Is there too much cardio in this program?

Jamal_Guildford
Jamal_Guildford Posts: 214 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I think the title says everything. Here is my new training program, what do you think of this?

Monday: Run (50 minutes), Cycles (30 minutes), Stepper (15 minutes)
Tuesday: Rowing (1h30)
Wednesday: Rest day
Thursday: Run (50 minutes), Elliptical machine (30 minutes), Stepper (15 minutes)
Friday: Rowing (1h30)
Saturday: Run (50 minutes), Stepper (30 minutes)
Sunday: Rest day

I am used to do some weight lifting but I find this quite boring and I dont take any pleasure. I just tried rowing and really enjoy it now. So I replace weight lifting with rowing.

Also, which diet do I need with this kind of program? a lot of carbs? protein?
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Replies

  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,136 Member
    ummmm this whole routine is cardio…

    what are your goals? Do you want to preserve muscle? Do you just want cardiovascular health? etc….
  • KarenJanine
    KarenJanine Posts: 3,497 Member
    What are your goals?

    How much are you eating?

    With a cardio routine like that you will need to make sure you are eating enough or you will be breaking down muscle for energy.

    I would seriously consider adding back in some strength training.
  • samamps88
    samamps88 Posts: 52
    You found lifting boring but enjoy 1.5 hours on a rowing machine???

    I could undertand rowing on a river being more interesting but staring at a wall for hour n half going forward and backward I would need a gun to my head ha.

    But seriously it depends on your goal! If you want to gain muscle then this is a useless routine, if you want to be a gymnast again bad routine, however if you want to lose weight then combine this with a good diet and it is an ok programme. This could be said about any programme because exercise doesnt make you lose weight only diet can do that!

    What you will gain from this programme is to get efficient at rowing, you may get some slight cardiovascular gains that all depends on the specifics of 'run' are they varying workouts or is it just mindless running same with rowing etc
  • DavPul
    DavPul Posts: 61,406 Member
    :indifferent:
  • sjohnny
    sjohnny Posts: 56,142 Member
    You could probably do some step aerobics or Zumba on Wednesdays and Sundays.
  • SingingSingleTracker
    SingingSingleTracker Posts: 1,866 Member
    I think the title says everything. Here is my new training program, what do you think of this?

    Monday: Run (50 minutes), Cycles (30 minutes), Stepper (15 minutes)
    Tuesday: Rowing (1h30)
    Wednesday: Rest day
    Thursday: Run (50 minutes), Elliptical machine (30 minutes), Stepper (15 minutes)
    Friday: Rowing (1h30)
    Saturday: Run (50 minutes), Stepper (30 minutes)
    Sunday: Rest day

    I am used to do some weight lifting but I find this quite boring and I dont take any pleasure. I just tried rowing and really enjoy it now. So I replace weight lifting with rowing.

    Also, which diet do I need with this kind of program? a lot of carbs? protein?

    It's only 7 1/2 hours of cardio per week. Those of us who race bikes typically do about 9 - 12 hours of cardio per week, plus 3 days of weights (leg day, upper body day, core day).

    The question would also concern the intensity of your workouts. I would assume some of those hours are lower intenstity cardio work (targeting lower heart rate zones), and others are higher intensity with intervals, correct? If a couple of the days were more "recovery" pace/effort, you could add some weight lifting work on your two rest days (legs one day, upper body/core on the other) for a nice balanced program.
  • MeanderingMammal
    MeanderingMammal Posts: 7,866 Member
    Monday: Run (50 minutes), Cycles (30 minutes), Stepper (15 minutes)
    Tuesday: Rowing (1h30)
    Wednesday: Rest day
    Thursday: Run (50 minutes), Elliptical machine (30 minutes), Stepper (15 minutes)
    Friday: Rowing (1h30)
    Saturday: Run (50 minutes), Stepper (30 minutes)
    Sunday: Rest day

    I'd question why bother with the cycle, elliptihell and stepper after the runs. If you're doing all of that on hamster wheels then it sounds like purgatory.

    Notwithstanding the absence of resistance training, which I'm not a huge fan of myself, the value of that lot really depends on what types of sessions you're doing. If it's all moderate intensity, steady state, then all you're really doing is burning up calories without really improving your CV system. You need to be combining endurance sessions with thresholds and intervals to optimise your efficiency, improve your lactate threshold and your VO2Max.

    The rowing will have an effect on lean mass retention, and it's a thorough whole body session, but you probably should throw in some structured resistance training to make sure you've got some balance in there. A couple of sessions per week will pay dividends. While it's boring as f* it's worthwhile doing.
  • Jamal_Guildford
    Jamal_Guildford Posts: 214 Member
    ummmm this whole routine is cardio…

    what are your goals? Do you want to preserve muscle? Do you just want cardiovascular health? etc….

