Such a thing as too much cardio?

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  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,868 Member
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    There is such a thing as doing too much too soon and there is such a thing as not getting adequate rest and recovery and there is such a thing as not providing your body with enough nutrition and fuel for your efforts. I'm a cyclist so I spend a lot of time working on my cardiovascular fitness...personally I could not spend 2 hours on an elliptical without having some fitness aspiration that would warrant it, but that's just me...more is not always necessarily better. I would also find some time to get in some resistance work as well...it's important to your overall fitness.

    As a matter of general fitness, I'd recommend a fairly balanced approach to your cardiovascular fitness and resistance training with more specific fitness goals tending your towards one more than the other.
  • Danny_Boy13
    Danny_Boy13 Posts: 2,094 Member
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    This all comes down to personal preference. Is there such a thing as too much cardio? Is there such a thing as too much weight training? Is there something as to much of this or that can be detrimental? The short answer, yes. I personally believe in having a balanced mind and body. I weight train equal to the amount of cardio I do. The point where one gets to where it is too much, IMO, is when injuries are occurring on a more frequent basis, recovery times are increasing, you lack motivation, you become sick on a more frequent basis, ect. One or a combination of is typically an indicator of over training, or too much.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,988 Member
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    mlclark86 wrote: »
    I do want to add strength training to my routine, but I hate the weight area in my gym. It is always full of 20year old men who lift regularly and as a almost 30 year old woman I feel intimidated and awkward. I haven't done much lifting since high school and every time I think about doing it I talk myself out of it because of my self consciousness. I think I would still do elliptcal after even if I did add strength training though...I just feel so great while on it and after I am done.

    The 20 yo dudes in my gym use heavier dumbbells than I do plus there's not many of them when I go, which is at the hour before close.
  • htimpaired
    htimpaired Posts: 1,404 Member
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    galgenstrick wrote: »
    giorgioc722 wrote: »
    I went from doing nothing to running 3-5 miles in the morning, lifting after that, then hiking 8-13 miles, ride my bike home from my friends house after the hike, and rollerblading for another 2-3 hours.

    Not really a good idea to lift after cardio. I would switch them if you're ever going to do them back to back.

    Why?
  • galgenstrick
    galgenstrick Posts: 2,086 Member
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    htimpaired wrote: »
    galgenstrick wrote: »
    giorgioc722 wrote: »
    I went from doing nothing to running 3-5 miles in the morning, lifting after that, then hiking 8-13 miles, ride my bike home from my friends house after the hike, and rollerblading for another 2-3 hours.

    Not really a good idea to lift after cardio. I would switch them if you're ever going to do them back to back.

    Why?

    2 reasons. If you're lifting heavy, you can increase your chances of injury if you're fatigued after cardio. secondly, you'll be able to progress better on the weights if you are 100% during your workouts. You'll be able to lift more weight and get stronger faster.
  • mlclark86
    mlclark86 Posts: 33 Member
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    As for my body telling me, I am in no increased pain from my workouts and I am eating a bit more to compensate for the calories and such that I am losing during.

    As for weight lifting, I could use some pointers there....I feel like I don't know where to start or what to focus on.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,868 Member
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    mlclark86 wrote: »
    As for my body telling me, I am in no increased pain from my workouts and I am eating a bit more to compensate for the calories and such that I am losing during.

    As for weight lifting, I could use some pointers there....I feel like I don't know where to start or what to focus on.

    There are any number of good beginner programs out there. New Rules of Lifting for Women is a good program for general fitness and the book itself is a good read in that it dispels a lot of myths and addresses a number of "fears" that women tend to have where lifting is concerned. It will explain what you're doing and why you're doing it and provide you with a program to follow. It gets a bit convoluted towards the end of the program which is when my wife switched to Strong Curves.
  • Yi5hedr3
    Yi5hedr3 Posts: 2,696 Member
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    Way too much. Wasting time, and producing tons of Cortisol - destructive. Do a 20 minute HIIT "Sprint 8" session twice a week. That's all you need for cardio. Add 2 ea sessions of pumping iron each week (25-30 mins max each).
  • simon_pickard
    simon_pickard Posts: 50 Member
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    1. Too much cardio will put you in a catabolic state (burning muscle- bad).
    2. The more muscle you have the more cals your burn.
    3. Looking at 1 and 2 can you see why so many people go nowhere fast?

    Lift heavy stuff, no you won't get big. No you don't need to follow some celeb 'program'.

    Just do the following exercises. 3 sets of 10. Once you can do all the reps throw a bit more weight on the bar.

    Squats
    Deadlifts
    Bench Press
    Shoulder Press
    Chin / Pull ups
    Walking Lunges

    Read this...
    http://www.leangains.com/2011/09/fuckarounditis.html


  • mlclark86
    mlclark86 Posts: 33 Member
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    Thanks for all the advice and info! I think I will keep at least 2 days a week of pure cardio...as in the elliptical for at least as hour, but no more than 1.5 hours. Then I think I am going to add strength training the other 2 days a week followed by 30-45 min on the elliptical depending how I am feeling. I have come the conclusion that I definitely need to add strength training, but still want my time to just kill it on the elliptical.
  • Ibeachlover
    Ibeachlover Posts: 66 Member
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    As others have mentioned, you should add some type of strength training to your program. I wouldn't worry about the guys at the gym, you'll get settled in soon enough. However, you don't need a gym to get toned. Buy some bands, a hand bar set, and also do exercises using your body weight. There are so many references on the net for at home workouts..use them. You might find you don't need a gym. As far as the cardio...I personally don't think it is too long a period; but maybe only do it 4-5 times a week and work in a 1/2 - hour of toning / strength exercises 3 days per week. Anyway, just remember, guys love chicks to show up at the gym...it motivates us :-)
  • singingflutelady
    singingflutelady Posts: 8,736 Member
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    Maybe increase your intensity on the elliptical where doing more than an hour is impossible
  • scolaris
    scolaris Posts: 2,145 Member
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    I do a lot of walking, pretty much every day. It is only partially for more calories; the other benefits are emotional & intellectual. I just think better when I walk. Hiking, Zumba, etc have to be spaced more than 24 hours apart or I start to feel injured.
  • vivmom2014
    vivmom2014 Posts: 1,647 Member
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    whmscll wrote: »
    Congratulations on finding a form of exercise you love! This is critical to staying active, which has so many benefits other than weight loss. I would limit yourself, though, so you don't burn out on your love of the elliptical too soon. Maybe 90 minutes each elliptical session. And alternate the cardio with strength training days. Strength training is important to losing fat and retaining lean muscle mass.

    I agree so much with this, especially the bolded.

    Everyone is different. Do what feels right for YOU. If you can't sustain the high levels of exercise you're currently doing, then you can easily relax it a bit.

  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
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    I'd suggest increasing the intensity of your workouts. I do quite a bit of cardio (probably 10 hours a week) but I'm usually completely beat afterwards and need a rest day every 5 days or so because my legs just don't like it so much... and I alternate between spinning, incline treadmill, and rowing, so I work different muscles... and I keep increasing the intensity of my workouts (I spin faster, increase my treadmill incline etc). I used to walk a lot, sometimes 2 hours a day, then finally figured out that increasing intensity is the way to go as you work your muscles more and you burn more in less time...

    I also suggest doing some strength training (I feel a bit of a hypocrite though because I don't do much as I hate it, but I'm pretty happy with my body as is and don't want more muscular arms, but I was doing it when I was losing).

    I've also noticed that it's harder to stick to my calories when I workout too much, which is a problem.

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