Hugo Rivera New Site » Cardiovascular Exercises

Which Aerobic Exercise Is Better for Fat Loss: Walking On The Treadmill or On The Pavement?

admin — Mon, 30 May 2011 16:32:56 +0000

Which Aerobic Exercise Is Better for Fat Loss: Walking On The Treadmill or On The Pavement?

Learn which one of these two aerobic exercises is better for fat loss.

Which Aerobic Exercise Is Better for Fat Loss: Walking On The Treadmill or On The Pavement?

Answer: While on the surface it would seem that both activities have the same exact effect on the body, this is not the case. Walking on the pavement is better than walking on the treadmill because you need to pull your weight forward through the use of your glutes and hamstrings. With the treadmill, a lot of work is taken out from the walking endeavor as the machine moves the floor for you and all you need to do is keep up with the machine. Therefore, many muscles that are used to execute the walking activity on the pavement are not activated when on a treadmill. As a result, not as many muscles are used and less calories are burned, thus making the activity less productive.

Though at first I had problems comprehending this fact since both activities look so similar, I decided to give it a try by walking on the pavement in lieu of using my treadmill one day. The first time I did it, not only was I pretty winded through most of my walk, but also I was very sore on my glute and hamstring region the following day. That’s when I found out that it certainly takes more muscles to walk on the street than it does to keep up with the treadmill. At the end of the day, this benefits you by providing more cardiovascular system improvement, and also more calorie burning during the activity.

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Aerobics FAQ -Questions About Aerobics Get Answered

admin — Tue, 10 May 2011 08:19:56 +0000

Aerobics FAQ -Questions About Aerobics Get Answered

I have received alot of questions lately on the subject of aerobic exercise due to a lot of recent research that has been conducted on the topic of aerobics regarding what is the best way and time to conduct them for optimal fat loss results while keeping the muscle. Thus, I decided to put this aerobics FAQ together in order to clear up the confusion.

One thing that I would like to mention, having an engineering background with experience doing research and development, when a research study is conducted there are many variables that one must account for in order to ensure that you are getting the right answer to the postulated question. If an important variable is disregarded, your test results will either come out inconclusive or flat our wrong.

How Fat Loss Happens

Before I move on to talk about the topic of aerobics, I think it is important that I refresh your memory on how fat loss:

Weight loss is a function of calories in vs. calories out for the most part. If you take in less than what your body burns on a given day, you will lose weight. Simple.
The tissue that you burn will depend on your macronutrient intake (intake of carbs, proteins and fats). If you eat the right combination and sources of carbs, proteins and fats, you will keep (or even gain) muscle as you lose body fat. If you take in less calories than what you burn but you eat the wrong foods, then you will still lose some fat but you will mostly lose muscle along with it due to the fact that the nutrition is poor. This in turn lowers your metabolism and makes it harder for you to keep losing body fat.
The best way to accomplish a permanent loss in body fat while keeping or increasing your muscle mass is weight training.
Aerobic exercise is used only in conjunction to weight training as a means of burning extra calories in order to accelerate the weight loss efforts. When performed in the right amounts and correctly, you will get some very good health benefits from aerobics as well as burn extra calories. Aerobics should always be done in conjunction to weight training, never as a standalone solution.

With that said, let’s now cover the topics that are causing confusion in light of the recent research. If there is a question that you may have about aerobics not covered here, please feel free to email me and I will be happy to include it in this discussion.

What Is The Best Time to Perform Aerobics

I’ve always recommended cardio first thing in the morning on an empty stomach or right after the workout as during these times you get to burn a greater percentage of the calories used from fat.

In reality, the type of fuel burned is not as important as the total amount of calories burned since at the end of the day, the biggest factor in determining fat loss is whether or not we have a caloric deficit. Now, as a competitive bodybuilder I have always wanted to have every single edge I could, so for me, aerobics on an empty stomach have always been a part of my schedule.

In order to protect muscle from being burned I have always properly hydrated myself by consuming 16 ounces of water prior to my aerobics along with 5 grams of creatine, 5 grams of glutamine and 10 grams of BCAAs (Branched Chain Amino Acids). In addition, I always consume 200mg of caffeine prior to the workout also as research indicates this practice spares muscle glycogen use and facilitates the release of fats instead. By the way, if muscle glycogen is being spared, then that means that proteins are protected as well.

