How much cardio is too much?

lexlyn14
lexlyn14 Posts: 290 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I have been running 6 miles everyday (60min)...Taking a kickboxing class every day (45 min)...then doing 30 day shred everyday...

I am sure there are a lot of you that do WAY more but honestly it is taking up 2 1/2 hours of my day...I have not really seen any weight loss or inches lost and have kept a calorie deficit for over 3 weeks now...

I do not even take a rest day as I want a bigger calorie deficit...

Is this too much cardio? ( I am hoping some one says it is so I can stop LOL) but seriously I am afraid I am going to burn out quick...

Replies

  • MikeBenWilliams
    MikeBenWilliams Posts: 53
    In my opinion, yes it is too much. Plus, you don't even seem like you are enjoying it. Also if you are doing that much exercise and nothing is happening with your body, then it must be telling you something. You could get way more accomplished if you trained shorter but more intensely. Instead of going out and jogging for 6 miles, try going to a track and setting a timer for 20 minutes and see how many sprints you can get in. I usually sprint the straigthaways and walk the outside of the track. More intense exercise will burn way more fat than standard cardio. I know it seems crazy but with exercise, sometimes less is more. Hope that helps somewhat. Best of luck.
  • lexlyn14
    lexlyn14 Posts: 290 Member
    In my opinion, yes it is too much. Plus, you don't even seem like you are enjoying it. Also if you are doing that much exercise and nothing is happening with your body, then it must be telling you something. You could get way more accomplished if you trained shorter but more intensely. Instead of going out and jogging for 6 miles, try going to a track and setting a timer for 20 minutes and see how many sprints you can get in. I usually sprint the straigthaways and walk the outside of the track. More intense exercise will burn way more fat than standard cardio. I know it seems crazy but with exercise, sometimes less is more. Hope that helps somewhat. Best of luck.
    That definately helps...I will try that!!! thanks...
  • mockchoc
    mockchoc Posts: 6,573 Member
    You are working out around 3 times as much as you need to each day!. It will cause you problems long term with your health. 5 or 6 days a week with a day or two rest is way enough. If you are interested in lifting then lift 2 or 3 times a week with a few days of ONE of your cario choices.
  • Graelwyn75
    Graelwyn75 Posts: 4,404 Member
    Excessive and pointless. Exercise should be about health, not about burning as many calories as possible. It sounds unsustainable, and it is quite well reported that after 40 minutes, you don't get any benefits really from exercise and it can even be detrimental as it can affect cortisol levels. Check out a book called 'the first 20 minutes'. It contains some of the most up to date research on exercise and what is beneficial. Also be aware that you are pushing your body, over stressing it, and in time, that will wear you down, and could even have the potential to shorten your lifespan.
  • tachyon_master
    tachyon_master Posts: 226 Member
    I work out roughly the same amount at the OP, however I have specific fitness reasons for doing so that have NOTHING to do with weight loss. For me it is sustainable to train like this 7 days a week.

    I don't think it's overkill by default, but I do agree with the others who suggest that this is probably overkill for weightloss purposes.
  • kdeaux1959
    kdeaux1959 Posts: 2,675 Member
    2.5 hours... yup. I would say that is too much... Unless you are training for something; my guess is that you may be netting too few calories. Also looks like you are near your goal. As you approach your ideal, your progress becomes slower. Your profile is closed by if that photo is of you, it may be that you are on the lower end of your BMI range anyway.. If that is the case, it may be that you need to focus on toning your muscles through strength training rather than trying to lose weight... but without more info, that is a shot in the dark.
  • lexlyn14
    lexlyn14 Posts: 290 Member
    thanks for all your support and advice...I actually gained 2 pounds this week after having a calorie deficit everyday and working out 2 1/2 hours a day...so obviously the working out isnt doing that great of a job...I am going to cut it down starting today...
  • liftingbro
    liftingbro Posts: 2,029 Member
    I read a study a while ago that showed that doing more than 45 minutes of cardio in a day has diminishing returns. The longer you workout after a 45 minutes or so the less you get out of it. The only reason one might do that amount of cardio is if you are training for a marathon or something extreme like that.

    If you are simply trying to lose weight, eat less, do about 30 minutes of cardio 4x per week and lift weights 3x per week. No workout needs to be more than 45-60 minutes in total for the entire day. In fact you don't have to exercise at all, much less do cardio, to lose weight though it is recommended.
  • auddii
    auddii Posts: 15,357 Member
    thanks for all your support and advice...I actually gained 2 pounds this week after having a calorie deficit everyday and working out 2 1/2 hours a day...so obviously the working out isnt doing that great of a job...I am going to cut it down starting today...

    Exercising causes stress on the body, which increases cortisol levels. This causes water retention, which will look like weight gain on the scale. Not too bad if you realize it's a minor weight gain and that it's water. However, cortisol should not be maintained at high levels (it will typically will spike after minor stressors and return to normal), since sustained levels of cortisol can lead to a host of problems including migraines. I would imagine that you are waaay overtraining (as others have suggested). The shorter bursts of cardio and/or weight training can lead to normal cortisol spikes (most people say 60 minutes is plenty of exercise, but a lot think 30 minutes is plenty per day). I would imagine your cortisol levels are very high right now just because you are working out so much.
  • moustache_flavored_lube
    moustache_flavored_lube Posts: 849 Member
    There is certainly diminishing returns, and I would say you have long since passed that point.

    Try adding some short very intense days (40 minutes or so), and some real strength training days.

    Diet is likely the source of lack of weight loss. You should be creating quite the deficit with that much working out
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    Excessive and pointless...you reach a certain point of diminishing returns and IMHO you are way over training. This can actualy be detrimental to your overall health and well being.

    Try exercising with a particular fitness goal in mind that is independent of calories burned or whatever. Exercise for your overall fitness, heart health, strength, etc...use your diet for weight control and proper nutrition.
  • lexlyn14
    lexlyn14 Posts: 290 Member
    I love this site...I learn so much!!!I only ran 45 minutes today and did 30 day shred dvd...I am so happy to not work out as much as I did...I hope this will help me in my weight loss journey...I am going to google cortisol levels now...Thanks MFP...Lynda
  • mockchoc
    mockchoc Posts: 6,573 Member
    I love this site...I learn so much!!!I only ran 45 minutes today and did 30 day shred dvd...I am so happy to not work out as much as I did...I hope this will help me in my weight loss journey...I am going to google cortisol levels now...Thanks MFP...Lynda

    That's great you have dropped the exercise a bit but still that is too much. Just do the run one day and the shred on another.

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