If you use cardio correctly, you can exponentially increase your fat loss results. You will become more in shape because your body overtime will be trained to utilize oxygen efficiently and your metabolism will rise meaning you’re burning more calories at rest which will help you burn more fat long term. You have to make sure that you are doing cardio correctly because if you are not careful, you can get hurt, get burnt out, or lose muscle if performed for too long. Without going through the fluff, I want to give you the best cardio exercises that will allow you to condition your heart, better utilize oxygen, and burn that stubborn belly fat.
Walking: I go on walks all the time for my cardio. I prefer to go on hiking trails because they tend to go uphill, which makes me work harder, which allows me to burn more calories. If you have a great outdoor environment, walking can be quite enjoyable. You can also walk on a treadmill depending on which way you prefer on doing it. Walking is not an intense workout, so you will not be burning as many calories per minute, so I recommend raising the intensity by walking in environments that have an incline, meaning it goes uphill. If you’re on a treadmill, walk on the highest possible incline you can handle. If you are walking outdoors, find locations that have an incline, like parks, hikes, etc. Walking is ideal for beginners that are trying to ease their way into doing cardio. With that being said, it is not only inclined to beginners because I go on walks all the time.
Running: This is a step up from walking. When I go for my runs, I do it 3 different ways. I either know I am trying to jog at a steady state for a certain amount of time (maximum 45 minutes), I am doing a certain number of sprints (20-30 minutes), or a combination of both (30-35 minutes). If sprints are too intense, start off slowly jogging or walking, then work your way up.
Biking: This is a great way to burn fat without the constant impact on your knees. So, whether you decide to bike on a stationary machine or on an outdoor bike, know that you can burn a lot of calories biking so if you try it out and you like it, find days to add that to your workout regimen.
Elliptical Machine: The elliptical machine is a great way to reach a high intensity without putting a lot of stress on your knees. If you have knee issues, this is a good way to get cardio done at a high intensity.
Stair-climbers: This is my second favorite way to get cardio done (behind sprints) because of how intense it is. Stair-climbers are a great way to burn calories in a short period of time. The con of performing this type of cardio training is if you are not careful with your foot placement, you can put yourself in a position to fall off the machine. TRUST ME, I’VE SEEN IT. NO BUENO!!!
Jump Roping: Jump roping takes some coordination, and if you constantly land hard on your feet, you could put a lot of impact on your knees. So, if you decide to jump rope, focus on landing as soft as you can on the balls of your feet instead of on your heels.
Rowing: This is a great workout that you can burn a lot of calories as long as you control the movement and do it properly. If you have ever had a significant back injury, I recommend easing into using a rowing machine. If it hurts your back, avoid it.
Swimming: A former client of mine got absolutely shredded just by swimming for his cardio. He had an Achilles Tendon injury that caused him not to be able to put a lot of impact on his feet, and that’s how he found his love for swimming. The great thing about swimming is that the resistance and buoyancy of the water causes you to use more energy, meaning you burn more calories. Swimming for cardio is a great way to get a full body exercise while pushing your lungs and your heart to the limits.
Group Activities: There are several group activities that allow you to get your cardio done. You can join a local gym and participate in their fitness boot camps or group x classes. I’ve taken fitness dance classes that had me thinking I was out of shape because of how intense it was. This may be your option if you like the group environment.
I always recommend aiming to burn anywhere from 150-400 calories per cardio session and the reason why I listed all these different ways of doing cardio is because I wanted you to figure out which styles of cardio fit your situation and interests. At the end of the day, cardio can be tough and I can’t do your cardio for you, so hopefully, you have in mind which types of cardio you are going to be doing. The majority of my cardio comes from either doing hill sprints or jogging local trails in my area. I also like to throw my body off my adding a different style of cardio I haven’t done in a while to keep my body guessing.
Now, a question I get asked a lot is, “How many times a week should I do cardio?” This is a tricky question depending on your fitness level and how much fat you are trying to lose. Nevertheless, I recommend you start with at least 3 times a week, but if are really looking to drop weight fast, bump it up to 4 or even 5 times a week. A former client didn’t like the fact, on his workout plan I assigned him to do 4 days of cardio a week and he had to burn at least 350 calories each cardio session. Yet, he fell in love with cardio once he saw two inches come of his waist 5 weeks later. Cardio burns calories, and since we have to be in a caloric deficit to burn fat, get your cardio done.
In my overweight days, the first week I started jogging for about 20 minutes a day, three times a week at a low intensity and I lost a pound in my first week. The next week, I still did cardio 4 times a week, but I started jogging a little bit faster. I lost another pound. The week after that, I jumped to 5 days a week of doing cardio, but I switched it up between jogging outside or using the stair master. In that week, I lost 2 pounds.
After my first month of doing cardio, I switched up my cardio style by alternating between sprinting, jogging, and walking on an inclined treadmill and let me tell you, if you alternate between running full speed for 8 seconds, jogging for 30 seconds, and walking for 45 seconds on the incline of a treadmill for 30 minutes straight, you will get an amazing cardio workout. I burned more calories working out like this than I did just walking for an hour, or just jogging for 45 minutes.
If you are short on time but still want to get cardio done, I suggest you perform high-intensity interval training (HIIT). I only recommend this style of cardio if your fitness level can handle it as this is the type of cardio where you alternate between giving it all your effort at a high intensity, and then bringing down your effort to a lower intensity.
You can do hill sprints (this is more advanced) where you sprint up a hill, walk back down, take a slight break then hit it again. I do this all the time on the hill by my house. This workout usually takes me about 20-25 minutes and then I’m done with cardio.
You can also perform high-intensity interval training with jump ropes where you jump rope as much as fast as you can for 20 seconds, take a break for 40-45 seconds, then repeat that process for 30 minutes.
You can perform regular sprints where you go run 50-meter sprints, take a break for 45 seconds then go back to the grind. Do that for 25 minutes and I guarantee you will have a great workout. All you need to do is go as hard as you can for as long as you can, then take it down a notch maybe even rest, then go back and hit it hard!
Nevertheless, the intensity of your cardio session should be according to your current situation. I am a big believer in going as hard as you can go. If you can do 40-yard sprints with 15-second breaks in between for 30 minutes, then go for it. If all you can do is swim because you have a messed-up ankle, then so be it. If you just love steadily paced jogs, then be my guest. Just know the more intense the workout is, the more calories you’re burning per minute.
Make sure you adjust the time you go hard to your fitness level. If you are a beginner, I recommend you to ease into your cardio with walking or jogging before you try to go all in with HIIT. What I want to emphasize though, is that you have to do what you’re comfortable with. I am just giving you the information, apply what works for your situation. As long as you’re doing your cardio and heading in the direction of your fitness goals, I’m happy and so should you.