If you cannot do aerobics in the morning, and for whatever reason you cannot do them after the workout, then simply do them 2-3 hours after a meal. It will not be the end of the world to not being able to do it first thing in the morning. All I state is that in order to get maximum benefit, especially for a competitive bodybuilder, I feel that first thing in the morning is the best time; besides the fact that doing it at this time wakes you up and makes you feel good right from the start of the day due to the endorphin release aerobics cause.

What Happens If I Am Not In The Fat Burning Zone?

The fat burning zone is just a formula that provides you with a good heart rate to shoot for in order to exert enough work to burn calories and work your heart without over exerting yourself or undertraining. It should not be taken as an absolute number that dictates whether you lose fat or not. Remember that at the end of the day, fat loss happens when you burn more calories than what you consume on a daily basis.

I suggest that if you are just starting out, you strive to exert an effort that gets your heart beating at (220-Age) x .75 in beats per minute. As you get more advanced, you can push yourself more in order to burn calories. Being above what is called the Fat Burning Zone will not burn muscle tissue.

I Have Heard That If You Do Your Aerobics Too Hard You Don’t Burn Fat?

The harder you perform the aerobics, the more carbs are burned during the workout. Even in the morning on en empty stomach, if your aerobics are very intense, your body may have to burn some stored glycogen (carbs). The lower your aerobic intensity, the more fat you burn during the workout. However, at the end of the day, whether you burn more calories from carbs or fats during the aerobic activity is not as important as the total amount of calories burned. Remember that what is most important for fat loss is the total daily deficit of calories.

Never lose sight of the fact that the main way aerobics help you to lose fat is by helping you to create a caloric deficit. Thus, I say that when it comes to aerobics you should push yourself as your condition gets better.

HIIT vs Conventional Aerobics: Which Type of Aerobics is Better?

There is research to back up both high intensity/shorter duration aerobics as well as more steady state, conventional aerobics. Which one is better? My opinion is that you try both and choose the one that you love the most. The main benefit to HIIT is that it takes less time than conventional steady state aerobics and when done correctly, you can burn an impressive amount of calories in a relatively short time. However, for me personally, straight HIIT protocols put too much strain on my nervous system. In addition, I enjoy the feeling of a longer cardio session. Thus, just choose the one that you enjoy and do it consistently. Remember that consistency of execution is one of the most important things to get results.

How Do I Perform My Aerobics?

Personally, while HIIT is too much for my nervous system, I don’t exactly do steady state aerobics. I introduce periods of higher intensity during my steady state cardio, which then turns my cardio session into a hybrid one. For example, I may do 10 minutes of steady state cardio, followed by 5 minutes of higher intensity (alternating between 1 minute of high intensity and 1 minute of low intensity), 10 minutes of steady state, 5 minutes of my own HIIT version and then 5-10 minutes of steady state.

Can I Die From a Heart Attack Doing Aerobics?

So I have come across some experts warning about aerobics causing heart attacks. Some researches claim that in some elite endurance athletes, such as marathon runners, their incredible amount of aerobic work may cause heart damage. However, even in this elite group, the probability of that happening is tiny. As a matter of fact, according to the American Journal of Cardiology:

“The overall prevalence of sudden cardiac death during the marathon was only 0.002%, strikingly lower than for several other variables of risk for premature death calculated for the general U.S. population.”

Thus, I am not looking to stop my moderate amount of aerobic exercise any time soon. And besides, I should mention that a good friend of mine, a former special forces colonel whom I’m very proud to call my friend, is a 70 year old marathon runner who has completed the Boston Marathon twice now (one of those times at his 70 year old mark) and he has a much healthier heart than most of us put together.

With that said, again I re-state that I am not looking to stop my moderate amount of aerobics exercise any time soon. Call me a rebel. As a matter of fact, if you are looking to die, the best thing that you can do is to stop everything you are doing and not move. Inactivity, in my opinion, is the leading cause of death.

Some Studies Have Shown That Aerobics Don’t Impact Your Fat Burning Abilities

Now this one is really a joke because when you look into these studies you notice that they did not control the diets of the individuals on it. Sometimes I swear that it seems as if some researchers simply disregard some variables in order to have test results that make the news (news love to publish shocking things like this).

So of course if you have a study where the individuals burned 500 calories during the aerobic activity, but had diets that supplied 500 calories more than what these individuals burned on a given day, then I guarantee you that they would not lose any weight. Does this mean that aerobics have no impact on fat burning? Obviously not. It simply means that the participants were eating too much!

