How long are your cardio. Sessions ?

mel4bee

I do heavy cardio (Turbo Fire which is a mix between kickboxing, High Intensity interval training and a bit of dancing) 3-4 times a week, 45 minutes-60 minutes per session. I do a short HIIT (20 minutes) once a week. I lift 3 times a week for 30 minutes per session and I do a few 10 minutes abs sessions here and there. I also walk (3.5-4 mph around 45 minutes 2-3 times a week for now because it is still very cold in Canada)

MeanderingMammal

You are overdoing it in the cardio department and that can cause muscle wasting

Because muscles clearly aren't involved in moving the whole body around...

To provide some context and make the statement meaningful, when one is losing weight by eating in deficit the loss in stored energy affects fat, muscles and organs. By exercising the muscles there is some bias in that loss by maintaining lean muscle mass. That retention in lean mass is more pronounced with resistance training, but using the muscles to perform CV work doesn't cause them to waste away unless one is in an extreme deficit situation.

Essentially the issue only kicks in if one is consistently doing 120-180 minute sessions.

not to mention aren't you just bored out of your mind doing cardio for that long?

A fair comment for the hamster wheels, however personally I prefer going outside to train.

Don't ditch cardio but make it challeging and keep it under 45 minutes.

Define challenging

fwiw my runs probably fall into three categories:

Short recovery runs of up to 30 minutes - That can be up to 6km a couple of times per week
Interval or tempo runs of between 40 minutes and 60 minutes - Generally 8-10Km a couple of times per week
Long run of somewhere between 90 minutes and 120 minutes - Once per week at the moment between 15 and 20Km

I complement that with two bodyweight sessions per week

RivenV

I don't really do anything with a specific cardio emphasis.

There is sometimes a cardio element in my workouts--like doing "as many reps as possible" for a certain time or completing a certain amount of work and noting the time as a benchmark for later.

MeanderingMammal

Does the body benefit from long periods of excersie or should I be aiming for shorter time/ more intense ??

Depends what one is wanting to achieve:

Long, slow (in relative terms) sessions build endurance and stamina
Intervals improve the capacity to operate at highest demand and develop explosive power
Tempo sessions improve capacity to operate at a higher demand for a protracted period of time

dannatona

I normally do 30-45 mins of HIIT cardio at the gym. I've found that HIIT training really gives me better results. My favorite workouts tend to have strength training and cardio mixed circuits. I burn an average of 10 calories per minute and I FEEL the burn lol

suziepoo1984

I cannot do cardio like running/elliptical more than 20 minutes at a time..i get bored to death! I keep watching the second counter on the machine- and yes, i do take plenty entertainment with me- like videos, songs etc. But i just cant do it! I truly admire people who run 60+ minutes at a time...wish i could do that:(
Anyhow, the only cardio i do are walking(is that cardio?)-45-50 minutes 2-3 days a week, zumba classes, U-Jam classes, Bollywood dance classes- all 60 minutes at a time about 2-3 times per week. I have also just incorporated weight lifting twice a week- 30 minutes at a time!

sharde8691

I do a total of 50-60 minutes of cardio 5-6 days a week. Right now I am doing a couch -10K trainer 3 days a week. I supplement the training with the cross trainer and/or stairmaster so that the workout is a full 50-60 minutes. I like to do one fun workout (zumba, kickboxing, etc.) once a week.
Once I lose 30 more pounds, I will focus more on strength-training to sculpt the body i want. Right now I just do upper body and lower body 2 days a week.

JoRocka

I have a serious question... because I seriously do NOT understand.

Why people do XX minutes on the Treadmill and then XX more minutes on the elliptical... or vice versa.

What is the deal with that??


Bulking= zero- (and as Huff said- some how it still feels like too much!)

Cutting- I'll start to include 30-45 minutes of stair master- that thing kicks my butt- great for creating more calorie deficit.

I get 'cardio' in with dance training- but it varies and I not really count it as cardio. can't be bothered- it's training for my thing- not 'cardio' that's a by product.

Spaghetti_Bender

I usually do an hour on the treadmill and elliptical combined.

BrianSharpe

You are overdoing it in the cardio department and that can cause muscle wasting,

The broscience is strong in this answer........loss of lean muscle mass is more a function of inadequate dietary protein intake or a prolonged excessively high caloric deficit (an undesired result of VLCDs)

Your primary sources of fuel when exercising are carbohydrates (glycogen stored in muscle & liver, plasma glucose) and fats depending on the intensity & duration of the exercise.

To the OP, I love cardio (I run, bike, row etc) but a balanced exercise program will include a strength component and there is compelling evidence that interval training offers significant benefits. In other word, mix things up a little, you`ll become fitter and keep boredom at bay.

lisalsd1

I had been doing 3 days cardio/2 days of strength-training. I've been switching to 2 days cardio/3 days strength-training.