    My goal is to maintain my weight and become an endurance cardio athelte. I really enjoy cardiovascular exercises.....
  • BlueBombers
    BlueBombers Posts: 4,064 Member
    Yeah, that's quite a bit of cardio, but that's just me.

    Add some weight lifting to the mix.
  • sjohnny
    sjohnny Posts: 56,142 Member
    What exactly is an "endurance cardio athlete"?

    Competitive Zumba?
  • Jamal_Guildford
    Jamal_Guildford Posts: 214 Member
    I think the title says everything. Here is my new training program, what do you think of this?

    Monday: Run (50 minutes), Cycles (30 minutes), Stepper (15 minutes)
    Tuesday: Rowing (1h30)
    Wednesday: Rest day
    Thursday: Run (50 minutes), Elliptical machine (30 minutes), Stepper (15 minutes)
    Friday: Rowing (1h30)
    Saturday: Run (50 minutes), Stepper (30 minutes)
    Sunday: Rest day

    I am used to do some weight lifting but I find this quite boring and I dont take any pleasure. I just tried rowing and really enjoy it now. So I replace weight lifting with rowing.

    Also, which diet do I need with this kind of program? a lot of carbs? protein?

    It's only 7 1/2 hours of cardio per week. Those of us who race bikes typically do about 9 - 12 hours of cardio per week, plus 3 days of weights (leg day, upper body day, core day).

    The question would also concern the intensity of your workouts. I would assume some of those hours are lower intenstity cardio work (targeting lower heart rate zones), and others are higher intensity with intervals, correct? If a couple of the days were more "recovery" pace/effort, you could add some weight lifting work on your two rest days (legs one day, upper body/core on the other) for a nice balanced program.

    I believe it's quite intense... For the step, I walk 240 floors in 30 minutes. I run at 6.5 mph with 3.5 incline. I row almost 13k per hour. And I cycle almost 9km for 30 minutes. Do you think it's intense enough?
  • jkwolly
    jkwolly Posts: 3,049 Member
    :indifferent:
    +1.


    1.5 hours of rowing sounds horrible.
  • Jamal_Guildford
    Jamal_Guildford Posts: 214 Member
    You found lifting boring but enjoy 1.5 hours on a rowing machine???

    I could undertand rowing on a river being more interesting but staring at a wall for hour n half going forward and backward I would need a gun to my head ha.

    But seriously it depends on your goal! If you want to gain muscle then this is a useless routine, if you want to be a gymnast again bad routine, however if you want to lose weight then combine this with a good diet and it is an ok programme. This could be said about any programme because exercise doesnt make you lose weight only diet can do that!

    What you will gain from this programme is to get efficient at rowing, you may get some slight cardiovascular gains that all depends on the specifics of 'run' are they varying workouts or is it just mindless running same with rowing etc

    My goal is to maintain my weight and become an endurance cardio athlete. I really like cardio (cycling, rowing, running).

    Here is my diet, what do you think of it?
    Breakfast: two toasts with peanut butter, one coffee (with sugar and milk), one tea (with sugar and milk)

    Lunch: one baguette/wrap with chicken/tuna or eggs + some lettuce + dressing (Caesar salad, mayo or coronation) + diet coke + one coffee (with sugar and milk) + a treat (one spoon of peanut butter or one chocolate)
    Dinner: a can of tuna or two eggs, a lot veg (around 100g of salads, or green beans or brussels roots) + dressing (caesar salad, vinaigrette, salad cream) + one hot chocolate and time to time a treat (one spoon of peanut butter or one chocolate).
  • Jamal_Guildford
    Jamal_Guildford Posts: 214 Member
    What are your goals?

    How much are you eating?

    With a cardio routine like that you will need to make sure you are eating enough or you will be breaking down muscle for energy.

    I would seriously consider adding back in some strength training.
    My goal is to maintain my weight. Here is my diet:

    Breakfast: two toasts with peanut butter, one coffee (with sugar and milk), one tea (with sugar and milk)

    Lunch: one baguette/wrap with chicken/tuna or eggs + some lettuce + dressing (Caesar salad, mayo or coronation) + diet coke + one coffee (with sugar and milk) + a treat (one spoon of peanut butter or one chocolate)
    Dinner: a can of tuna or two eggs, a lot veg (around 100g of salads, or green beans or brussels roots) + dressing (caesar salad, vinaigrette, salad cream) + one hot chocolate and time to time a treat (one spoon of peanut butter or one chocolate).
  • Hornsby
    Hornsby Posts: 10,322 Member
    No, it's not too much. Add some weight training though.

    And you will definitely need to eat more than you are planning.
  • rassha01
    rassha01 Posts: 534 Member
    What are your goals?

    How much are you eating?

