Frequently Asked Questions

Q: I weigh 500 lbs. and I'm 5 feet tall, how do I lose weight?

Q: I've been training and/or doing various sports on and off for years. How do I know if I have a good aerobic base?

Q: Does it matter what types of exercises I use for interval training? I've heard some people say that running up hills is the best kind of interval training. Others swear by the prowler and yet others say conditioning ropes are the absolute best.

Q: How about 'circuit training'? Is it effective to pick a bunch of exercises like lifting light weights, doing kinds of jumps, doing pullups and stuff like that, and just cycle through them continually, as quickly as possible?

Q: How can I taper to reach optimal condition for my particular event?

Q: I've heard conditioning inhibits strength gains. Can I do both conditioning and strength training?

Short answer:

Long answer:

Q: Fighter X has great conditioning and I've heard he never does any LISS. That means I shouldn't do any either, right?

Q: Fighter X has great conditioning and I've heard he never does any HIIT. That means I shouldn't do any either, right?

Q: I've heard that to get in good condition, I only have to do something called Tabatas. Is that true?

Tosa said: ↑



The particpants who did the interval work were encourage to complete 7 to 8 sets of 20s work at 170% vo2max, followed by 10s rest. Exercise was terminated if the pedaling dropped below 85 RPM, and if more that 9 sets were completed, intensity was increased by 11w. This was done 4 days a week. One day a week they exercised for 30 minutes at 70% vo2max.



The results were that the particpants who did interval training improved both their aerobic and anaerobic conditioning, while the partipants who did steady state improved only their aerobic conditioning.



As you should be able to see, there's a lot more to "The Tabata Method" than just doing 20s work, 10s rest. You should also be able to see that the study doesn't demonstrate that there's anything particularly special about this training method, rather it demonstrates that in trained athletes, short, intense interval work, accompanied with a moderate amount of steady state work can improve both aerobic and anaerobic conditioning.



In other words, "Tabatas" are a fitness industry buzz word that are not connected to the study in any meaningful way. Instead of doing "tabatas", plan your training based on your present condition and your goals. Dr. Izumi Tabata completed a study comparing 6 weeks of steady state training, to 6 weeks of intereval training. All particpants were already high level athletes, and the workouts were done on ergometers (exercise bikes), with at 10 minute warm-up at 50% vo2max. The particpants doing steady state work did 60 minute workouts, at 70% vo2max, pedaling at 70rpm 5 days a week.The particpants who did the interval work were encourage to complete 7 to 8 sets of 20s work at 170% vo2max, followed by 10s rest. Exercise was terminated if the pedaling dropped below 85 RPM, and if more that 9 sets were completed, intensity was increased by 11w. This was done 4 days a week. One day a week they exercised for 30 minutes at 70% vo2max.The results were that the particpants who did interval training improved both their aerobic and anaerobic conditioning, while the partipants who did steady state improved only their aerobic conditioning.As you should be able to see, there's a lot more to "The Tabata Method" than just doing 20s work, 10s rest. You should also be able to see that the study doesn't demonstrate that there's anything particularly special about this training method, rather it demonstrates that in trained athletes, short, intense interval work, accompanied with a moderate amount of steady state work can improve both aerobic and anaerobic conditioning.In other words, "Tabatas" are a fitness industry buzz word that are not connected to the study in any meaningful way. Instead of doing "tabatas", plan your training based on your present condition and your goals. Click to expand...

Q: I injured my X and it fucking hurts, what should I do?

Q: What about stretching, should I do it?