Aerobic HIIT vs. Anaerobic HIIT?

[Jason B]

Anybody know the difference? In Alwyn's latest article he mention's both, but doesn't really say what the difference is. Is anaerobic HIIT like weight circuit training and aerobic HIIT on the treadmill? Or are they same, but with aerobic HIIT just using longer intervals and less intensity? What would be some numbers for the two also, right now I do my intervals with 60 second sprint and 120 second jog.

[K-Court]

Jason, isn't it just the length of intervals that determines whether it is anaerobic or aerobic? Anaerobic is shorter, more intense intervals. Aerobic is longer and (by necessity) less intense intervals. I hope the experts chime in on this.

[Lost Dog]

3. High Intensity Aerobic Interval Training

The next tool we'll pull out is essentially a lower intensity interval method where we use aerobic intervals.

Here's the abstract from that study. TWO WEEKS OF HIGH-INTENSITY AEROBIC INTERVAL TRAINING INCREASES THE CAPACITY FOR FAT OXIDATION DURING EXERCISE IN WOMEN Catchy title, huh?

Each session consisted of ten, 4-min bouts at ~90% VO₂peak with 2-min rest between intervals.

That's pretty tough, so you'd have to be going significantly slower to keep it up for four minutes. Aerobic vs anaerobic.

[LisaS]

by 90% VO2 peak do they mean 90% VO2 Max? because, 4mins @ 90% VO2max is INTENSE -

[Lost Dog]

I don't know. I paste.

[LisaS]

that's probably just how they say it up in Canadia, eh?

[K-Court]

Sorry, it's a strange scientific sub-dialect unknown to me. Or perhaps it's just Guelphian.

[JoshDunn]

For simplicity and arguements sake lets say anaerobic is sprints <30sec and aerobic is "sprints" lasting longer then 30sec.

90% of VO2max is almost as intense as it gets. Unless they were highly detrained. (didn't read the article in case that was actually mentioned in there)

[JoshDunn]

read the abstract now. They tested before the study and had average of VO2max of 26ml.kg.bw......for those at home thats pretty crap. Improvement of 13% in 2 weeks? This must have been the first thing those women have done in years. I say ignore the 4min at 90%VO2max for simplicity sake.

[Snake_eyes]

Each session consisted of ten, 4-min bouts at ~90% VO2peak with 2-min rest between intervals.


wow, that 4 minutes would leave me in a heap on the floor...not to mention the whole thing would last an hour....i dunno if i could encorporate multiple sessions of that into my week and recover faster from it then anaerobic intervals

[Matthew]

ha! I know something you don't know, I know something you don't know :p


When you're working at 100%VO2 max you're working at the highest possible level that you can manage.

When you're working at your VO2 peak, you're working at the highest possible level that you are willing to work at.

Basically, if you had a client on the treadmill and kept increasing intensity they would eventually scream at you that they can't take it anymore and they would give up. That's their VO2 peak.
If you pushed them to keep going and they magically said ok let's do it, and you kept increasing the intensity and kept increasing the intensity until their body could no longer deal with it, then you've found their VO2 max.

Get it?

[LisaS]

confirmed - a term used in fitness circles in Canadia (actually that's kind of what I figured after reading the 26 ml/kg )

[spankdat]

LisaS, just curious... you wrote "Canadia" in both of your posts above. Did you mean "Canada", or were you using archaic or colloquial nomenclature? Not trying to be a grammar nazi here, just wondering if that's a typo or another name for Canada that I've never heard before (wasn't sure at first where you were referring to until I checked).

[K-Court]

Spankdat, I've heard it used as a joke ... it's kind of backing the country name out of the name of the citizenry (Canadians) ... so Canada becomes Canadia. At least I was taking Lisa's misnomer in that tongue-in-cheek light.

[LisaS]

I've seen Canadia tongue-in-cheek on this forum before- sorry if I offended by trying to tie into an old joke -

[Lost Dog]

Canadans can be so fussy.

[vuduchyld]

Originally Posted by Lost Dog

I don't know. I paste.

LOL!!!!


Post of the day!!!

[Snake_eyes]

Originally Posted by Lost Dog

Canadans can be so fussy.

Hey, don't generalize!

[K-Court]

Originally Posted by LisaS

I've seen Canadia tongue-in-cheek on this forum before- sorry if I offended by trying to tie into an old joke -

No offence taken. You're from Americia, right?

[LisaS]

yes, but one set of grandparents came from Swed and the other set were Swedener-Americans

[MAXX]

This is a strange thread.......

[Frank.S]

Originally Posted by Lost Dog

Canadans can be so fussy.

Damn them.

[Phaedrus49er]

Wait, what was this thread about again?

[LisaS]

Originally Posted by Jason B

Anybody know the difference? In Alwyn's latest article he mention's both, but doesn't really say what the difference is. Is anaerobic HIIT like weight circuit training and aerobic HIIT on the treadmill? Or are they same, but with aerobic HIIT just using longer intervals and less intensity? What would be some numbers for the two also, right now I do my intervals with 60 second sprint and 120 second jog.

to bring this back to the original point - I think you just fall back on the usual "energy systems" numbers
(for example from here: http://www.brianmac.demon.co.uk/energy.htm )

Duration	Classification	Energy Supplied By
1 to 4 seconds	Anaerobic	ATP (in muscles)
4 to 20 seconds	Anaerobic	ATP + PC
20 to 45 seconds	Anaerobic	ATP + PC + Muscle glycogen
45 to 120 seconds	Anaerobic, Lactic	Muscle glycogen
120 to 240 seconds	Aerobic + Anaerobic	Muscle glycogen + lactic acid
240 to 600 seconds	Aerobic	Muscle glycogen + fatty acids

so aerobic intervals would just be the longer intervals compared to the shorter anaerobic sprints. The study mentioned does use 4 min (240s) intervals which would fall in that range.
At least that's what I think. Just use varying interval/rest periods - shorter more intense, and longer less intense (but still as intense as you can go for that period of time).

