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60-Second HIIT Beats 30-Second HIIT
Length of intervals and recovery breaks influence training’s effectiveness.
By Shirley Archer, JD, MA
Jun 8, 2020
Next time you hear groans as you call out the start of another interval, remind everyone that when recovery breaks are too long, they undermine the effectiveness of high-intensity interval training. Researchers at Liverpool John Moores University in England compared fitness outcomes for participants in a 60HIIT protocol (six to 10 60–second intervals with 60-second rest breaks) with results for those in a 30HIIT protocol (four to eight 30–second intervals with 120-second rest breaks).
Subjects included 26 previously inactive adult men and women. Participants performed either of the two protocols for 6 weeks, three times a week. Investigators measured aerobic capacity, arterial stiffness and body composition. Data analysis showed improvements in aerobic capacity in the 60HIIT group members, but not the 30HIIT group. No differences occurred in any parameters with 30HIIT.
The study was presented at The Physiological Society’s conference, Future Physiology 2019: Translating Cellular Mechanisms into Lifelong Health Strategies, in December 2019.
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Shirley Archer, JD, MA
Shirley Archer, JD, MA, is the 2008 IDEA Fitness Instructor of the Year and is IDEA's mind-body-spirit spokesperson. She is a certified yoga and Pilates teacher and an award-winning author based in Los Angeles, California, and Zurich, Switzerland. Two of her books, The Walking Deck and The Strength and Toning Deck, are now featured as iPhone apps. Contact her at www.shirleyarcher.com.
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I do not like how the study was designed-it doesn’t give a clear enough picture. Either keep work duration consistent & vary rest time or keep rest time consistent and vary work duration. As is, maybe it’s too much rest that is the factor…
Natalie, I agree this doesnt seem like a complete study. I’d be more interested if you did 1 minute intervals with 1 minute rest compared to 30 second intervals with 1 minute rest. This study seems like we are comparing apples to oranges. Yes they are both round (exercises) but they are not the same color (work) and they taste different (rest).
The study set up struck me the same way. Perhaps a study with 60/60; 30/60; and 30/30 would be more revealing. Also, more participants would be better.
Totally agree
What i think is interval can bring boredom to the mind while doing the exercise.
I agree that the title of the article is misleading. A 30 sec/ 30 sec interval may have produced the same results as the 60 sec/ 60 sec interval. As it is, this study is very poor. To me and probably many other fitness professionals, the rest break of 4 times the activity period would obviously preclude any significant measurable health benefits. While any exercise is better than none, measurable benefits are what we are discussing here.
I would agree. I have been trying to find some info on the measurable benefits of doing 30/30 vs 60/60 but every site only compares 60/60 with 30/120 🤷🏼♀️
I definitely feel like I can reach a higher speed doing 30/30 but also my heart rate doesn’t drop as much with only a 30sec rest.