On my cardio days, I generally use the arc-trainer for 25 mins/30-35 mins on the treadmill. I work hard on the arc-trainer and take it "easy" on the treadmill. Some days, I prefer to just run for about 30 mins. Running in intervals def burns more calories.

rduhlir

I run about 5 days a week average...2 easy runs, 1 interval/tempo run (I alternate week to week) and one long run on Sat or Sun... Some weeks I run 4 days if I have a race that weekend.

But I also do 2 days of strength training (I workout 6 days a week total).

stephyy4632

I only do around 30 min cardio max around 45 and put more focus into free weights I normally spend an hour or more in the weight section and see better results this way than when I used to just do tons of cardio


ETA= cardio 3days a week weights every other day

MeanderingMammal

Running in intervals def burns more calories.

It may feel like it does, but the different modes of running training all have different effects. The big benefit of interval training is the improvement in explosive power from the speed changes. You'll get as much calorie burn from a shorter tempo session at about 20-30 seconds per km slower than your max speed in the sprint intervals.

Notwithstanding that if your only interest is calorie expenditure and you're not actually up to a 20 minute tempo run then 30 mins of intervals are a reasonable compromise.

sijomial

I have a serious question... because I seriously do NOT understand.

Why people do XX minutes on the Treadmill and then XX more minutes on the elliptical... or vice versa.

What is the deal with that??

Can be a whole host of reasons:

Goal achieved (5k run, 20 minutes intervals etc.)
Variety - elliptical (especially with arms & legs) works muscles very differently. Similar idea to switching between sit ups and hanging leg raises, similar but different.
Only one piece of equipment might have a TV.
More variety - same as sometimes doing lat pull downs, sometimes wide arm pull ups, nice to mix it up.
Not hogging equipment - same as not hogging the squat rack when others want a turn.
Feet getting numb or pins & needles is common on elliptical.
Boredom - treadmill bores me to tears and I only do it because I need to for sport and the perverse satisfaction of doing something I've always been poor at. (Can't run outside due to injury BTW)

arrseegee

40-60 mins of running 3x a week. Plus a lot of walking.

meshashesha2012

I go to the gym 3 times a week and each session i do 40 mins epilator machine ( burning around 350 cals) and 40-50 mins treadmill, walking at a high incline and a fast pace as jogging/ running hurts my knee, (burning between 500-550 cals) i also do a few reps of arm weights/ torso machines in between. Also if I really feel like pushing myself ill do the gym bike at the end, but maybe only between 10-15 mins.

Does the body benefit from long periods of excersie or should I be aiming for shorter time/ more intense ??

ouch on that one :laugh: .. i'll leave it to you to google what an epilator is.

i do approx 180 minutes of cardio a week. lately that's split between running and walking while i prep for a 5k in march. after that i'll be swapping some of the running out for swimming, rowing and versa climber

meshashesha2012

I have a serious question... because I seriously do NOT understand.

Why people do XX minutes on the Treadmill and then XX more minutes on the elliptical... or vice versa.

What is the deal with that??

for me, when i'm not running or sprinting (YAY SPRINTS!) cardio is boring as heck and the only other cardio type workout i like doing (swimming) i dont have the stamina to do for 45-60 minutes. so it's not unheard of for me to do 20 mins each on the versaclimber, rower and bike in order to get in my 60 mins of consistent heart rate over 145 BPM

MrsPixelbark

Personally, I'd rather be punched in the face every half a kilometre than run a serious amount of distance on a treadmill/ use an elliptical. But, that's just me- I tend to find them mind numbingly dull.

But.... Having said that, I love to run/swim. I tend to swim 2-3 times a week, and then run 3 days a week.

Runs are split up, I do a long run at the weekend (10 miles and up- normally a maximum of about 13-15 miles,normally minimum of 90 minutes, up to a maximum of about 120ish). Although, I have been known to go further than this, I'm running a marathon again in October this year so no doubt those numbers will be higher later on in the summer.

And then two 'shorter' runs during the week. One speedy run of about 5k (so between 20-30 minutes depending on how I'm feeling) at the weekly parkrun, and then a timed 10k. But, this is all outside in the wind/rain/snow/rare bout of sunshine, and I mix my routes up on a fairly regular basis.

Swimming I normally do between 45 minutes to 60, depending on how I'm feeling- and who I'm with! If I'm with my Mum it's a nice leisurely 45 minute swim, but if I'm by myself it's heads down, music on etc. I'm also going to start trampolining soon.

This makes me sound like a royal cardio bunny, oh dear.

rayfu75

I try to choke people or joint lock them for 60-120 minutes 4-5 times a week. Sometimes I try to punch and kick people for 30-60 minutes a week too. (In reality I get kicked, punched, choked and joint locked 50% of the time) No greater cardio. Oh and I lift heavy things and put them down twice a week for 30 - 40 minutes too.