HITT: Is this a normal response?

[lwalker]

HIIT: Is this a normal response?

Hey guys,

I just started doing HITT for the first time this week, and I've noticed something strange. I was wondering if it is common to HITT, or if it's just something else...

In any case, the workout itself is awesome. HITT really works you hard. However, I noticed that later in the day I am fluctuating from extremes of being tired and anxious. At times I can't focus on anything and am pacing about, others I just want to sit down and do nothing but rest. Is this a result of HITT training, is it just that draining but at the same time gives me so much energy that I am stuck in limbo between the two?

Even during my periods of energy I can still feel the muscle fatigue in my legs.

Thanks

 

[DJLegacy2k1]

Its HIIT....not HITT.

Of course if youre not used to HIIT its going to drain you, its a shock to your body. Its much harder on you than say, sitting on a bike. Alot is probably mental.

High Intensity Interval Training, by the way.

-Legacy

 

[lwalker]

Its HIIT....not HITT.

Of course if youre not used to HIIT its going to drain you, its a shock to your body. Its much harder on you than say, sitting on a bike. Alot is probably mental.

High Intensity Interval Training, by the way.

-Legacy

Yeah sorry about the mispelling. I didn't mean to sound like a noob. I was well aware what it stood for it just was a careless typo on my part and I am not sure why. In fact right now I am still finding myself typing HITT despite knowing better.

Anyway, I understand the whole philosophy behind it. I am just surprised at the extreme fatigue it is causing, and the unreal amount of energy is giving me (mentally) while leaving me exhausted physically. In fact, I usually work on T W R, but now I'm going to have to move HIIT to M W F, while lifting on T W R still. Perhaps that is it, perhaps I am borderline overtraining but keeping to my normal routine and trying to incorporate HIIT. Hopefully that is it, since I am changing that around tomorrow as my legs are simply too shot to do a session tomorrow anyhow.

 

[DJLegacy2k1]

I wouldnt do HIIT on lifting days anyways. You can do normal cardi on lifting days no problem, but HIIT is draining, and the only way you could do it on lifting days would be AFTER weights.

-Legacy

 

[lwalker]

Thanks legacy.

I'll definitely switch up my program then and see if it helps. I was definitely not feeling very good yesterday.

 

[st8grad]

Too much too fast could certainly affect brain chemistry. Those types of activity in particular release everything imaginable in your brain. Most notably endorphins, dopamine, and serotonin. So you may be getting periods of coming off that "high" as these levels fluctuate and return to normal or whatever is normal for you. Also the extreme activity could be flooding your body with cortisol which also is going to contribute to this.

Being "anxious" is definitely a sign of too much too fast. We can't measure all these chemicals in your brain and say it is one or the other. So some of that is a guess. But being anxious is nearly certain to be related to the balance of serotonin or dopamine.

I wouldn't venture to guess which because something like adderall makes people anxious, but calms me down. Zoloft calms people down but makes me anxious.

So without all the bullshit I wrote above, just back off a little. Take your time to ramp it up. Knock off a HIIT day and replace it with easier cardio or even just a 1 mile walk after dinner. As you get accustomed to the intensity, then add in more days.

As you might have read Green Tea can be very relaxing. There is an amino acid in green tea called L-Theanine. You can take that, 200mg 3x per day, and get some nice relaxation from it without becoming drowsy or jittery from caffeine.

I would call this overreaching and not overtraining. Good luck.