Does 20-30 minutes of cardio really work?

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qla3
qla3 Posts: 8
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Hi. I am new to Myfitnesspal. I join a while ago but only used one day . Now I am 2 weeks and 3 days in, using daily. So far so good!

Question: Can you really benefit from 20 to 30 minutes of cardio a day?
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  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,293 Member
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    I only do cardio twice a week (more in the summer) and usually for 20-25 minutes at a time. If you are working out for that short period of time you just have to increase the intensity.
  • dspearsb
    dspearsb Posts: 186
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    Absolutely! It's all about keeping your heart rate up in order to work off the fat.
  • MOMvsFOOD
    MOMvsFOOD Posts: 654 Member
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    The way I see it, better than 0 minutes!
  • qla3
    qla3 Posts: 8
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    oh ok. Thanks for the feedback!
  • Panda86
    Panda86 Posts: 873
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    Yep, but don't forget that strength training is just as important!
  • UneJolieFemme
    UneJolieFemme Posts: 86 Member
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    Absolutely ! It will get you going and you might very well start liking cardio more and more. Or maybe you will like the results, and it will push you to do more. If 20-30 min is the max you can do a day its still better than nothing :)
  • J155
    J155 Posts: 2
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    You need at least 18 mins to "turn on" the fat buring in you body. At my age I need all the metabolism boosts I can get. The cardio is also a great stress buster too. I combine with strength training to build muscle which also burns fat
  • tvanderberg
    tvanderberg Posts: 59
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    Every little bit COUNTS!!!
  • riley711
    riley711 Posts: 298 Member
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    Any activity is good, especially if you had not previously been active. I used to lead a very sedentary life (couch potato), so I set my MFP profile for 30 minutes of exercise 3 times per week. I try to do more, but not always able to. But yes, I do see a difference.
  • _Bro
    _Bro Posts: 437 Member
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    High intensity interval training is great for shorter workouts - I'm a fan of it..
  • robin80h
    robin80h Posts: 4 Member
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    My doctor and I discussed that women don't benefit from cardio in terms of weight loss nearly as much as men (probably due to their increased muscle percentage and some hormonal differences that lead to it impacting their metabolism more than women, etc) - however there are lots of benefits to doing cardio anyway regardless of whether you are male or female. cardio does burn calories (which helps with weight loss no matter what). cardio suppresses appetite. cardio means you are improving your cardiac health and blood pressure and regulating your blood sugar better (which means your body will less likely choose to store excess energy as fat). cardio also will release endorphins that help mood, which is nice when you're crabby because you're on a diet :)

    20-30 minutes of cardio typically means you will still just be using your glucose and not be burning fat directly (that takes longer and will only begin once you've depleted your easy-access sugar stores) but I still think it has serious health value and is soooooooo much better than not doing anything.

    If you really only have 20-30 minutes to work out, and weight loss is your number 1 goal, you may want to consider doing an intense strength training session instead. The calorie burn is technically less, but it revs the metabolism and the increased muscle mass will improve metabolism in the long term.
  • SHBoss1673
    SHBoss1673 Posts: 7,161 Member
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    If it doesn't, then I must have been exercising in my sleep. :tongue:

    by the way, you don't exercise to lose weight, you eat right to lose weight, you exercise to become healthy and maintain your lean tissue mass. If your focus is losing weight, make sure you understand, you could exercise all day, but if you eat crap, and eat to much of it, you'll still gain fat.
  • peadarorodaigh
    peadarorodaigh Posts: 7
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    You need at least 18 mins to "turn on" the fat buring in you body. At my age I need all the metabolism boosts I can get. The cardio is also a great stress buster too. I combine with strength training to build muscle which also burns fat

    A common myth, but not actually true.

    http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/busting-the-great-myths-of-fat-burning.html

    Edit: so to answer your question - yes you absolutely can.
  • chantalicious
    chantalicious Posts: 68
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    20-30 minutes is better than ZERO! What is recomended though is that you do a cardio workout in your Target Heart Rate Zone for at least 20 minutes.
  • superwmn
    superwmn Posts: 936
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    I do 30 minutes most days and have had success.

    Charmagne
  • PJilly
    PJilly Posts: 21,734 Member
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    by the way, you don't exercise to lose weight, you eat right to lose weight, you exercise to become healthy and maintain your lean tissue mass.
    Amen!
  • seangalt1505
    seangalt1505 Posts: 1
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    Ok, all bias aside, it is indisputable that 20-30 minutes of cardio a day is essential to healthy living. Weather it's to lose weight or to just be healthier over-all. Your cardiovascular system is the core of your body's functionality and essentially 'keeps fuel on the fire' that is the powerplant of your body. It has been proven that 20 minutes of HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) is more effective at teaching your body to burn off the caloric values of macro-nutrients than a regular long-interval low intensity workout. To put it in a primal light, your body functions on a fight or flight mechanism, both concepts involve high-intensity exercise. When you physically trigger this mechanism your body goes into a catabolic state, burning off energy courses(fat, carbs, protein) in order to survive. The bottom line - if you don't keep your cardiovascular system in an exercised state your body will revert to an anabolic state which burns less energy.

    My experience: Active Duty Military, Special Operations, 3 marathons, 12 obstacle races.
  • Sunshine2plus2
    Sunshine2plus2 Posts: 1,492 Member
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    See that ticker down there? You tell me?
  • Sweetness310
    Sweetness310 Posts: 1
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    Intro: Hi my name is Vanessa , I used to weigh 130lb back when I was in high school... I had a baby at 23 and throught the yrs went up to 156lb, I began running and avoided the food I would eat on daily basis, like fast food, soda, sweets, bread. Currently just drinking water eating oatmeal , cereal, fruit, banana, salads, yogurt. And I dropped to 144lb I rally wanna go down weight a bit more at least to 140lb and tone my body, I have seen a change in my body and how I feel physically and mentally... I'm able to move quicker at work and bend easier, I have problem w my left knee due to a bone spur but loosing the weight has helped with treating the pain I used to feel. But I still have my cheating days where I eat what I want and then jump back into the routine. I have noticed how fast my weight goes up if I eat the wrong things but I loose weight once I stop eating them... All I do is cardio at least everyday and squads... I've seen a big change
  • kimberlyblindsey
    kimberlyblindsey Posts: 266 Member
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    As others have pointed out and I've experienced you need cardio, but dependent on your age you may find that a steady state cardio like running on a treadmill is less effective then a shorter HIIT workout where you're working at a higher intensity with lots of plyo and sprints etc. Also, incorporating some weight training is going to help you burn more calories throughout the day. Just my two cents after finding that hopping on the elliptical or treadmill at the gym wasn't getting me where I wanted to be in terms of my fitness goals.

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