Cardio on treadmill

Mikevroknnike

So I'm 385 lbs and after 40 mins of walking on the treadmill I'm drenched in sweat! I do this 5 times a week for the past 2 weeks Is that enough cardio for me. Or do I have to run?

joolieb1

Sounds like a lot already. Running is high intensity but I recommend introducing it slowly. There are some great programmes out there such as Couch to 5k, it's not easy going from non running to running!

amusedmonkey

If you feel you are working hard and breathing hard then you are doing enough to improve your cardiovascular fitness. Forget about running for now, at your current weight it won't be good for your joints. If at some point your fitness level outgrows walking and you no longer feel you are getting a good workout, you could start increasing your incline which would offer you further progression. For now, you are doing well.

BrianSharpe

Being drenched in sweat is not necessarily an indicator of effort (I come from a long line of heavy sweaters....we can make anything look like hard work) How do do you feel in terms of perceived effort? Is your heart rate elevated, are you breathing more rapidly (but not gasping for breath)? Those would be more reliable indicators of effort.

If you're elevating your heart rate and sustaining it for 40 minutes 5 times a week you're off to a great start in terms of improving your cardiovascular health.

I'll have to confess to being biased towards running, I started a number of years ago and became addicted to it. I would, however, caution you against it just yet. I'd stick with the walking for now, maybe invest in a heart rate monitor to see how you're progressing in terms of cardio fitness (many are quite unreliable in terms of estimating calories burned) and perhaps consider running at some point in the future (generally I vehemently disagree with the "running will wreck your knees" naysayers but at 385 lbs it would be advisable to lose some weight first) and there are other non-impact cardio activities that you could do like cycling (you may have to shop around a bit for a bike) rowing etc. If you're not already I'd also encourage you to start strength training.

Good luck!

Azdak

There is nothing magical about running--it is just a higher-intensity activity. When you are exercising to improve fitness, your exercise intensity needs to be high enough to stimulate continued improvement. If walking at a certain speed is intense enough, given one's current condition, then running is not necessary.

As fitness improves, it means you have to work at a higher workload to maintain a "training" intensity. It is likely, esp for a younger person, that you will eventually come to the point were level walking is not hard enough, even at a brisk speed of 4+ mph At that point you will have to decide to: A) start a running program; walk at an incline or C)combination of both. At a higher weight, if you don't feel that your joints are ready for the higher impact of running, then incline walking is probably the best choice.

JustMissTracy

You don't have to run, just keep up your hard work. Don't be too tough on yourself, be patient, and stay consistent, and the pounds will start dropping off. Are you weighing and logging your foods too? Please do, you'll have much more success, faster! Goodluck! xo

rsclause

I just can't get into treadmill running. I love to be outside and see what's happening around me. When I started I had injured my shoulder so I tried running but had to give that up due to knee pain. So I started walking and kept increasing my speed and distance. I gradually started mixing in short runs with the walking and over many weeks I transitioned into running. I slowly kept adding distance until I was running 30 miles a week. The shocker was I never developed any knee pain with this gradual entry into running. The running combined with calorie deficit was perfect for me and I lost over fifty pounds and it allowed me to eat (and drink) back my exercise calories. I need the running to maintain and enjoy it. I got up at 4:30 this morning and hit the streets for a seven mile run. If you want to ease into running I say keep the walking going and add to it. When you are ready add some running. I also have heard that C25K is a great program but I never did it. I came home from a run Friday and saw in the paper a half marathon scheduled for the next morning. I did great and it was my first race. Give it a try, you will love it and the weight will start melting off.

Sassie_Lassie

What is the intensity at which you're walking? Are you out of breath? Do you feel like you've worked hard at the end of your 40 minutes? As someone pointed out the amount of sweat doesn't always equal the intensity of your workout.

You don't have to run. There's nothing magical at all about running. If you want to start running after you've lost a little bit of weight then do the Couch to 5K program as others pointed out. From what I've heard it's a good program. When I started running I didn't know about this program and did my own thing to work up the miles.

If you like doing your cardio on a treadmill then by all means, keep at it!

amusedmonkey

@rsclause for us who start quite heavy in the 300s like I did, running may simply not be an option at first. Even a trial run with 15 second intervals left me with achy knees and ankles for a whole week (not to mention shin splints) so I decided against it. Even a 2.5 mph level walk had my heart rate up into the 150s in the beginning and I was improving my aerobic fitness by simply walking, so running was not necessary anyway. I did have to transition to increasing my incline later to successfully keep my heart rate up, but It took me slimming down to about 220-230 to finally start a successful gradual running program with way less joint discomfort, although I still feel achy when I get carried away and overdo it. It simply takes a toll when you are as heavy as I was.

RollTideTri

If you're getting your heart rate up for 40 minutes 5 times a week, you will definitely be making cardio improvements, no need to run.

