Answers (4)
0
Bandula,
To fully answer your question, we'll have to address a few things first.
Good cardio is all about heart rate monitoring. A good aerobic zone is anywhere between about 125 and 165 beats per minute. Anything above about 165 is not really necessary for a warm up. There are subcategories of heart rate "ranges" as well, usually split up like this 120-130, 130-140, 140-150, 150-160.
Without going too in-depth, it's important to understand that while people commonly say the "fat burining zone" for heart rate is at the lower end of this spectrum, you burn more fat by keeping your heart rate at the higher end of this range (around 150-160, roughly). This is because at a lower intensity, your body uses a higher proportion of energy from fat. That being said, your body PREFERS carbohydrates.
A good example is this: You're exercising for 30 minutes at around 135 BPM (beats per minute). At this intensity, let's say your body is using 70% carbohydrates and 30% fat for energy, which is close to what is actually happening. At a higher intensity, say 165 BPM, your body may use 90% carbohydrates and 10% fat for energy (I don't think those numbers are correct, this is just to demonstrate a point). HOWEVER... because your body is working at a higher intensity, you will burn more calories from carbohydrates AND fat by exercising the same amount of time. Does that make sense?
In essence, even though your body is using PROPORTIONALLY more fat for energy (aerobic glycolysis) at a lower intensity, you will burn more fat from higher intensity, even though PROPORTIONALLY you're using less fat for energy at a higher intensity level...
That means that if you're doing aerobic exercise and you want to burn 100 calories, you can either do a higher intensity for a shorter duration, or a lower intensity for a longer duration. Both will accomplish the same goal. Now, if your goals are to improve cardiac output, then we get into a whole different set of rules and regulations. As a general rule of thumb, and this is NOT a specific recommendation for you because I don't know your history or program, good cardio IN MY OPINION is aerobic exercise that's strenuous, but not so strenuous that you can't maintain the same intensity level for 80% of the time that you're performing the exercise (leaving the other 20% for warm up and cool down). I generally like to say on the safe side, good cardio is cardio that you can do at a steady state for at least 20 minutes. Now, there are MANY MANY MANY different opinions on this. I'm just sharing what seems to work best for my clients.
In regards to your question, you can see where short and fast, and long and "slow" can accomplish the same thing.
BUT for purposes of a warm up, don't overthink it. You just want to do 5-10 minutes of low/moderate intensity aerobic work so that you get the blood flowing. It's never good to just jump into a full-on sprint for a warm up. Gradually build up your heart rate, because your body needs 3 to 4 minutes to adjust to the increased oxygen demand when you start exercising, and when you stop exercising. That's why a warm up and a cool down are both equally important. By exercising at a moderate intensity for your warm up, you allow your body to get ready for more intense exercise. Be sure to stretch while your muscles are warm. Never stretch a cold muscle, as a general rule of thumb. Your weight has little to do with your warm up routine or cardio in general. The world of jogging, running, power walking leaves room for a wide variety of programs. I think you'll find that building up to a steady state that can be maintained for an extended period of time will best assist you in your fat loss goals.
I went in a weird direction with this, and it's a lot of information that's all over the place, but I hope that it was comprehensible enough, and I hope I answered your question!
To fully answer your question, we'll have to address a few things first.
Good cardio is all about heart rate monitoring. A good aerobic zone is anywhere between about 125 and 165 beats per minute. Anything above about 165 is not really necessary for a warm up. There are subcategories of heart rate "ranges" as well, usually split up like this 120-130, 130-140, 140-150, 150-160.
Without going too in-depth, it's important to understand that while people commonly say the "fat burining zone" for heart rate is at the lower end of this spectrum, you burn more fat by keeping your heart rate at the higher end of this range (around 150-160, roughly). This is because at a lower intensity, your body uses a higher proportion of energy from fat. That being said, your body PREFERS carbohydrates.
A good example is this: You're exercising for 30 minutes at around 135 BPM (beats per minute). At this intensity, let's say your body is using 70% carbohydrates and 30% fat for energy, which is close to what is actually happening. At a higher intensity, say 165 BPM, your body may use 90% carbohydrates and 10% fat for energy (I don't think those numbers are correct, this is just to demonstrate a point). HOWEVER... because your body is working at a higher intensity, you will burn more calories from carbohydrates AND fat by exercising the same amount of time. Does that make sense?
In essence, even though your body is using PROPORTIONALLY more fat for energy (aerobic glycolysis) at a lower intensity, you will burn more fat from higher intensity, even though PROPORTIONALLY you're using less fat for energy at a higher intensity level...
