Cardio exercises are great for weight loss or to challenge the heart muscle, but what’s the best way to do it? Many cardio machines have a “fat loss” setting, and you may have heard the fitness industry’s latest buzzword: high intensity interval training.
The simplest answer is that both techniques should be used for a well-rounded and comprehensive cardio program. Here’s why:
Steady state training is much easier on the body. In this type of training, you would perform a cardio exercise at a moderate pace, at about 60% of your maximum heart rate. You’ll perform this exercise for 40 minutes to one hour. At a low intensity, your body will use your fat stores as its primary fuel, so you’ll burn more fat cells using this technique. Duration of exercise is important, because the maximum fat-burning benefit begins about 30 minutes into low-intensity exercise.
High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) is a much more vigorous training method with short bursts of energy at 90% of your maximum heart rate. This method usually follows a 2:1 ratio of vigorous training to easy training, but the ratio can be altered as you improve. An example of HIIT might be thirty seconds of sprinting followed by a minute of jogging. You’ll perform enough repetitions to fill 20 minutes of time. Because of the high intensity, this type of training can be done in a short period of time and shouldn’t be repeated more often than at least every other day, preferably only a few times a week. At a high intensity, your body will use carbohydrates as its primary fuel, not fat cells as in steady state training. The real fat-burning benefit to this type of training actually occurs after the training is complete. Studies have shown that HIIT increases your resting metabolic rate, allowing you to burn calories at an increased rate, EVEN WHILE AT REST! This effect can last up to 24-hours after your workout.
So, what should your cardio program look like? I’d recommend using both steady state and high intensity methods several times a week to train your heart, your muscles, and for fat loss. Regardless of your fitness goals (whether to lose fat, gain muscle, or maintain) cardio should be performed regularly. I’d also recommend utilizing many methods, including treadmill, elliptical, rowing machine, swimming, boxing, in performing cardio exercise. This helps you to balance the muscles used to perform the work while preventing burnout and boredom. Be sure and spend 5 minutes warming up and cooling down for each exercise.
Sunday: Rest
Monday: Warm up, then perform High-Intensity Interval Training on treadmill: Run for one minute at 9 or 10 miles per hour on treadmill, then jog for one minute at 5 miles per hour. Repeat 10 times for a total of 20 minutes. Cool down.
Tuesday: Warm up, then perform steady state training on elliptical: Perform 60 minutes of exercise at resistance level 10. Cool down.
Wednesday: Rest
Thursday: Warm up, then perform steady state training in swimming pool: Swim long laps at a comfortable pace for 60 minutes. Cool down.
Friday: Warm up, then do a high-intensity interval workout on bike: Do one minute bursts of energy at near-maximum intensity followed by a brisk pace for one minute. Cool down.
Saturday: Organize a couples tennis match with friends for fun and exercise!
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