The weather is getting nice out, and many people are striving to burn some fat & look their best. There seems to be many different ideals and viewpoints on Cardio. In this article, I will give my perspective on what methods of cardio are the most effective, and provide reasoning as well.
High Intensity Interval Training Cardio (HIIT) provides many benefits over Low Intensity Steady State cardio (LISS). I will list some of these benefits below:
-Metabolic Rate/Fat burning effects are boosted for up to 72 hours afterwards with HIIT, whereas LISS only burns extra fat during activity, afterward you’re back at baseline.
-HIIT causes Mitochondrial Biogenesis (up-regulation of mitochondrion, thus leading to higher energy producing capacity).
-HIIT is far less catabolic (activate fast twitch fibers and spend less time doing it; less muscle wasting, and WAY more bang for your buck).
However, I still believe that every once in a while low intensity steady state can be beneficial; therefore I typically recommend a 3:1 ratio of HIIT to LISS. High Intensity Intervals are very demanding, so you need to make sure recovery is up to par (*see previous article on Recovery).
Ideally, HIIT would be performed 4-6 hours away from weight training so that maximum results and performance can occur within both drastically different exercise modalities. Alternate energy systems come into play when comparing resistance training to HIIT and/or LISS. If your only option is to perform cardio around weight training, I would advise doing cardio after lifting. This way, you’ll have used up a lot of circulating fuel, so you will be more likely to tap into stored fat during your cardio session. In this particular case, I would advise taking in some Branched Chain Amino Acids after lifting before cardio to prevent excessive muscle breakdown.
Fasted-Cardio being more effective for fat loss is another myth that many still seem to believe. Research actually suggests a more pronounced Thermogenic effect as well as increased performance in the post-prandial state (an hour or two after fueling yourself with proper nutrients), especially when performing HIIT.
However, if losing overall weight is your main concern, fasted cardio may indeed be beneficial. But from the viewpoint of someone trying to maintain/build lean mass, minimum muscle wasting can be achieved by utilizing HIIT (in fact it may very well help build muscle via enhanced energy producing capacity & increased cardiovascular conditioning which may allow you to push your sets longer & increase time under tension).
One thing that many are unaware of is the fact that long duration running or “mid-range” intensity cardio may actually be detrimental to your fat-loss goals, and will be very catabolic to muscle tissue. Due to various mechanisms within the body, someone performing a lot of extended duration mid-range intensity cardio may put themselves into a position where they are more likely to hold on to stored fat rather than burning it.
Whatever the case may be, an undisputable fact is that diet is paramount to achieving your fat loss goals, and if you are not on point with your nutrition, you will never achieve the lean & sculpted body that you desire.
An example of one of my favorite methods of HIIT is to mimic a Wingate on a spin cycle: after warm up, twist the resistance knob to an easy position, pedal as fast as humanly possible (all out sprint!) while simultaneously increasing the resistance trying to maintain the extremely fast cadence! After 30-45 seconds, you should be completely exhausted (if not-you’re not going Hard enough!) After the all out sprint, drop the intensity and go at a low/moderate pace 2 to 3 minutes, then hit it again 4-6 more times (depending on your goal/abilities/level of experience, possibly even more).
The total duration shouldn’t take longer than 20-30 minutes MAX and you’ve boosted metabolic activity & fat burning for a long time thereafter!
Other methods include Sprint Intervals, Prowler/Sled Pushes, Stadium/Stairs, Swim Sprints, etc. Switch things up and spice up your routine.
You MUST get out of your Comfort Zone & work HARD to reap the maximum benefits! Go beyond all previous limitations and continue to set new personal bests. Let’s get after it everyone! 😉
#strive2optimize