That means that if you're doing aerobic exercise and you want to burn 100 calories, you can either do a higher intensity for a shorter duration, or a lower intensity for a longer duration. Both will accomplish the same goal. Now, if your goals are to improve cardiac output, then we get into a whole different set of rules and regulations. As a general rule of thumb, and this is NOT a specific recommendation for you because I don't know your history or program, good cardio IN MY OPINION is aerobic exercise that's strenuous, but not so strenuous that you can't maintain the same intensity level for 80% of the time that you're performing the exercise (leaving the other 20% for warm up and cool down). I generally like to say on the safe side, good cardio is cardio that you can do at a steady state for at least 20 minutes. Now, there are MANY MANY MANY different opinions on this. I'm just sharing what seems to work best for my clients.
In regards to your question, you can see where short and fast, and long and "slow" can accomplish the same thing.
BUT for purposes of a warm up, don't overthink it. You just want to do 5-10 minutes of low/moderate intensity aerobic work so that you get the blood flowing. It's never good to just jump into a full-on sprint for a warm up. Gradually build up your heart rate, because your body needs 3 to 4 minutes to adjust to the increased oxygen demand when you start exercising, and when you stop exercising. That's why a warm up and a cool down are both equally important. By exercising at a moderate intensity for your warm up, you allow your body to get ready for more intense exercise. Be sure to stretch while your muscles are warm. Never stretch a cold muscle, as a general rule of thumb. Your weight has little to do with your warm up routine or cardio in general. The world of jogging, running, power walking leaves room for a wide variety of programs. I think you'll find that building up to a steady state that can be maintained for an extended period of time will best assist you in your fat loss goals.
I went in a weird direction with this, and it's a lot of information that's all over the place, but I hope that it was comprehensible enough, and I hope I answered your question!
0
Actually, you use warm up with dynamic movement, then strength train and THEN do cardio... not cardio first.
0
What is your goal?
It is important to remember that you get what you train for. We call it the SAID principle in exercise science. SAID stands for "specific adaptations to imposed demands." This means if your goal is to get strong you must training in a way to get strong.
If you want to increase fat free mass and decrease fat mass then you would have to train in a manner to effect this.
Now as far as the second part of your question is concerned. Let's talk about the "fat burning during exercise myth."
Here is the condensed version. (Please excuse the caps, it is for emphasis).
It is important to understand the phrase FUEL SOURCE. Here's is an example. Petroleum is a FUEL SOURCE. From petroleum we get gasoline to run our cars. Refineries get petroleum and make gasoline to use our cars. Petroleum in its raw state is not good to me. It has to be broken down so that my car can utilize it.
It is the same thing with the body. The FUEL SOURCES the body converts into the fuel that we need to move are CARBOHYDRATES AND FATS. The body favors using a higher percentage of CARBOHYDRATES as a fuel source when we are engaged in physical activity. When we are sleep the body favors using FAT as a fuel source. So the only time the body truly burns fat is when one is sleeping.
If I were in your shoes, I would find out the MET value of the exercise you re engaged in. In this way you can calculate your caloric expenditure.
Please reach out to me if you have any other questions. In the meantime...
Be well.
It is important to remember that you get what you train for. We call it the SAID principle in exercise science. SAID stands for "specific adaptations to imposed demands." This means if your goal is to get strong you must training in a way to get strong.
If you want to increase fat free mass and decrease fat mass then you would have to train in a manner to effect this.
Now as far as the second part of your question is concerned. Let's talk about the "fat burning during exercise myth."
Here is the condensed version. (Please excuse the caps, it is for emphasis).
It is important to understand the phrase FUEL SOURCE. Here's is an example. Petroleum is a FUEL SOURCE. From petroleum we get gasoline to run our cars. Refineries get petroleum and make gasoline to use our cars. Petroleum in its raw state is not good to me. It has to be broken down so that my car can utilize it.
It is the same thing with the body. The FUEL SOURCES the body converts into the fuel that we need to move are CARBOHYDRATES AND FATS. The body favors using a higher percentage of CARBOHYDRATES as a fuel source when we are engaged in physical activity. When we are sleep the body favors using FAT as a fuel source. So the only time the body truly burns fat is when one is sleeping.
If I were in your shoes, I would find out the MET value of the exercise you re engaged in. In this way you can calculate your caloric expenditure.
Please reach out to me if you have any other questions. In the meantime...
Be well.
0
I say, for fat burning, do your cardio last or on a seperate day. Cardio is for the heart and lungs and if you have them already worked from strength training then your cardio has already been started, so, now you can finish it. Don't try and set records here because your not working with a full tank, just monitor your heart rate.
