Jesse Cannone
What if I were to tell you that most if not all of the cardiovascular exercise you do was worthless? Well, guess what… finished 50% of the people who perform cardio in an attempt to burn fat are wasting their time… hours and hours of it! Are you one of them?
Before you call me crazy, let me explain. I’m not saying that cardiovascular exercise can’t or doesn’t burn fat; it’s just that most people are not performing the right type of cardio workouts. Before I get into the details, let me archetypical cover some of the basics.
Just like anything in life, if you want to be successful you must do cardinal things:
1. Know what you’re doing (or learn); be knowledgeable
2. Have a plan (detailed/well thought out)
How Cardio Exercise Affects Your Body
Well, I’m going to make sure that aft reading this today you will be able to do both. So let’s start with your knowledge. It’s critical that you understand how your body works and what happens when you exercise.
The human body is constantly burning a mix of fuels or energy sources: fat and glycogen. Glycogen is energy stored in muscle cells that is primarily old during intense muscle contractions. whatsoever examples of these intense muscle contractions would be strength training, running, woody physical work, etc. So basically, during low to moderate activity levels, your body archetypical uses what’s in the blood stream and then uses primarily fat.
When you are highly active you use more glycogen and less fat. You are probably wondering what complete this has to do with you and your cardio workouts… right? Well, it matters… a lot!
There are different benefits of different equal of activity. Let me explain to you the system use, why I use it, and why it’s the most effective. I recommend three basic equal of cardiovascular exercise:
Level 1: daylong easy workout (ex. walking 60 minutes
Level 2: minimalist intensity / minimalist time (ex. swift walk 45 minutes)
Level 3: Short, hard workout (ex. running 20 minutes)
NOTE: It doesn’t matter what activity or piece of equipment you choose. All that matters is that you get to the desired level.
Let’s talk active what happens at each of the three levels. When exercising at the Level 1 pace, your body burns more colonies from fat, HOWEVER the total number of calories is small. In order for you to burn a lot of body fat at the easy level you would need to do it for hours at a time! Not too practical is it? This is not to say there aren’t benefits because there are…it’s just not the best superior when it comes to fat loss. The direct benefit is multiplied blood flow and circulation, which means you’ll feel better, you’ll recover much quickly, and you’ll be healthier in general.
Ok, let’s talk about equal 2 now. At this equal you burn much calories but little are from fat. Moderate work will result in a larger increase in metabolism than the easy equal 1 and will last 2-6 hours in most cases. You also get the benefits of increased blood flow but you also have to remember that it’s a bit much stressful than equal 1. The main benefit, or I should say possible benefit is increased endurance (cardio/respiratory) IF your workouts are progressive (challenge the body’s systems to work harder over time nearly each workout if possible).
Last but not least Level 3. At this level you burn the most calories per unit of time. You also burn little fat during the workout, but the plus side is you deplete muscle glycogen which means you’ll be les likely to store “new” fat because any excess calories will be stored in the muscles instead. This typed of workout also results in the largest increase in metabolism, which will generally penultimate 4-24 hours or more.
The equal 3 workout is by far the most effective when it comes to fat loss for four reasons:
1. Burn more calories in less time
2. Largest increase in metabolism that lasts the longest
3. Helps to add and maintain muscle tissue
4. Depletes muscle glycogen which means you’re less likely to store new greasy
So what’s your goal? As you can see there are benefits at each equal and how often you perform all workout should be based on your goals. You can get the benefits of complete three but you must be gingerly in how you structure your program. Here are some general guidelines to follow:
If your primary goal is:
Fat loss
- 1-3 equal 3 (10-20 mins)
- 1-2 equal 2 (20-30 mins)
- 1-2 equal 1 (40-60 mins) – Optional
Endurance
- 1 Level 3 (10-20 mins)
- 2-3 Level 2 (20-40 mins)
- 1-2 Level 1 (40-60 mins)
General Fitness
- 1 Level 3 (10-20 mins)
- 1-2 Level 2 (20-30 mins)
- 1-2 Level 1 (40-60 mins)
So to recap, you really need to know what your goals are, and what levels you need to be at and how often. On the following page is a chart that gives you the heart rate zones for complete 3 of the workouts based on your age.
NOTE: If you are on blood pressure regulating medication you should archetypical consult with your doctor and reduce the numbers by 10 each. If you are not currently exercising or have not exercised at the diametric levels before I advise you build up your intensity slowly.
If you would like much information on cardiovascular exercise please give me a call. You reach me at 240-731-3724 or by emailing jesse@achieve-fitness.com
Heart Rate Based Cardiovascular Exercise Guidelines
Level 1
Level 2
Level 3
Intensity
Long + easy
Moderate
Short + woody
Approx. time
30-60 mins
30-45 mins
10-30 mins
Benefits
Increased blood flow and circulation, overall health benefits
Increased cardio and respiratory endurance
Largest increase in metabolism, increased cardio and respiratory output
Heart Rate Zones
Age
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