I can see it right now; imagine a test where the participants eat 1000 calories above their maintenance. The participants do long aerobic sessions that burn 700 calories. However, at the end of the study the participants gain fat. I can see the headlines: “Aerobics make you gain weight!” However, if such a ridiculous study with an equally ridiculous conclusion comes out, by then you will be armed with the information presented in this article, and thus, you will know better.

Conclusion

Based on all of the above, here is what I think you should do with your aerobics program:

If you are a competitive athlete then I would suggest doing aerobics first thing in the morning on en empty stomach. The choice of whether to do steady state aerobics or HIIT is something that you and your pre-contest coach will need to determine. If you have no pre-contest coach, then my advice is to implement my hybrid aerobics described above which give you the best of both worlds. Because extremely lean bodies do not behave like normal ones I feel that if fasted cardio offers the slightest possibility of burning some fat that cannot be tapped otherwise, I want to make sure I take advantage of that. My take on the subject is that if losing lean mass is the biggest issue that fasted cardio presents, I feel that proper hydration, BCAA supplementation, creatine and some glutamine can deal with that.
If you are recreational bodybuilder with no competition in mind, I would still suggest trying to do your aerobics first thing in the morning for all reasons specified above. If you cannot do your cardio in the morning, then try doing the aerobics immediately after your bodybuilding workouts and if that is not possible, then at any time that is 2-3 hours after a meal.
For recreational bodybuilders I also suggest that you choose the type of aerobics that you like doing the most, whether steady state, HIIT, or my hybrid version. If you enjoy all three, feel free to alternate between aerobic types also. I feel each type has its own benefits and there is no type that is better than the other, in my opinion.
Remember that consistency of execution is the key to long term bodybuilding gains. That is why it is important that you choose an aerobic plan that you enjoy since otherwise, it will be easy to just drop the whole aerobic program together.
Don’t forget either what I said in the beginning: Losses in body fat are a result of a caloric deficit, so without this, no matter what cardio you do or what the timing is, no fat loss will happen.

If you find the information of this website useful, please feel free to check out any of my best selling natural bodybuilding and fitness publications here. Also, don’t forget to subscribe to my YouTube page at www.youtube.com/hugoriverafitness and to CLICK LIKE on my Hugo Rivera Best Selling Fitness Author Fan Page.

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Natural Bodybuilding Video: Cardio for Fat Loss, Part III

admin — Mon, 21 Mar 2011 22:18:50 +0000

Natural Bodybuilding Video: Cardio for Fat Loss, Part III

In part III of my cardio for fat loss video series you will learn about what the best times are to perform aerobic exercise in order to lose fat the fastest.

Cardio for Fat Loss, Part III

Aerobic exercise such as walking, riding a stationary bike, or running is a good way to accelerate the fat burning process, as long as it is not overdone and as long as it is used only in addition to a good weight training program. It should never be used as a substitute for weight training since it does not permanently increases your metabolism and since it does not has the ability to re-shape your body.

Best Times To Perform Aerobic Activity

Another important point that needs to be raised is that in order for aerobic exercise to be an effective fat burner it needs to be performed at the appropriate times. There are only two times that aerobic exercise is effective in burning fat.

1. In The Morning On An Empty Stomach: The best time to perform cardiovascular exercise is first thing in the morning on an empty stomach after drinking 16 to 24 ounces of water in order to prevent dehydration. When performed at this time you burn 300% more body fat that at any other time in the day because your body does not has any glycogen (stored carbohydrates-sugar) in the system to burn. Therefore, it has to go directly into the fat stores in order to get the energy necessary to complete the activity.

2. Right After Weight Training: The other time when aerobic exercise is effective is immediately after the weight training session. The reason for this is that when exercise is not performed first thing in the morning it takes your body approximately anywhere between 20 to 30 minutes to start burning fat. This is because that it how long it takes the body to deplete its glycogen stores and switch to a fat burning environment. Therefore, it would not be efficient to perform aerobic exercise by itself at any other time during the day because you would need to perform it for 20-30 minutes just to get to the fat burning stage and for an additional 20 minutes just so that you burn fat. This would give a grand total of 50 minutes a day and in my opinion, I think that unless you are a competitive bodybuilder with a perfect diet and a superb supplementation program designed to protect muscle mass, aerobic exercise should not be performed for more than 6 sessions a week of 20-45 minutes a day for males and 30-45 minutes for females since this would put you at a risk of losing muscle mass. Only competitive bodybuilders sometimes need to go as high as 45 minutes, twice a day. Keep in mind however that this is performed for a short period of time and only in conjunction with a pre-contest diet which consists of a high frequency of meals and with supplementation like glutamine, which helps to protect muscle tissue.
Remember that more is not always better and this is especially true when it comes to aerobic exercise.

