Hi All,

I've been reading the threads on this forum for some time now but this is my first post as a registered user.

This may sound strange but is there such a thing as combining HIIT and LISS? I'm into week one of my cutting phase and this is my treadmill cardio routine:

18 mins - Level 8
2 mins - Level 13
18 mins - Level 8
2 mins - Level 13
18 mins - Level 8
2 mins - Level 13

Total time is 60 mins.

Does this plan make any sense at all? I'd like any comments please.

Thanks! :)

Makes sense to me, i train according to my mood personally. I could do liss for 25min and then start bringing on the pain. :)

Its all about total energy used really i don't bother with this HIIT Vs LISS junk anymore.

Your routine seems, good. Hope your diet it's just as good :tu:

Good luck :tu: oh of course, Welcome! :lol:

:eek: :confused:
wow - I need to start posting in the public forums more! ya herd me?


DO NOT combine HIIT and LISS. (not to mention i wouldnt even call that "combining them")


Both types of cardio each serve different purposes.
HIIT you really shouldnt do more than 23 minutes of it in one session, and you shouldnt do it on an empty stomach.

ok, i see why i dont post here much. because somewhere there's someone who has seen someone have GREAT results doing HIIT on an empty stomach for 2 hours straight while eating a grilled cheese sandwich and will argue, bla bla.


so - in summary:
+ dont combine them - do one or the other.
+ keep LISS under 45 minutes (best to do it fasted when you wake up in the morning)
+ keep HIIT under 20 minutes and make sure you have glycogen (carbs) in your muscles somewhere (dont do it fasted)


but if you want - one week you can do LISS every morning for 45 minutes a session, and then the next week you can do HIIT in the middle of the day for 20 minutes (assuming you ate a carb/protein meal 2 hours earlier) ... etc... and mix it up that way.

:sleep:

Why should you only do 23min of HIIT?

I think you should read this. I'm not saying its correct or not but its something to think about.

http://www.t-nation.com/readTopic.do?id=909183

All this liss, hiss, cardio etc is not that important in my opinion. Total excercise and diet is.

To the original poster i would shoot for a minimum of 5hours of activity per week. Weight training and any type of aeorbics.

Why should you only do 23min of HIIT?

I think you should read this. I'm not saying its correct or not but its something to think about.

http://www.t-nation.com/readTopic.do?id=909183

All this liss, hiss, cardio etc is not that important in my opinion. Total excercise and diet is.

To the original poster i would shoot for a minimum of 5hours of activity per week. Weight training and any type of aeorbics.
For the average person on an average fat loss diet, i wouldnt go over 23 minutes of HIIT.
The people in that article ate around 5000 calories a day, so that makes it ok.

It all depends on the diet.
so if you're going to go crazy with exercise, make sure you're eating enough to support it.

All this liss, hiss, cardio etc is not that important in my opinion. Total excercise and diet is.


As one who assists 100's and John Stone himself as well as a myriad of people here, I have to respectfully disagree.

The type of cardio, when you do it, etc., is VERY important in the final body composition of the subject not just the final "weight" of that subject.
Believe me, there is a huge bearing on the results w/the two, especially when you factor in nutritional protocols that support cardio work.

~SC~

As one who assists 100's and John Stone himself as well as a myriad of people here, I have to respectfully disagree.

The type of cardio, when you do it, etc., is VERY important in the final body composition of the subject not just the final "weight" of that subject.
Believe me, there is a huge bearing on the results w/the two, especially when you factor in nutritional protocols that support cardio work.

~SC~

I'm sure your correct and getting very lean is pretty complicated for a lot of folks.

In general thou i don't think its a major issue until you get in single digit numbers for males at least. I won't worry about it until i get my diet in order (coming along pretty good), so i guess it has a lot to do with my frame of mind at this point. Here i go again making a thread about me. :doh:

However, i'm no expert :)

I seen CT used your services for his final stages of fatloss (article on t-nation) SC, pretty cool, i will probably be looking at your services when i learn another 12 or so healthy meals and adjust to the lifestyle completely. Shouldn't be a lot longer if i continue to learn like i have recently.

Healthy cooking can certainty be tasty, alot better then i thought. :tucool:

Hi All,

I've been reading the threads on this forum for some time now but this is my first post as a registered user.

This may sound strange but is there such a thing as combining HIIT and LISS? I'm into week one of my cutting phase and this is my treadmill cardio routine:

18 mins - Level 8
2 mins - Level 13
18 mins - Level 8
2 mins - Level 13
18 mins - Level 8
2 mins - Level 13

Total time is 60 mins.