Keep doing that until walking 40 minutes seems very easy and doesn't get you out of breath at all (it won't take long), then you could think about trying some short jogging intervals, like a couch to 5k program or something. If you want. Or you could just increase your walking pace and/or distance if it gets too easy.

Walking is great exercise, especially starting out.

mbaker566

definitely don't have to run.

sweat is not an indicator, otherwise i'd be winning races

keep it up and you will get fitter
eat a calorie deficit and you will get slimmer

Josh_lol

I wouldn't say you need to run. Just keep at a pace that you feel is a high enough intensity to get you breathing heavier, but you can also keep up for about half an hour. You'll notice that as you lose weight and become fitter from the exercise, you'll be able to handle faster speeds without needing to breathe heavier. Just work your way up to running.

ShrinkinMel

Start at 312 April 22nd and currently at 304 and walking has been enough for me. I recently bumped it to 60 minutes. Started at 30 went to 45 but now feeling ready to do 60 most and especially on non lifting days but likely will do the same for lifting days too now.

I know eventually it will take jogging and I'm okay with that, actually I can't wait because I actually enjoy running when I'm light enough and fit enough to do it.

garbanzalo

What is your goal?

You may also be burning calories at a higher rate than someone else with your age and height but lower weight. However, weight loss happens mainly in the kitchen. You need to make sure to eat less than your TDEE and not eat back those exercise calories.

Any form of cardio is good. It should improve your cardiovascular and overall health but it is only tangentially beneficial for weight loss.

When you are drenched in sweat, all you are losing is some water and electrolytes. Fat loss happens when you eat less than you burn.

Forty6and2

I would suggest investing in a heart rate monitor with a chest strap to see where your heart rate is when you're walking. As you begin losing weight and getting more fit, it will be harder to keep your heart rate up with the effort you're exerting now, and that might be the time that you try running.

Just keep in mind: weight loss is all about calorie deficit. As long as you are eating less than your body burns (either naturally or through exercise) you will lose weight. Getting into something like running is definitely beneficial for many reasons, but you don't *have* to run to lose weight.

Another reason the heart rate monitor would be a good idea is because it will give you a more accurate estimate of how many calories you're burning than the machine or MFP does. If you're burning a lot of calories through exercise, I find that it's beneficial to eat some of the calories back (MFP has you at a deficit anyway, so you would lose even without exercise, exercise just adds to the deficit) to keep your energy up and keep your body fueled properly.

Hope this helps!

Forty6and2

http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/

Also, I've found that I prefer this calculator to MFP's calculator when it comes to determining how many calories you should be eating. A lot of the process is trial-and-error, so if you find that something is not working too well, you may need to tweak it.

RobD520

Mikevroknnike wrote: »

So I'm 385 lbs and after 40 mins of walking on the treadmill I'm drenched in sweat! I do this 5 times a week for the past 2 weeks Is that enough cardio for me. Or do I have to run?

Walking is fine. You don't ever HAVE to switch to running. The advantage is less pounding; and as your fitness improves you can increase your pace.

I have walked marathons, and have even won my age award in the walking division of half marathons (~2:25).

I run too; but when my mileage gets up there, I usually do more racewalking. Running has a much greater injury risk-so feel free to keep walking!

amusedmonkey

garbanzalo wrote: »

What is your goal?

You may also be burning calories at a higher rate than someone else with your age and height but lower weight. However, weight loss happens mainly in the kitchen. You need to make sure to eat less than your TDEE and not eat back those exercise calories.

Any form of cardio is good. It should improve your cardiovascular and overall health but it is only tangentially beneficial for weight loss.

When you are drenched in sweat, all you are losing is some water and electrolytes. Fat loss happens when you eat less than you burn.

Although maintaining control in the kitchen is the number 1 priority I will have to respectfully disagree with this. A heavy person has the ability to generate very large burns, which tremendously aids with weight loss, not only tangentially, especially in the beginning when you are still learning the ropes.

ShrinkinMel

garbanzalo wrote: »

What is your goal?

You may also be burning calories at a higher rate than someone else with your age and height but lower weight. However, weight loss happens mainly in the kitchen. You need to make sure to eat less than your TDEE and not eat back those exercise calories.

Any form of cardio is good. It should improve your cardiovascular and overall health but it is only tangentially beneficial for weight loss.

When you are drenched in sweat, all you are losing is some water and electrolytes. Fat loss happens when you eat less than you burn.

Yes if you manually enter your TDEE for MFP. But if not MFP is counting on you eating them. I eat half to all depending on hunger(past the 1690 MFP gives without exercise factored) and losing 1 1/2 to 2 lbs a week. I'd eat them all until otherwise shown it's not effective because you will eventually have to lower them and better to eat the max side you can and still lose to leave room for decreases without causing too much hunger issues.