For more information please take a look at:

http://www.hugorivera.net/aerobic-exercise-basics-aerobics-for-fat-loss.html

If you liked this video, remember to hit the LIKE button below and also feel free to share it with your friends via TWITTER and/or FACEBOOK.

Natural Bodybuilding Video: Cardio for Fat Loss, Part II

admin — Mon, 21 Mar 2011 19:08:36 +0000

Natural Bodybuilding Video: Cardio for Fat Loss, Part II

In part II of my cardio for fat loss video you will learn about good types of aerobic exercise for fat loss and the sort of frequency and duration that you need to do in order to burn fat.

Cardio for Fat Loss, Part II

Aerobic exercise is a good way to accelerate the fat burning process, as long as it is not overdone and as long as it is used only in addition to a good weight training program. It should never be used as a substitute for weight training since it does not permanently increases your metabolism and since it does not has the ability to re-shape your body.

Forms of Aerobic Exercise

Good forms of aerobic exercise are: stationary bike, jogging (this can also be done on a treadmill), fast walking (also can be done on a treadmill), stair stepper, elliptical machine, rowing machine, sets of sprinting, running, or any other form of cardiovascular activity that would raise your heartbeat to the fat burning zone.

Frequency and Duration of Aerobic Exercise

As far as frequency is concerned, I feel comfortable recommending 3 sessions of 20-45 minutes for those of you who are looking to gain muscle mass.

If you are on a fat loss phase, then I would gradually increase the activity to 6 sessions a week of 45 minutes.

For contest preparation, some of you may need two sessions a day, which of course will impact your ability to gain muscle, but in the final weeks of a contest preparation the main goal is to have as much definition as possible.

For more information please take a look at:

http://www.hugorivera.net/aerobic-exercise-basics-aerobics-for-fat-loss.html

If you liked this video, remember to hit the LIKE button below and also feel free to share it with your friends via TWITTER and/or FACEBOOK.

Natural Bodybuilding Video: Cardio for Fat Loss, Part I

admin — Sat, 19 Mar 2011 13:24:01 +0000

Natural Bodybuilding Video: Cardio for Fat Loss, Part I

Learn how to lose body fat with cardiovascular exercise.

Cardio for Fat Loss, Part I

Fat Burning Zone

In order for aerobic exercise to be effective, it needs to be performed within the fat burning zone. The fat burning zone is the zone at which you are doing enough work to burn fat. Your pulse (how fast your heart is beating per minute) determines this zone.

The fat burning zone formula is the following:
Fat burning zone=220-(Your Age) x (.75)

The result of your formula will give you an approximate value of how fast your heart should be beating per minute. For example, a 20-year-old would need to reach a pulse in the neighborhood of 150 beats per minute in order to be in the fat burning zone. It is important to remember that this is not an absolute figure, this is an approximation. So as long as you are plus or minus 10 beats from the number that the formula provides you with, then you can rest assured that you will be burning fat.

For more information on cardiovascular exercise please take a look at:

http://www.hugorivera.net/aerobic-exercise-basics-aerobics-for-fat-loss.html

If you liked this video, remember to hit the LIKE button below and also feel free to share it with your friends via TWITTER and/or FACEBOOK.

What Is The Best Type of Cardiovascular Exercise Machine for Losing Fat Weight?

admin — Sun, 31 Oct 2010 22:23:56 +0000

What Is The Best Type of Cardiovascular Exercise Machine for Losing Fat Weight?

In my opinion, the best type of cardiovascular exercise machine for losing fat weight depends on the sort of shape that the bodybuilding trainee is currently at.

For a bodybuilder who needs to lose over 30 pounds, I rather have them start using a treadmill with no incline and set at a very comfortable speed. As fat weight is dropped and cardiovascular efficiency improves, the speed can be increased in order to make the activity more challenging. Later on, one can also start adding an incline. By the way, using an incline on a treadmill is a great way for the competitive bodybuilder to burn that stubborn body fat in the glutes and hamstrings area.