I have no idea what your levels correspond to but this routine is a form of interval training. Probably not high intensity.

LISS just means slow and steady.

HIIT means more than just bumping it up for 2 minutes. It doesn't have to be as long as 2 minutes, but you have to have at least 1 minute or maybe 90 seconds at pretty close to your maximum heart rate. Then you recover your heart rate to something more comfortable, and this depends on your fitness, but usually three to five minutes, and then back up.

You want to get around five or more high intervals, and on your program that would take 100 minutes. I see nothing wrong with that sort of training but there are some people here who would get worried about muscle catabolism.

If you cut your low level stuff to 8 minutes then in your hour you would get six intervals. Then you want to make sure you have the right intensities.

If you haven't been training for long, then don't jack the high intensity way up. But ultimately, if you want HIIT then you have to get that to where it's up around 90-95% of your max rate.

Thanks everyone for all your replies. You guys really know your stuff. I can tell I'm at the right place to learn everything I can about cutting up. :)

The truth of the matter is that I really hate HIIT, but I've been told that it is the superior method for fat burning. So that's why I thought I'd add in a few high speed intervals to my LISS. Clearly, I'm not even doing that right. :p

Zenpharoas, those numbers refer to the speed setting on the treadmill. I live in Asia, so I think they probably refer to Km/H. That said, after reading all the replies, I think I'll just stick to what I like best - LISS. Bumping it up to 13 Km/H three times in my 60 min run actually takes too much out of me. I'm completely winded after those 2 min bursts. I'd rather do 90 mins of LISS at level 8.

I've got a few more questions actually, which I'm sure you guys can help me out with.

1) LISS. How low should "low intensity" be? 60-65% MHR? That's what I'm doing at level 8.

2) LISS DURATION. I can very comfortably do 90 mins at level 8 on the treadmill. And I plan to do this 5 times a week. Is that too long a session? A fitness professional I spoke to said anything longer than 60 mins causes muscle catabolism.

3) CALORIE DEFICIT. I've been told time and again that I should not be aiming for anything more than a 500 - 600 calorie deficit as that could evoke the starvation response. However, I actually have no problems with going to almost a 1000 calorie deficit (through diet plus exercise), although I don't do this often. I eat tons of fruits and vegetables everyday and that keeps me full without piling on the calories.

4) THERMOGENICS. My current cutting plan is 3 pronged: Diet, Exercise, and Thermogenics (Biotest HOTROX). Any comments on this?


Thanks. :)

Thanks everyone for all your replies. You guys really know your stuff. I can tell I'm at the right place to learn everything I can about cutting up. :)

The truth of the matter is that I really hate HIIT, but I've been told that it is the superior method for fat burning. So that's why I thought I'd add in a few high speed intervals to my LISS. Clearly, I'm not even doing that right. :p

Zenpharoas, those numbers refer to the speed setting on the treadmill. I live in Asia, so I think they probably refer to Km/H. That said, after reading all the replies, I think I'll just stick to what I like best - LISS. Bumping it up to 13 Km/H three times in my 60 min run actually takes too much out of me. I'm completely winded after those 2 min bursts. I'd rather do 90 mins of LISS at level 8.

I've got a few more questions actually, which I'm sure you guys can help me out with.

1) LISS. How low should "low intensity" be? 60-65% MHR? That's what I'm doing at level 8.

2) LISS DURATION. I can very comfortably do 90 mins at level 8 on the treadmill. And I plan to do this 5 times a week. Is that too long a session? A fitness professional I spoke to said anything longer than 60 mins causes muscle catabolism.

3) CALORIE DEFICIT. I've been told time and again that I should not be aiming for anything more than a 500 - 600 calorie deficit as that could evoke the starvation response. However, I actually have no problems with going to almost a 1000 calorie deficit (through diet plus exercise), although I don't do this often. I eat tons of fruits and vegetables everyday and that keeps me full without piling on the calories.

4) THERMOGENICS. My current cutting plan is 3 pronged: Diet, Exercise, and Thermogenics (Biotest HOTROX). Any comments on this?


Thanks. :)

1. I think 60-65% can be OK...It depends on your fitness level and diet.

2. 90 min would be to much for most people I think. It will be difficult to prevent muscle loss if you train that long...I think it would be best to follow the professionals advice...

3. It would be a mistake to eat to little. A 1000 calorie deficit is to much, IMO. You must eat enough to support your training and to help recovery. If you dont do that you might get problems and start feeling bad after some time...

4. I think that´s a good start. And if your traning and diet is OK that will work...