January is without a doubt the most crowded time of the year at the gym. With recently firmed up new year’s resolutions, many people flock to the gym for their hit-it-hard, quick-fix, no-pain-no-gain workout plans only to be left discouraged, disappointed and dipping into the Ben and Jerry’s come February. Because we are inundated with messages about the benefits of cardio in regards to working out and feeling great, when it comes time to drop a few holiday pounds, most people do what they’ve been told: cardio. You know, long runs, hour-long spinning classes and high-intensity aerobics classes. Logically, this makes sense. The longer and harder the workout, the better it is for me, right? Well according to our biology, no - it’s not. Many people who use long cardio workouts to lose weight and tone up become increasingly frustrated: they don’t see the results they want, they are highly susceptible to plateaus (meaning that they need to workout the same or more every day to just maintain their level of fitness) and some even report gaining weight. Cardio Can Make Me Fat? What Are You Talking About?
Because extended cardio increases cortisol, those looking to lose weight and lower their stress should stay away from excessive cardio exercise. As Strength and Conditioning expert Charles Poliquin stated in an article on cardio exercise in IronMan Magazine, “I'm utterly convinced that if gym rats cut down on cardio, they'd be leaner. Humans aren't aerobic animals. We're designed to throw a rock or spear at the prey; not run six miles to get the food. Aerobics works only for about six weeks. Once the enzymatic response is maximal, you're wasting your time. It's a myth that cardio burns body fat only. That's based on antiquated studies that couldn't measure all fuels contributing to exercise. Amino acids have been underestimated for the longest time as fuel sources for cardiovascular exercise, [meaning that] cardio burns not only fat but muscle as well” (IronMan magazine, July 2008). So over time, excessive cardio starts to decrease your lean muscle mass. And as many of you know, lean muscle mass is what’s largely responsible for a toned physique, low body fat and a very fast metabolism. Poliquin further addresses this cardio/weight gain phenomenon in a study called “The Chunky Aerobic Instructor Syndrome” wherein he found that women who did excessive duration cyclical exercise (such as in an aerobics class, on an elliptical machine or in a spinning class) tended to store fat in their thighs, buttocks and calves commensurate with the amount of long duration cardio that they performed.
Okay, I Think I’m With You Now. I’ve Seen That Chunky Aerobics Teacher At My Gym. What’s The Solution?
The bottom line is that you will burn more calories doing interval training - which is performed at a higher intensity for a shorter period of time - rather than extended cardio training. So if you want to use cardio exercise as a supplement to your strength training workouts for fat loss, switch to an interval-training program instead:
High-Intensity Cardio Workout Plan:
Warm Up: 5 minutes (during the warm up, you should be working but able to carry on a conversation).
Burst: 30 seconds at a perceived exertion level of between roughly 75-90%. This is high intensity, meaning that conversation is no longer possible.
Recovery: 1 minute at a perceived exertion of roughly 50-60%.
Work up to 10 bursts with recovery in between each burst. In other words, your max cardio for this burst/recovery plan is 15 minutes total.
Cool Down: 3-5 minutes at the same pace as the warm up.
Easy to fit in before work or on your lunch break, over before you know it and when paired with smart strength training workouts, delivers a lean, mean, cardio-enlightened machine. Good luck and keep up the hard work for a healthy and happy 2011!
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