The most dreaded word in the fitness industry, the one that most of my clients NEVER want to hear, “cardio.”

Everyone out there is always looking for an easy to lose fat or get leaner. Truth is you should stop wasting your time. There is no “quick fix” to fat loss. It is about diet and consistency, simple as that. Now, when I say diet I don’t mean broiled chicken and broccoli for every meal, but diet is a topic for later this week. Today I want to talk about cardio, from duration to frequency to different methods and everything in between. I want to make this as easy to understand as possible and hopefully shine like on the amount of cardio actually needed to see results.

 

Let me start out by saying every single person reading this is different. We all have different body types. So not one single this is going to work for every person but I am going to list options that most can relate to!

 

Types of Cardio

In this category, I will list the 6 most common types of cardio.

 

 

Elliptical

Starting out with my least favorite, the elliptical. These machines were originally designed to minimize impact on the knees and hips, but still allow a great workout. Due to the impact is quite low, the calorie-burning effect isn’t as great as other cardio machines, like treadmills and stairmasters. These can be great if you have joint issues and need to minimize impact but I would recommend to get even more out of it, switch up the intensity, speed, and resistance.

The best way to burn fat on an elliptical: Add a high incline to really activate more leg muscles, especially your glutes.  Lower the incline and increase the resistance to really work your quads.

 

Running & Sprinting

Running at a steady, moderate pace is a sure way to burn fat and calories, but it’s not the best way to build or maintain muscle.

The best way to burn fat and maintain muscle while running: If you’re running on a treadmill, set the incline to 2-3% to simulate running outside this burns more calories and may actually be easier on the knees. To me running on a treadmill is the most boring thing in the entire world so I prefer to run outdoors.

Sprints outside, on a treadmill, or even up stairs or bleachers are great to burn the most calories in the least amount of time and uses every muscle in your body!                                                                               The best way to burn fat with sprinting: If you’re outside, try sprinting for 30 seconds then jog for one minute. Keep repeating this for as long as you can. If you’re on a treadmill, do an all-out sprint for 20-30 seconds, then slow the belt down and jog for a minute or so before repeating.

 

Rowing

Ever see those funky rowing machines in the gym but never use them, well you should. Rowing is a great way to boost your heart rate while incorporating both upper and lower body muscles and is relitivly low stress on your joints.

The best way to burn calories on a rower: Use your entire body while rowing, not just your arms. Set a timer for 20 minutes, row 250 meters as fast as possible, rest for one minute and then repeat for the entire 20 minutes.

 

HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training)

HIIT workouts are great because of the intensity of each exercise as well as the variation of exercises and reps. You can pair any body-weight movement with a weighted movement and a traditional cardio element and you have the perfect fat-burning workout.

See my previous blog on HIIT for a formula to create your own routiune!

 

Stairmaster

With every step you take you are engaging your calves, glutes, quads, and hamstrings to burn fat and build lean muscle mass. Some of these are the biggest muscles in your body, hence burning the most fat. It’s easy to want to fold over and rest your upper body on the machine, BUT if you remain upright and activate your core you also train all those core muscles while training your lower body. For proper form keep your head looking forward, your shoulders down (away from your ears) and your core tight.

The best way to burn calories on the stairmaster: Find a consistent speed that is challenging but one you can maintain for 20 to 30 min. Do your best to push through and complete the whole 20-30 min without reducing the speed or slowing down. The stairmaster will probably cause you to break the meanest sweat you ever have before in your life.

 

Stationary Bike

The Stationary bike, or better known as “spinning,” is an awesome way to burn fat and tone your legs all at the same time. Spinning engages you legs and its done with proper resistance can give you a pretty good core workout as well!

The best way to burn calories on the bike: Think HIIT training. Find a resistance that is tough, almost like you are biking up a mountain. Complete this level of resistance for 1 min then reduce the resistance and “sprint” for 30 seconds. Adjusting the level of resistance and intensity can make for a killer workout and a fat burning furnace!

 

Cardio Duration

The duration of your cardio routine should fall inline with what you are looking to achieve. What I do when I’m trying to achieve fat loss is add 4 sessions of cardio on 4 separate days of the week post workout (after your workout) for 20 min. If I am trying to achieve quicker fat loss, I will add in 2 additional 20-minute sessions on the same day on two of my other sessions but just splitting it up by doing one in the morning and one at night.

When maintaining I will usually do cardio 1-2x per week.

I don’t ever usually “bulk.”

 

 

 

 

Hope this blog can help you in your cardio ventures and make it easier to understand what is actually necessary. As always feel free to email me @ Lorellelifts@gmail.com if you have any questions!!

 

L