[Lost Dog]

I did some 4 minute intervals last night. It really sucked.

To take this a bit off AC's topic, Lonnie Lowery (on the same study) suggested using these 4 on, 2 off intervals ONLY for the first two weeks of a fat loss phase. The effects of increased processing of triglycerides went beyond those first two weeks. Or, so the study supposedly shows (I'm don't want to pay to read it).

Just a thought. I can't imagine doing that every week on my off days. Yuck.

[trainerty]

Lisa hit the nail on the head with the diagram. Most fitness type folks will do aerobic HIIT. This is not because they want to, they simply lack the skill sets to go to their max (90% or greater). I think the word HIIT is used too much when a person is really just doing interval training.

I just finished putting someone through anaerobic HIIT. It is awesome when someone builds up the skills to push their body into the maximal threshold. I recommend reading up on it from Tudor Bompa....pretty interesting stuff.

[tscm]

Hi all,

There are a couple of key points that appear to be highly relevant in this discussion that I'd like to point out.

1) The ability of a given individual to work at a specific level. For instance, a high level triathlete or runner will have made adaptations in terms of lactate threshold and overall aerobic conditioning which will allow them to work at a given percentage of VO2 max for a greater period of time than a less trained or untrained individual. Thus perofrming intervals at say 100% VO2 max will be a more demanding stimulus for a casual trainee than a more exerienced individual. Therefore it will often be much more appropriate for some individuals to perform shorter intervals as it would otherwise be impossible for them to maintain an appropriate pace. The following quote comes from peak performance online, in reference to the work of French exercise physiologist Veronique Billat:

"In the old days, exercise physiologists used to say that your vV02max was the fastest pace you could sustain continuously for about 11-12 minutes. In other words, TvVO2max was considered to be an mlmutable 11-12 minutes, but Veronique's work has changed that outdated thinking.The ingenious Billat has shown that in fact some runners, cyclists, and swimmers can sizzle along at vV02max for no more than about three minutes or so, while others have a TvVO2max of 13 minutes!"

vVO2max = velocity at VO2 max

TvVO2amx = time able to maintain vVO2 max

2) Most importantly, one must consider what is truely meant by "doing an interval at 90% VO2 max". The most fundamental thing to recognise is that when performing intervals you do not reach the denoted level of oxygen consumption (percentage of VO2 max until well into the set). In real terms, it is useful to consider a four minute interval run at, and what the physiological implications what be if you stopped at any given point. If you stop after 20 seconds running at 90% VO2 max pace you will not be very tired, as you have not even approached 90% of maximum oxygen consumption. If you stop two minutes into the set, you will still not feel overly tired, as you obviously you could have run at this pace for at least double the time you already have to complete the interval. Oxygen consumption wil obiously be higher though, than at 20 seconds in, and you may have beegun to near 90% of VO2 max. Finally if you completed the full four minute interval you will obviously be more fatigued than if you had stopped at either two miutes in, or 20 seconds, and you would certainly have spent a greater amount of time at 90% VO2 max.

3) The effect of recovery periods on the work rate required for he interval. This recovery period rather than the length of the interval is often what determines the energy systems used. For instance, if you were to perform 30 second efforts with 5 minute rests you would be unlikely to incur much fatigue and thus the efforts would remain anerobic and alactic in nature. With less recovery such as a 30 second jog between 30 second efforts (parameters similar to HIIT) the efforts will be performed in a state of fatigue and thus will no longer be anaerobic in nature as O2 consumption will still be high due the recent effort and the lack of recovery from it. As a result, tables such as the one posted are quite irrelevant to the performance of intervals, as the information they convey represents the energy system contribution in a single, maximal effort lasting a given period of time. For instance, a 4-20 second effort, such as say a 100metre sprint, when performed as a one off effort would be concerned with purely anaerobic energy systems, while a 20 second effort in the context of a HIIT workout would involve much different energy systems.

Overall, the purpose of interval training is to spend a larger amount of time at a given work rate (usually given as a percentage of VO2 max) than would be possible if you merely did a maximal effort at that pace. For example if you had a TvVO2Max of 7 minutes, you could perform three 3-minute intervals with ninety seconds recovery and thus spend long at Vo2 max.

The beauty of HIIT lies in that you maintain the target level of VO2 max slightly into the rest period, and then reach it more quickly in the following interval due to the fact you have not recovered to a radically lesser level of oxygen consumption.

The aforementioned Veronique Billat did a study involving HIIT type intervals (specifically 30 seconds and 100% vVo2max followed by 30 seconds at 50% vVO2max), the abstract of which can be found here:
http://www.springerlink.com/content/wcupg3v2hpwutxav

Further discussion of Billat's research can be found here:
www.pponline.co.uk/encyc/0350.htm

To answer the original question

Intervals are rarely purely aerobic or anaerobic in nature. They are usually a combination of both.

Whether the intevals are aerobic or anaerobic is mainly determined by the length of rest periods and the conditioning of the individual.

As a rule, true anaerobic intervals will require long recoveries of at least 1:3 work:rest.

Aerobic intervals require recoveries of 1:1 or less and interval length amd total interval volume should increase with conditioning. Often a jog or "float" (similar to Billat's parameters) can be an effective form of recovery.

Hope that helped.

[Defiant1]

I'm from Americia...I'm from West Virgina to be more specific....but if anybody knows what I'm talking about, it was the NIT's fault not our university.