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=HIIT Recommendations=
Below are my recommendations based on my interpretation of the available evidence. These recommendations for incorporating HIIT in your training depend on your current fitness goals.
* I reduce injury risk, I strongly recommend performing HIIT on a stationary bike trainer rather than running. See "HIIT Training Methods" below for details.
* Ease into HIIT gently, following [[Safe Speedwork]] recommendations.
* For sedentary people, HIIT is probably more effective in building initial fitness than Continuous Moderate Exercise. Three sessions per week of [[#Wingate| Wingate]] HIIT on a stationary bike should provide an improvement in fitness for a modest time commitment. Using [[#WinTab| WinTab]] style HIIT may produce similar benefits for a lower time commitment.
* There is no direct evidence to indicate if HIIT will help athletes focused on improving their performance in events lasting longer than an hour. However, it seems reasonable that HIIT would provide some benefits. Including 1 or 2 Wingate or WinTab HIIT sessions per week may be appropriate. As noted in the prior bullet point for shorter duration athletes, care should be taken to monitor [[TRIMP| Training Load]] and [[Training Monotony]]. As with athletes focusing on events lasting less than an hour, the stationary bike has the lowest injury risk, but there may be benefits to other training modes. However, athletes competing in longer duration events typically don't have the same need for the very high paces that are sometimes seen at the end of shorter events.
* There is no evidence to suggest that HIIT can be used to replace Continuous Moderate Exercise such as the [[Long Run]] that is a core part of endurance training.
* HIIT can rapidly deplete [[Glycogen stores]], and while these stores are restored fairly quickly afterward, it seems like much of that may come from breaking down muscle protein. For the research behind this, see [[Glycogen#Glycogen_Depletion_and_HIIT| Glycogen Depletion and HIIT]]. Taking in calories in the form of carbohydrate and protein very soon after HIIT will help prevent muscle loss.
=Incorporating HIIT In Your Training Regime =
Here are some suggestions for adding HIIT to your training. These are not hard and fast rules, as there is a lot of individual variability.
''Main article: [[Tabata]]''
The [[Tabata]] workout is one of the best -known protocols for HIIT and consists of 7-8 repeats of 20 seconds at 170% of [[VO2max|V̇O<sub>2</sub>max]] with 10 seconds rest. The number of repetitions is defined by how long the required intensity can be maintained. An athlete should be able to complete 7-8 intervals; if 9 can be performed, the intensity is increased. However, few people actually follow the [[Tabata]] protocol because it requires specialist equipment to measure [[VO2max|V̇O<sub>2</sub>max]], then calculate 1.7x the [[VO2max|V̇O<sub>2</sub>max]] workload that should be used. In practice, most people do what I call the WinTab workout (see below).
==Wingate==
This style of HIIT is based around the Wingate test, which is used to measure peak anaerobic power and anaerobic capacity<ref name="Vandewalle-1987"/>. The Wingate HIIT uses 30 seconds of 'all out' intensity, followed by ~4 minutes of recovery, repeated 4-6 times.
* A stationary bike is much safer than writing outdoors at extreme intensities.
* The many studies have used a stationary bike to perform HIIT.
* Riding out of the saddle is closer to moderate running in terms of muscle usage than riding seated.
* A direct measure of intensity through power is often possible.
* Lowest risk of injury.