Probably A Stupid Exercise Question

hunderwoman

Hi there,

I am sure this is probably going to come off as a dumb question, but I honestly am not sure of the answer. I have read many many times before that its best to get in at least 30 minutes of cardio activity a day. But that if you don't have 30 full minutes to dedicate, you could break it up through out the day. i.e 3 ten minute walks.

My question is this... Does the same ring true for strength exercises? For instance. If I were to do 50 push ups, 3 times a day, spread out over the course of a 24 hour period, is this beneficial at all? Or are these types of exercises best done in sets, all within a much shorter period of time?

Thank you so much for your responses. I just want to make sure I do things properly without unintentionally wasting my time.

Lisa

Vaisaxena

It does not matter.

Hi there,

I am sure this is probably going to come off as a dumb question, but I honestly am not sure of the answer. I have read many many times before that its best to get in at least 30 minutes of cardio activity a day. But that if you don't have 30 full minutes to dedicate, you could break it up through out the day. i.e 3 ten minute walks.

My question is this... Does the same ring true for strength exercises? For instance. If I were to do 50 push ups, 3 times a day, spread out over the course of a 24 hour period, is this beneficial at all? Or are these types of exercises best done in sets, all within a much shorter period of time?

Thank you so much for your responses. I just want to make sure I do things properly without unintentionally wasting my time.

Lisa

hunderwoman

Thank you so much! As I said, I would hate to waste my time doing something that was not productive. I appreciate your response.

Dustybugger

I might have to disagree. I was under the impression the reason the elusive "they" say to do 30 minutes of cardio is because you have to stay around your target heart rate for at least 20 minutes before you start dipping into fat (plus, I don't even break a sweat for like 18 minutes!). Maybe thats ancient information, but isn't that why people who weight train do super-sets without rest inbetween? And on top of that, my gym rat buddies lift first, then go on the cardio machine (which many people do the opposite) because by the time they're on the cardio machine they're already burning fat. But that's the great debate. If really 10 minutes here, 10 minutes there is all you can do, then that's absolutely better than nothing. But if we're being perfectly honest, you can't wake up 20 minutes earlier to do that extra 20 minutes so you can break a real sweat? I mean, I hate doing it, but I get my butt up at 5:45am, throw down a cup of coffee, and then run on my treadmill (or outside, whatever I feel like).

NakedLunchTime

I do 15 hrs a week student teaching
3hours of class\
40 hours of work

During this semester I have had a much harder time keeping my routine going, so I do a a lot of excersises randomly at different times during the day. (thank god for a private office ) and my profile pic was taken about 2 weeks ago...

I don't feel it matters, but I am not an expert that's for sure!

hunderwoman

Thanks Dusty...

Don't get me wrong. I have no problem getting my cardio in every day. I usually run/walk between 4-5 miles a day. I was more curious about the strength aspect. I am just starting out in that area and its pretty impossible for me to knock out 100 push ups in a short period of time. However I can do 25 of them, and then 25 more an hour from now. etc etc etc. I am not sure if that makes sense or not. Obviously I could do 2 sets of 10 or whatever, but if I can do 25 at a time, shouldn't I?

NakedLunchTime

Thanks Dusty...

Don't get me wrong. I have no problem getting my cardio in every day. I usually run/walk between 4-5 miles a day. I was more curious about the strength aspect. I am just starting out in that area and its pretty impossible for me to knock out 100 push ups in a short period of time. However I can do 25 of them, and then 25 more an hour from now. etc etc etc. I am not sure if that makes sense or not. Obviously I could do 2 sets of 10 or whatever, but if I can do 25 at a time, shouldn't I?

I vote yes!

drewboyzz

You should really look in to a crossfit WOD = Workout of the Day, they are high intensity and rarely go over twenty min.

ChrisLindsay9

This article/podcast episode might have some utility for you!

http://getfitguy.quickanddirtytips.com/how-to-do-a-10-minute-workout.aspx

charlierefvem

I am sure there is a certain threshold for each workout to be effective (maybe 15 minutes), however i know that exercising multiple times a day is beneficial. In fact it effectively tells your body that it's strength will be demanded more often and frequently and cause your body to adapt faster than otherwise.

ndj1979

it probably does not matter..

however, you would benefit more from a more structured program.

Something that has you doing compound movements (squats, deadlifts, overhead press, pull ups, chin ups, bench press, etc) and then building a total body work out routine around these moves where you are hitting arms, legs, back, shoulders, etc three times a week and then doing cardio two to three times a week with one day of rest ..maybe two days rest if you only do cardio twice...

jzammetti

it probably does not matter..

however, you would benefit more from a more structured program.

Something that has you doing compound movements (squats, deadlifts, overhead press, pull ups, chin ups, bench press, etc) and then building a total body work out routine around these moves where you are hitting arms, legs, back, shoulders, etc three times a week and then doing cardio two to three times a week with one day of rest ..maybe two days rest if you only do cardio twice...

^^^^^ This! :drinker:

courtneywiens

some exercise is better than none, and breaking it up into smaller chunks may not be AS effective as doing it all at once, in a perfectly patterned way, to maximize effectiveness, but it WILL make a difference. you may not see tremendous results straight away, but something is better than nothing and every little bit counts. do as much as you can when you can and you'll find extra ways to sneak it in there. i have gone through spurts of time where i haven't been able to put as much time in at the gym and i've still gained a lot of strength and lost a lot of weight during those times. good luck to you!!

marz42

I think if you are doing 25 push ups at a time, that alone isn't bad particularly if they are the military ones. 100 in a day has to be doing something. If that gets easy there are a bunch of different kinds on the net of varying difficulty.