting my cardio up for an upcoming tournament, and I was curious how long of an HIIT session I can do before I have to worry about muscular catabolism.

[TaeBo_Master]

As long as you're getting adequate nutrients, catabolism isn't something you should be worried about. Catabolism only occurs when the body has nowhere else to find the amino acids it needs to rebuild tissues.

What you SHOULD be worried about is overtraining. HIIT is pretty damn intense when done properly, and thus, it's possible to overtrain relatively quickly, depending on the person. My personal recommendation.... 3-4 times per week, max. If you do 4 times, do 2 days on, 1 day off, 2 days on, 2 days off, repeat.

[Quikfeet509]

and at my gym we tend to keep the HIIT workouts under 30 minutes to keep the body in a hormonally-favorable state (less unopposed cortisol).

[Emevas]

Ja TBM, I'm basically doing it every other day. Much thanks for the advice.

[Ronin]

So you are doing HIIT as part of your MA or as a supplement to it?

[Emevas]

Supplement, but as it stands, none at all. Came down with the flu or some food poisoning. Been off my feet for 5 days.

[MUT]

Just out of curiosity Emevas what HIIT programme do you do?

Ie how long are the Sprint/Rest sections?

I've always wanted to do HIIT but never knew if the programme I was trying was any good or not.

[Thaiboxerken]

I'll be glad to HIIT you, Evemas.

[Emevas]

Up until I was sick, I was doing 30 minutes on cardio bike, 1 minute light, 2-3 minutes hard.

And TBK, at least spell my name right =P

[Thaiboxerken]

I know, I know.. it's saveme spelled backwards. I just type fast sometimes before chekcing mey spylling.