For a bodybuilder with less than 30 pounds to lose, or for an advanced bodybuilder, I would rather use a cross trainer elliptical machine; the one where you also get to move the arms. This machine simulates the running motion, but without the impact experienced in the knees and the ankles. Results achieved by this machine are fast since the calories burned through the duration of the activity is very significant; much higher than the calories burned in a treadmill.

Any Other Cardiovascular Exercise Machines?

Another cardiovascular machine that I like to use for variety purposes is the recumbent bike. Set at a tension that does not impact the knees, the recumbent bike is a very effective machine that provides an effective cardiovascular workout, burns a bit more calories than the treadmill but less than the elliptical. Again, this is not the type of machine I would recommend for someone that has to lose over 30 lbs.

A stairstepper is another good middle-of-the-road option (in terms of calories burned) for those with less than 30 lbs to lose, though I am personally not a big fan of them simply because I do not enjoy the motion. This is the type of machine that I do if it is the only one I have available at the hotel gym I am at when traveling. However, I have some friends that love them. Once again, the key to protecting your knees is the resistance set. Remember that to make cardiovascular exercise effective, you need to perform it at a steady tempo for a duration of 20-45 minutes; so there is no need to set a high resistance.

Other Types Of Effective Cardiovascular Exercise

Though the question referred to pieces of cardiovascular equipment, I think it should be mentioned that walking on the pavement is a great form of cardiovascular exercise for anyone. And for those advanced bodybuilders with an adventurous spirit and healthy knees, running and jumping rope steadily for extended periods of time (20-45 minutes) will burn a significant amount of calories; even more than the elliptical machines.

Conclusion

Once a bodybuilder reaches the advanced stage, the best option is to use the wide variety of choices at one’s disposal. Though the elliptical machine offers the highest caloric burn of all machines, once a bodybuilder has the desired level of body fat, changing the type of exercise on a regular basis not only prevents boredom and increases your cardiovascular efficiency at various activities, but also keeps the body guessing and responding to all exercises, thus making it easy to stay in that shape. So as the saying goes, “variety is the spice of life”.

What Is The Best Exercise for Fat Loss: Weight Training Exercise or Cardiovascular Exercise

admin — Sat, 07 Aug 2010 21:53:27 +0000

So what is the best exercise for fat loss: weight training exercise or cardiovascular exercise? Check out this video blog and learn the answer.

What Is The Best Exercise for Fat Loss: Weight Training Exercise or Cardiovascular Exercise

For fat loss, weight training exercise burns more body fat than cardiovascular exercise.

Weight training exercise gives you a metabolic boost for 24-48 hours. The reason for that is because when you perform weight training exercise a lot of damage happens to the muscle fibers, and thus, the body has to spend energy repairing the muscle and making it stronger than before.

Traditional cardiovascular exercise, on the other hand, only burns calories throughout the duration of the exercise. Once the activity is done, your metabolism goes back to normal.

Because of this, weight training is a better exercise for fat loss since your metabolism is stimulated for much longer. Also, keep in mind that cardiovascular exercise cannot re-shape your body in the way that weight training does. If you are looking to have a tight and fit toned body, weight training is what you need to emphasize.

With that said, keep in mind that fat loss is really a function of your diet as well, so if you are not following a diet that puts you in a slightly lower caloric deficit, you won’t be able to lose any body fat. But from the perspective of exercise, weight training beats cardio any time.

Conclusion

Because with weight training exercise you can:

1)Increase your metabolism for 24-48 hours.
2)Re-shape your physique.

Weight training exercise needs to be emphasized over cardiovascular exercise in order to burn fat.

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If you’ve got any questions on the video or suggestions for more video topics, then just scroll to the bottom of the page and use the comment system.

Aerobic Exercise Basics – Aerobics for Fat Loss

admin — Sat, 03 Apr 2010 20:20:11 +0000

Fat Burning Zone

The fat burning zone formula is the following:

Fat burning zone=220-(Your Age) x (.75)

