Thread: Who uses cardio to lean out?

When I'm not bulking I do wind sprints, but not so much as to lose the muscle. Breaks down like this: 5 minutes walk up to a fast walk (5 mph or a little better, depending on your leg-length). Minute 6: sprint at a 10 mph pace or better; Minute 7: slow down to a 7.5 mph pace; Minute 8: back up to 10....etc. til you've gone 20 minutes. Use the last 5 minutes for a walk/cool down period. It's harder than it sounds, at least for me. It will not only knock off about 4 - 500 calories (if I remember right), but also does wonders for the lungs.

I am outta breath just READING that LOL

I ended up doing around 500 calories for the whole entire hour (low impact definately), which is around 10MPH average.

Is low impact better or should I kick my ass for 20 minutes and then go home? I guess that would be a better question for me to ask.

Well, if you still end up burning 500 calories, I suppose that would be your main goal. I've read that the longer a guy does cardio, the more risk he runs of losing the LBM. The main reason I do the wind sprints is not really just for the calorie burn, but for the lung workout. Plus, it's kind of nice not having to spend the entire hour in the gym when I could be doing something more fun than running!!

For cutting i like Intervals the best also , in the beggining i start low and then build up as time goes on. I ussually do 1 maybe 2 low intensity cardio sessions during the week along with it , but the HIIT is what works best.

I THOUGHT I read previously that it was the more intense stuff that would risk losing LBM, like walking as opposed to running, hmm. As for lenght of time though I'm sure that makes sense too, just have to find a sweet spot somehow. I'll monitor how I do during the week, I should know within a few days if I'm doing "too much".

I have been doing interval training on the treadmill lately. I walk 5 minutes, run 5 minutes, etc. for around 35 minutes total twice per week. And I dropped my calories a little, mainly I just cleaned up my diet, sugar, etc.

I have been doing about 45 mins of cardio for two days of each week. I usually split it into 30 mins of stationary bike and 15 mins on the treadmill. On lifting days, I do some before and some after every day.

Team DPW8 swears by HIIT. I hate it, so it must be better than traditional cardio. I usually do the eliptcal at Level 2 at an RPM of 50 for a minute, then Level 6 or 7 at an RPM of 80-90 for a minute. Back and forth for 25 min. Its tough and I hate it

I hate cardio...too boring for me! I usually ride my mountain bike or go hiking at least once a week. I guess I'm lucky...If I watch my diet close enough I don't have to worry about it!

True, I thought about fixing my bike, they have a couple TVs so I can rot my brain while peddling so...

Just lower calories and think of cardio when you either want to accelerate fat loss a tad, or when you don't want to eat any less.

or, when you want to get your cardio vascular system into shape.

Lowering calories though spells disaster, I am sure I can eat 'better' but lowering total calories, I am not sure about that.

Originally posted by Mudge
Lowering calories though spells disaster, I am sure I can eat 'better' but lowering total calories, I am not sure about that.

you either have to burn more calories, e.g. cardio, or you have to lower your total caloric intake to lose weight.

so, I do not understand what you mean by "lowering calories though spells disaster"???

even with cardio, you still need to lower your caloric intake to get lean.

Damn.. I am trying to lean out after having really put on muscle and now have some "layers" to get rid of so I can show it off LOL. I have been doing the treadmill for an hour 3 times a week.. intervals... 20 min run.. 20 min fast walk 10 min hard run 10 walk/cool down.
should I lower the time and add the the intensity of the intervals?

Crap. I sure hope I have not been losing LBM?? crap crap crap.
diets been good though as are my workouts I am just freaked now about the cardio.

Eri'

Leslie, this is probably a stupid question, but what is HIIT?

Anaerobic Intervals are the way to go if you are in a hurry to get cut, and they also may lead to some growth in the muscle group you train the intervals with, which is generally the legs.

You should look at your cut as though it is a spectrum, with alot of High intensity cardio on one side and severe caloric restriction on the other. Which will be easier for you, cutting cals or uping cardio. Another option is to half ass both which would put you in the middle of the spectrum.

I know this one .. pick me pick me..its .... High Intensity Interval Training. smiles...

Eri'

Originally posted by Duncan
Anaerobic Intervals are the way to go if you are in a hurry to get cut, and they also may lead to some growth in the muscle group you train the intervals with, which is generally the legs.

You should look at your cut as though it is a spectrum, with alot of High intensity cardio on one side and severe caloric restriction on the other. Which will be easier for you, cutting cals or uping cardio. Another option is to half ass both which would put you in the middle of the spectrum.

I am feeling a bit frazzeled ..perhaps due to a long day .. but can you put that in more laymenz terms for me.. break it down simple.
I can be extreme on either side of the coin be it either cardio wise or nutrition.. Nutrition is easier for me..

essentially what I am asking I guess is.... what are anaerobic intervals??

TIA

Erilay'a

20-30 minutes of pure sweat and misery on an eliptical. =P

20 min is 300 cal, 30 is 450.

900cal/hour.

Too bad i'd die if i tried an hour

I believe they are what w8 and DP call HIIT. Basically you train anaerobically for a time and then recover for 3x that amount.

So, say you do 30 secs @ 90% Max HR, you would drop to 65% Max HR for 90 secs. Repeat for half hour.

I generally burn about 600 cals in a half hour, but the real fat burning comes during the EPOC (Excess Postexercise Oxygen Consumption) which occurs over a long period of time afterward.

Thanks Mucho Duncan! I think I will give it a try tomorrow..

if i don't puke..

Eri'

Originally posted by Prince


you either have to burn more calories, e.g. cardio, or you have to lower your total caloric intake to lose weight.

so, I do not understand what you mean by "lowering calories though spells disaster"???

even with cardio, you still need to lower your caloric intake to get lean.

Because I thought I could more easily still be in an 'anabolic' state overall with mild cardio as opposed to lowering my calories, maybe I can do that and maintain at least just not sure overall so any advice is certainly not going out the window. I've gained about 7 pounds just in the last 2 weeks and none if it really good, allowing myself to slip up to much.

EFAs and Casein would help you slow down catabolism

I've got some flax and "night formula" protein coming in, should have it this week.

Originally posted by Erilaya
Damn.. I am trying to lean out after having really put on muscle and now have some "layers" to get rid of so I can show it off LOL. I have been doing the treadmill for an hour 3 times a week.. intervals... 20 min run.. 20 min fast walk 10 min hard run 10 walk/cool down.
should I lower the time and add the the intensity of the intervals?

Crap. I sure hope I have not been losing LBM?? crap crap crap.
diets been good though as are my workouts I am just freaked now about the cardio.

Eri'

From everything I've read concerning cardio, you would be fine with this Erilaya, just because cardio is one area where men and women differ. One hour of cardio could spell a loss for men (think of all the men marathon runners - skin and bones), but one hour of cardio for women is more ideal, especially if you are still hitting the iron. However, I would think that any more than that and you would start to deal with the same issues, namely a loss of LBM.

If you truly want to get lean cardio and diet will be much better thanonly decreasing calories. Keeping the calories up a bit and adding cardio also helps with sanity!