I’m sure you’ve learned by now that skiing on the elliptical machine or jogging on the treadmill isn’t producing the dramatic results you’ve been hoping for. As wonderful as cardio is for your heart, it isn’t the most efficient or effective way to sculpt your body. An entire hour of moderately-paced walking only burns about 150 calories. Since there are about 3,500 calories in one pound, you can imagine all the walking you would have to do to burn the equivalent of one pound of fat.
The other problem with solely doing cardio is that once you stop exercising, your body’s calorie-burning ability slows dramatically. Strength training,(lifting weights) on the other hand, allows you take advantage of your body’s natural ability to maintain an “after-burn,” known as Excess Post- Oxygen Consumption (EPOC). The after-burn is the extra calories your body burns after you complete a workout. Your metabolism will stay elevated for anywhere from 15 minutes to 48 hours, depending on the intensity and duration of your workout. So aim for just 30 minutes of cardio three times a week, and spend more time strength training.
It can be fun to do both strength training and cardio in a workout. It's a more effective way to burn fat and a great way to shock your muscles to throw the two together in one hard core kick ass workout. Kettle bells are perfect for this type of strength/cardio workout. Jillian Michaels has some excellent kettle bell video workouts that I have done myself and they can kick your butt! Intermediate or advance they will get your muscles pumping and your fat burning in a great 30-40 minuet workout. I also like to create my own cardio circuit workout with 6-10 exercises and include both strength/cardio/plyo exercises. It's a great way to shock your body and keep you pushing past your limits.
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