Best Times To Perform Aerobic Activity

2. Right After Weight Training: The other time when aerobic exercise is effective is immediately after the weight training session. The reason for this is that when exercise is not performed first thing in the morning it takes your body approximately anywhere between 20 to 30 minutes to start burning fat. This is because that it how long it takes the body to deplete its glycogen stores and switch to a fat burning environment. Therefore, it would not be efficient to perform aerobic exercise by itself at any other time during the day because you would need to perform it for 20-30 minutes just to get to the fat burning stage and for an additional 20 minutes just so that you burn fat. This would give a grand total of 50 minutes a day and in my opinion, I think that unless you are a competitive bodybuilder with a perfect diet and a superb supplementation program designed to protect muscle mass, aerobic exercise should not be performed for more than 6 sessions a week of 20-45 minutes a day for males and 30-45 minutes for females since this would put you at a risk of losing muscle mass. Only competitive bodybuilders sometimes need to go as high as 45 minutes, twice a day, for seven days a week. Keep in mind however that this is performed for a short period of time and only in conjunction with a pre-contest diet which consists of a high frequency of meals and with supplementation like glutamine, which helps to protect muscle tissue. Remember that more is not always better and this is especially true when it comes to aerobic exercise.

Forms of Aerobic Exercise

Frequency and Duration of Aerobic Exercise

As far as frequency is concerned, I feel comfortable recommending 2 to 4 sessions of 20-40 minutes each for male bodybuilders in the off-season. If a contest is approaching, then I would gradually increase the activity to no more than two sessions per day, 7 days a week of 45 minutes each on the worst case for a short period of time. Remember, it is those long hours of cardio that cause bodybuilders to look like POWs (Prisoners of War) in the bodybuilding stage the day of the show. If you are doing 2 sessions of 45 minutes of cardio every day make sure that you take plenty of glutamine (15-30 grams per day) in addition to having at least 7 meals per day.

For women, due to their higher concentrations of estrogen in the blood and due to the fact that they have less muscle mass than a male, more frequent aerobic activity is beneficial. Therefore, I recommend an off season plan of 4 to 5 sessions of 30-45 minutes and if a contest approaches, I would gradually increase the activity to no more than two sessions per day, 7 days a week of 45 minutes each on the worst case.

Cycling of Aerobic Activity

During the off season, you may choose to cycle you aerobic activity in the following manner in order to prevent your body from adjusting to a specific pattern:

1. Cycle The Kind Of Aerobic Activity Being Used: Changing up the aerobic exercises prevents the body from getting so good at a specific activity that it becomes hard for you then to raise your heart rate.

2. Cycle The Duration Of The Activity: For example, a male bodybuilder that performs 3 sessions a week may do 20 minutes of aerobics on weeks 1& 2, 25 minutes on weeks 3 & 4, and finally 30 minutes on weeks 5 & 6.

A female bodybuilder can use the same pattern as well (e.g. 4 sessions performed for 20 minutes on weeks 1&2, 30 minutes on weeks 3 & 4, and finally 40 minutes on weeks 5 & 6). This form of cycling will not only keep the workouts interesting but it will also prevent the body from permanently adjusting to a given length of the activity. Remember, that as soon as the body adapts, it will be tougher to reach the fat burning zone and therefore it will be harder to use aerobic exercise as weapon against fat.

Conclusion

So there you have it. Now whenever you think about aerobic exercise, you no longer have to fear two hour sessions in a machine or losing muscle mass provided you follow the basics of aerobic exercise.

7 Tips to Make Your Cardio Workouts Exciting and Effective

admin — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 16:10:19 +0000

Cardiovascular exercise is necessary for most of us in our quest to achieving the lean bodybuilding look that we are looking for. Few can achieve the lean appearance required to see a full six pack of abs without cardio. In addition to fat burning, cardiovascular exercise offers many benefits such as an improved glucose metabolism as well as a lowered heart rate, blood pressure, and cholesterol. Now that we know why we need cardio, let’s look at ways to make it more enjoyable and effective.

1. Choose A Cardiovascular Activity That You Like

While this may seem rather obvious, many people completely miss the boat on this one. Choosing an activity that you like will ensure that you keep doing it long term. There are many choices to pick from such as walking on the pavement, treadmill, an elliptical machine, stair stepper, recumbent bike, aerobics video, etc. Just choose your weapon of choice and go for it!

2. Choose Some Good Music Or A Good Workout Partner

I always notice that when I choose some good music (I like techno myself) I not only burn more calories during the activity than if I didn’t but also the time flies faster. I also seem to have a larger pain tolerance as my mind is concentrated on the music and not on what the body is feeling. The only time when I use no music is if I have a good workout partner with who I am competing against seeing who covers a larger distance during the allotted time.

3. Perform Cardio On An Empty Stomach or Right After The Workout

Glycogen levels (stored carbohydrates) are lower at these times, and thus, it is easier for the body to access fat stores. If not possible, then perform the activity 2-1/2 hours after a meal so that your blood glucose levels are not so high that all you burn during the activity is carbs. Note: even if carbs is all you burned, those are calories that would not have been burned otherwise so you are still benefiting.

