JR,
It was in
this thread that I was told that a 2 minute interval would not be HIIT, because even if I'm working hard (and getting an effective workout), it could not be real sprinting, since that would entail something that could not be sustained after 30 seconds.
I suppose the semantics don't really matter, except that those other posts left me wondering whether I should look for something other than the elliptical machine. These machines are fine for leaving me gasping after 60-90 seconds, but it is hard to hard to mimic a sprint that would leave me in that condition after just 30 seconds.