Chicago (+SF) Training: Adding HIIT

Started adding HIIT to the schedule. I've never been one to sprint. I was always happy that I could do the distances, but I figured it'd be nice to add speed to the workout.

So, looking at:

http://www.johnstonefitness.com/php/training.php

Which is an AWSOME site for inspiration, he did HIIT training.

I found this workout at:

http://www.musclemedia.com/training/hiit_table.asp

Table 1
	HIIT Workout 1	HIIT Workout 2	HIIT Workout 3
Week 1	One 4-minute cycle (as shown in Table 2)	One 4-minute cycle (same as previous workout)	One 5-minute cycle (add one 30-second sprint and one 30-second jog)
Week 2	One 5-minute cycle (same as previous workout)	One 5-minute cycle (add one 30-second sprint and one 30-second jog)	One 6-minute cycle (same as previous workout)
Week 3	One 7-minute cycle (add one 30-second sprint and one 30-second jog)	One 7-minute cycle (same as previous workout)	One 8-minute cycle (add one 30-second sprint and one 30-second jog)
Week 4	One 8-minute cycle (same as previous workout)	One 9-minute cycle (add one 30-second sprint and one 30-second jog)	One 9-minute cycle (same as previous workout)
Week 5	One 10-minute cycle (add one 30-second sprint and one 30-second jog)	One 10-minute cycle (same as previous workout)	One 11-minute cycle (add one 30-second sprint and one 30-second jog)
Week 6	One 11-minute cycle (same as previous workout)	One 12-minute cycle (add one 30-second sprint and one 30-second jog)	One 12-minute cycle (same as previous workout)
Week 7	One 13-minute cycle (add one 30-second sprint and one 30-second jog)	One 13-minute cycle (same as previous workout)	One 14-minute cycle (add one 30-second sprint and one 30-second jog)
Week 8	One 14-minute cycle (same as previous workout)	One 15-minute cycle (add one 30-second sprint and one 30-second jog)	One 15-minute cycle (same as previous workout)

Table 2

Jogging for 30 seconds followed immediately by

Sprinting for 30 seconds followed immediately by

Jogging for 30 seconds followed immediately by

Sprinting for 30 seconds followed immediately by

Jogging for 30 seconds followed immediately by

Sprinting for 30 seconds followed immediately by

Jogging for 30 seconds followed immediately by

Sprinting for 30 seconds

I just did my first attempt on yesterday for a 4min stretch (+5min warmup/ 5min cooldown). I did it on a treadmill just because I KNOW that if I do this outside, I'll freakin' cheat.

I did it yesterday AM early b/c I figured I'd have enough for a quick 4miler in the afternoon since the 1/2 marathon on Monday made me adjust the Hal Higdon training for the week.

WOW, it was ridiculous! I actually did a 6min stretch with 30sec at 20:00min/mile pace and 30sec at 6:40min/mile. OMG after the short 5min + 6min + 5min workout, I was DONE! It doesn't feel like an 8miler. It was completely different. That short span had me sweating like a dog and the pains in the legs were MUCH different.

I figure to add this routine to the Tues/Thurs workouts. I figured I would be able to rest up during the day to keep the Hal Higdon maintenance runs. I was going to add it to the AM Saturday runs before the "easy" short long run prior the the long run on Sunday. There is NO way! So, it's Friday AM for this.

I'll see how it works after a couple weeks. I hope to gain speed and not injury.