I sit here on the gym floor about to start this post and all I can hear from behind me is a woman complaining how much she hates cardio…but I give her credit because she is really kicking it and having seen her around for the last few months I see that her body is changing and that is probably why she can complain but still work at the intensity that she is. If you are on a personal crusade to shed unwanted fat and develop muscular definition on your body then cardiovascular (Cardio) training is an absolute must, so you may as well find a way to like it (ie. remind yourself of your reward) or to find something you like (ie. sports, hiking etc).
Frequency of cardio should be 4 days per week for 45 minutes to 1 hour and intensity during this duration is key. How do you know if your cardio routine is intense enough? During your cardio workout you should definitely not be able to read a magazine and through the bulk of it carrying on a conversation or watching tv should not be easy either.
If you have been doing cardio for a while and are not seeing results then increasing your intensity and adding intervals to your training may be the key to success. Steady state cardio without interval leads to a weight loss plateaus. Intervals are intensity levels which fluctuate from high to low and should have a warm-up and cool-down phase.
*PER – represents your Perceived Exertion. A 50% PER is a warm up and 90% PER is something you personally can maintain for no more than 60 seconds. Always remember, the PER is defined by you, not by your neighbour on the next machine. Listen to your body and work to your own levels.
Sample Cardio-Interval Routine:
- No matter what you are doing start with a low intensity/speed and low elevation for 5 minutes to warm up the body. You would be working at about 50% of your maximum perceived exertion (PER).
- When you hit the 6 minute mark increase your intensity by about 20%. Your intensity level is now increased and your body should begin to heat up and feel somewhat uncomfortable. Your goal is to stay in this 70% PER interval for 3 minutes.
- Back down on the intensity and allow yourself to relax and slow down your heart rate for another 3 minute interval (50% PER).
- Once the heart rate has come down sufficiently and your feeling somewhat comfortable it is time to amp up the interval resistance and elevation for another 2 minutes.This time try to increase it notch or two high than your previous highest level (to about 80% of your maximum exertion). This more intense interval should be more difficult and sufficiently increase your heart rate and can only be maintained for a shorter period of time.
- Cool down again for 3 minutes.
- Next, try increasing your intensity to 90% of your maximum and maintain that for 1 minute.
- Again, followed by a 3 minute cool down.
- Continue to follow this pattern, starting back at step 2 until your 45-60 minutes is expired. Remember you gauge the intensity so be smart. If your legs are barely moving then lighten the load. If you are so out of breath then lighten the load. Anyway, by your 45 minute mark, you should be good and sweaty and have a good adrenaline rush going.
Here is a quick recap of the above and it should take you a total of 55 minutes:
warm up (5 min)
70% PER (3 min)–>50% PER (3 min)–>80% PER (2 min)–>50% (3 min)–>90% PER (1 min)–>50% (3 min)
70% PER (3 min)–>50% PER (3 min)–>80% PER (2 min)–>50% (3 min)–>90% PER (1 min)–>50% (3 min)
70% PER (3 min)–>50% PER (3 min)–>80% PER (2 min)–>50% (3 min)–>90% PER (1 min)–>50% (3 min)
Cool down (5 min)
Remember to always to stretch your hamstrings and quadriceps muscle after your cardio to prevent a lower back problem and to work at your own level. If you are a beginner try adding one interval per week and doing the rest at a steady state.
Some final thought regarding cardio that should be considered.
1. Steady state cardio without interval leads to a weight loss plateaus, so ALWAYS DO INTERVALS Correctly!
2. Cardiovascular conditioning programs are designed to oxidize fat and produce fat burning enzymes enzymes, but can DECREASE your metabolism. SO DON’T FORGET TO WEIGHT TRAIN, to offset these effects!
3. If you are unsure how to design a cardiovascular conditioning program consult an expert certified personal trainer.
4. Switch it up to decrease boredom and to ensure your body doesn’t get too used to a specific machine. Things getting easier may feel good but you won’t burn as many calories if your body gets too efficient in one action.
5. If you have a medical history of diabetes, high blood pressure or any heart related problems, consult your physician before engaging in ANY exercise program. They generally want you to exercise, but within the scope of the medical wellness.
Christine is a yoga instructor, personal trainer and nutritionist who specializes in weight loss and womens health at Four Forty Fitness for Women in Burlington, Ontario. Check out the website at www.fourfortyfitness.ca
Christine says
Hi Jen,
You have the word “like” written above 3 times….when you change that to the word “need” then nothing will get in your way. My suggestion: don’t wait until your health is so bad that you “can’t” do it.
Step 1: Pick your poison. What are you going to change first? Your diet or your exercise? Once you have decided…then just start, don’t wait to become motivated, don’t wait for a magic pill, these things will not come. The magic pill is ACTION. Just do it.
Step 2: Plan to do it or plan to fail. If you have decided to start with exercise first then schedule your exercise into your life. Commit to it like you would commit to a date with your daughter. If you have decided to start with your diet then write out your meal plan for the week and stick to it 100%.
If the above doesn’t work then pay a professional to take you through the steps. Give them at least 12 weeks to get you some good and consistent results.
Write me back and let me know if the above information helps and if so, what is your plan?
You CAN do it. WILL you?
nej26 says
Hi moms,
I would like to start on some exercises as I am diabetic. The bad thing is im not very keen to do it. I don’t seem to have any motivation. I would like to decrease some weight too. Please help as I would like to be there for my daughter.
Thanks
Jen
Christine says
Hi Cathie,
This is a fine amount of protein for one sitting, 3 oz of chicken has about 25grams. Your body can absorb about 40gram of protein at one sitting so you are still within a healthy range but I wouldn’t go any higher. In North America it would be pretty rare to see someone with a protein deficiency unless they are heavy exercisers or vegans and not balancing their meals properly.
To answer your first question, I do recommend balancing your protein through the day as this will help keep your blood sugars in balance, boost your metabolism and allows you to absorb more of the protein, rather than turning any excess to fat. Make sense??
Cathie says
Does it matter if you get a bigger serving of protein for breakfast, or do the servings need to be taken fairly equally? One of the products I purchased has 32.3g. per serving and the other one has 26g. per serving. Is it okay to have this much protein in one serving?
Christine says
Cathie,
Your daughter should be getting 0.8-1 gram of protein for every kilogram she weighs. Pick the high end for when she gets active and the low end for when she isn’t. To determine how much you should get in a meal replacement just take the grams she requires and divide by 4 or 5 (depending on how many times she eats in a day).
I don’t know of any good weight lifting dvd’s I apologize but I am sure she can find many online.
Catherine,
Even though you are 40+ you can still try adding interval training in your cardio! If motivation is your issue then think about working with a Personal Trainer or joining a fun group exercise program (dancing anyone?). The fact that someone is waiting for you is a pretty good incentive to get there and believe me a good trainer will work you hard and better than you could ever do on your own. Where do you live?
Catherine says
What about a cardio routine for myself age 40+ & everything seems to be slowing down – even my motivation I do go to the gym in spurts & get discouraged to see the scale going up instead of down – even when I work at it & then give up – HELP
Cathie says
When my daughter started university, she put away her hockey skates and was reluctant to go the gym at school because the varsity and guys who had get into shape for their respective programs were there and it was like a “male” place to be. She has put on some weight and is now in second year. She lives in residence and the food is not great, even though there is a salad bar. So most of the time she is studying or going to class and her lean strong hockey muscles are turning to mush! I went to get a meal replacement for her because she was skipping breakfast. How much protein should she be getting in a day, or in one serving of a meal replacement? Can you suggest any good dvd’s for weight lifting? She has some small weights that she brought from home.