    With a cardio routine like that you will need to make sure you are eating enough or you will be breaking down muscle for energy.

    I would seriously consider adding back in some strength training.
    My goal is to maintain my weight. Here is my diet:

    Breakfast: two toasts with peanut butter, one coffee (with sugar and milk), one tea (with sugar and milk)

    Lunch: one baguette/wrap with chicken/tuna or eggs + some lettuce + dressing (Caesar salad, mayo or coronation) + diet coke + one coffee (with sugar and milk) + a treat (one spoon of peanut butter or one chocolate)
    Dinner: a can of tuna or two eggs, a lot veg (around 100g of salads, or green beans or brussels roots) + dressing (caesar salad, vinaigrette, salad cream) + one hot chocolate and time to time a treat (one spoon of peanut butter or one chocolate).

    Everyday? I would not be able to do that!!! As far as your cardio, if your goal is to be an endurance athlete, keep on. I would suggest at least a little resistance training to retain some lean mass,
  • KarenJanine
    KarenJanine Posts: 3,497 Member
    What are your goals?

    How much are you eating?

    With a cardio routine like that you will need to make sure you are eating enough or you will be breaking down muscle for energy.

    I would seriously consider adding back in some strength training.
    My goal is to maintain my weight. Here is my diet:

    Breakfast: two toasts with peanut butter, one coffee (with sugar and milk), one tea (with sugar and milk)

    Lunch: one baguette/wrap with chicken/tuna or eggs + some lettuce + dressing (Caesar salad, mayo or coronation) + diet coke + one coffee (with sugar and milk) + a treat (one spoon of peanut butter or one chocolate)
    Dinner: a can of tuna or two eggs, a lot veg (around 100g of salads, or green beans or brussels roots) + dressing (caesar salad, vinaigrette, salad cream) + one hot chocolate and time to time a treat (one spoon of peanut butter or one chocolate).

    How many calories does that amount to? That doesn't seem like enough calories for an endurance athlete, especially considering you are looking to maintain and not lose weight. It would not be unusual for professional athletes to consume 6000-10000 calories per day while training.

    Also bear in mind that 'endurance athletes' (I assume you are thinking long distance runners or cyclists?) will have an element of strength training in their regime as strength training can help cardio performance.
  • Jamal_Guildford
    Jamal_Guildford Posts: 214 Member
    What are your goals?

    How much are you eating?

    With a cardio routine like that you will need to make sure you are eating enough or you will be breaking down muscle for energy.

    I would seriously consider adding back in some strength training.
    My goal is to maintain my weight. Here is my diet:

    Breakfast: two toasts with peanut butter, one coffee (with sugar and milk), one tea (with sugar and milk)

    Lunch: one baguette/wrap with chicken/tuna or eggs + some lettuce + dressing (Caesar salad, mayo or coronation) + diet coke + one coffee (with sugar and milk) + a treat (one spoon of peanut butter or one chocolate)
    Dinner: a can of tuna or two eggs, a lot veg (around 100g of salads, or green beans or brussels roots) + dressing (caesar salad, vinaigrette, salad cream) + one hot chocolate and time to time a treat (one spoon of peanut butter or one chocolate).

    Everyday? I would not be able to do that!!! As far as your cardio, if your goal is to be an endurance athlete, keep on. I would suggest at least a little resistance training to retain some lean mass,

    I think weight lifting takes really a long time because you have to work out each muscle individually.... While rowing, you work out many muscle (biceps, shoulder, back and legs) in one stroke. I dont have the time to do weight lifting anymore (work and family)..... This is the reason, I was looking for an aerobic sport where I can work out my upper body: rowing seems perfect to me. I will try to weight lifting with some friends when I have time....

    I am considreing adding more kcal in my diet
  • Jamal_Guildford
    Jamal_Guildford Posts: 214 Member
    What are your goals?

    How much are you eating?

    With a cardio routine like that you will need to make sure you are eating enough or you will be breaking down muscle for energy.

    I would seriously consider adding back in some strength training.
    My goal is to maintain my weight. Here is my diet:

    Breakfast: two toasts with peanut butter, one coffee (with sugar and milk), one tea (with sugar and milk)

    Lunch: one baguette/wrap with chicken/tuna or eggs + some lettuce + dressing (Caesar salad, mayo or coronation) + diet coke + one coffee (with sugar and milk) + a treat (one spoon of peanut butter or one chocolate)
    Dinner: a can of tuna or two eggs, a lot veg (around 100g of salads, or green beans or brussels roots) + dressing (caesar salad, vinaigrette, salad cream) + one hot chocolate and time to time a treat (one spoon of peanut butter or one chocolate).

    How many calories does that amount to? That doesn't seem like enough calories for an endurance athlete, especially considering you are looking to maintain and not lose weight. It would not be unusual for professional athletes to consume 6000-10000 calories per day while training.