4. Perform Cardio For A Minimum Of 20 Minutes And A Maxiumum Of 45 Minutes.

More is not better when it comes to cardio. Most of you will benefit from 3 sessions of 20-30 minutes. Never go above 45 minutes at a time when doing cardio as after 45 minutes the catabolic hormone cortisol will increase and you will risk losing muscle tissue and protecting fat! Only competitive bodybuilders may find themselves doing as much as 45 minutes twice a day before a show but that amount is kept for very short periods of time.

5. Perform The Cardiovascular Activity At A Comfortable But Challenging Pace

As beginners, you may want to perform the activity at a pace that allows your body to comfortably continue for the amount of time required (20-45 minutes). Once your body adjusts to that, you can start to move quicker and look for a more challenging pace. Eventually you will be able to achieve a heart rate that falls around what is called the fat burning rate, which is approximately: 220 – (Your Age) x (.75).

6. If Using Any Fat Burning Supplements With Caffeine, Take Them 30 Minutes Prior

If you take any fat burning supplements with caffeine, take them 30 minutes prior to your cardiovascular exercise as they may increase your work capacity, possibly your rate of fat burning, and your pain tolerance. Caffeine has been shown to improve all these items in several studies. In my own self-experimentation, I find that I do perform better and with less pain when I save my caffeine for before my cardiovascular workout.

7. Don’t Stick To The Same Exercise Or The Same Amount Of Time

Your body thrives on change. Do the same thing all the time and not only you get bored but also your body stops responding as it adapts! Once you are more advanced, make sure that you have 3 cardiovascular activities that you like so that you cycle them on almost a daily basis. In addition, feel free to do some days of 20 minutes at a very challenging pace and other days of 45 minutes at a more moderate level. Variety is the spice of life!

Anthony Alayon's Rules to Doing Cardio

admin — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 02:53:27 +0000

Cardio is very important for us to do in order to stay in good shape and maintain a healthy body. Cardio is considered to be an aerobic exercise, meaning that you are consuming as much air as possible to perform such activities.

There are different types of cardiovascular exercises which can be done such as walking, stationary bike, elliptical rider, or more challenging advanced activities like jogging, running, using a jump rope, boxing, or even punching a punching bag.

Start out by using walking, a stationary bike or an elliptical machine as your activities of choice. For treadmills, walk anywhere between a 2.5-4 mph pace depending on your condition. The way to determine how fast to go is by measuring your Target Heart Rate.

Target Heart Rate is the amount of beats per minute that the heart has to go at in order to foster body fat loss. The way to calculate your target heart rate is the following:

Target Heart Rate:

220 – (Your Age) x (.75)

If your beats per minute fall +/- 5 beats from the number provided by the formula above, then you are exerting the right amount of effort. As you get more advanced, you can push yourself a little harder if you wish to.

Anytime you are doing an aerobic exercise you want to stay in the range of 20 to 45 minutes in order to avoid losing muscle. By going under 20 minutes you are not allowing your body to burn off the glucose and glycogen (stored carbs) in the body that needs to be burned before the body shifts into a fat burning mode.

For the first 20 minutes your body is getting its energy supply from the glycogen. After 20 minutes the body begins burning away at fat in the body as all of the energy your body is getting is no longer coming from glycogen, but rather coming from fat. If you were to go over 45 minutes, the body will go into a catabolic stage and begin to burn lean muscle tissue. This can cause your lean physique to deteriorate as you then begin to turn catabolic.

Cardio is best performed at two different times:

1) In the mornings on an empty stomach: Morning cardio can help promote better fat loss. The reason is simple. After an overnight fast, your glycogen levels are low, and thus, body fat is more easily accessed to be burned for fuel.

2) Right after the workout: If you cannot do your cardio in the morning and must be forced to do it later on, do it right after a weight-training workout. By doing this all of your glycogen has been used in weight training and it will make your fat burning process much more efficient, and thus, easier.

The reason for this is because performing cardio after a weight training session causes you to burn fat at a faster rate. This is because most of your glycogen stores in the muscle and the liver have already been depleted. Thus, you can get away with doing less cardio since your body will enter into a fat burning stage once the glycogen has been depleted. For the purposes of this program, all cardio sessions are performed right after the workout.