    Also bear in mind that 'endurance athletes' (I assume you are thinking long distance runners or cyclists?) will have an element of strength training in their regime as strength training can help cardio performance.

    unfortunately I dont have the time to do strength training, it's taking too long to work out each muscle individually. I will stick to this new training program and if I keep losing weight, I will add more food to my diet.
  • sjohnny
    sjohnny Posts: 56,142 Member
    You found lifting boring but enjoy 1.5 hours on a rowing machine???

    I could undertand rowing on a river being more interesting but staring at a wall for hour n half going forward and backward I would need a gun to my head ha.

    But seriously it depends on your goal! If you want to gain muscle then this is a useless routine, if you want to be a gymnast again bad routine, however if you want to lose weight then combine this with a good diet and it is an ok programme. This could be said about any programme because exercise doesnt make you lose weight only diet can do that!

    What you will gain from this programme is to get efficient at rowing, you may get some slight cardiovascular gains that all depends on the specifics of 'run' are they varying workouts or is it just mindless running same with rowing etc

    My goal is to maintain my weight and become an endurance cardio athlete. I really like cardio (cycling, rowing, running).

    Here is my diet, what do you think of it?
    Breakfast: two toasts with peanut butter, one coffee (with sugar and milk), one tea (with sugar and milk)

    Lunch: one baguette/wrap with chicken/tuna or eggs + some lettuce + dressing (Caesar salad, mayo or coronation) + diet coke + one coffee (with sugar and milk) + a treat (one spoon of peanut butter or one chocolate)
    Dinner: a can of tuna or two eggs, a lot veg (around 100g of salads, or green beans or brussels roots) + dressing (caesar salad, vinaigrette, salad cream) + one hot chocolate and time to time a treat (one spoon of peanut butter or one chocolate).

    Get rid of the diet coke and sugar (toksinz) and add another two hours of rowing.
  • DavPul
    DavPul Posts: 61,406 Member
    unfortunately I dont have the time to do strength training, it's taking too long to work out each muscle individually. I will stick to this new training program and if I keep losing weight, I will add more food to my diet.

    well, thank you for coming here and posting questions that you didn't actually want the answers to. so considerate of you to take time from your busy, 90 mins of spinal flexion schedule to stop by and ask for advice you won't take.

    i'll be sure to look for you in the next Cardio Endurance Olympics
  • jcallejabjj
    jcallejabjj Posts: 33
    Never enough cardio.
  • sjohnny
    sjohnny Posts: 56,142 Member
    07995eb97a008cb4f93be609caf52540.jpg
  • geebusuk
    geebusuk Posts: 3,348 Member
    What strength routine did you do?

    I do a routine based on starting strength which does 'compound' movements.
    I do 3x5 for each movement and 3 different moves per session.
    So I lift weight a total of 45 times in one session (+8 warm up movements per move).
    Total time actual lfting weights and getting ready is well under 10 minutes. If I talk short rests, total time is maybe 25 minutes.

    As it goes, I've got my own setup, so at the moment I'm in the middle of a weights session - just finished squats, warmed up on pull ups (only two as I'm in a campsite working away so no cable machine for a warm up). I'm going to set some food going and go back to do the weighted pull ups. Ten minutes out of my day for the results it gives as far as body recomposition is amazing 'value', I'd say!

    I also often do a fair bit of cardio.
    Having done both on their own, I'm confident the weight training is much more effective on a results per time basis for me.

    I still do cardio both to burn calories so I can eat more and to improve my cardiovascular fitness.
  • DavPul
    DavPul Posts: 61,406 Member
    OP: "hey guise, is there too much cardio in my cardio?"

    Forum Response: "YES"

    OP: "that's okay, i've already decided to do it so i'm going to keep doing my cardio cardio program"

    Forum Repsonse: 5172206653_dca9c24385_o.gif
  • No_Finish_Line
    No_Finish_Line Posts: 3,661 Member
    i know i'm on here to waste time....


    .... but why waste time with these obviously bogus threads?
  • sjohnny
    sjohnny Posts: 56,142 Member
    rule-1-cardio.gif
  • Timshel_
    Timshel_ Posts: 22,834 Member
    I think the title says everything. Here is my new training program, what do you think of this?

    You're fine if your goal is cardio endurance for sport or such. I would also find other cardio exercises, or some high intensity interval training to mix things up.
  • sjohnny
    sjohnny Posts: 56,142 Member
    image.png
  • DavPul
    DavPul Posts: 61,406 Member
    I think the title says everything. Here is my new training program, what do you think of this?

    You're fine if your goal is cardio endurance for sport or such. I would also find other cardio exercises, or some high intensity interval training to mix things up.

    FOR sport? You misheard. Cardio Endurance IS his sport.

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