Question about cardio

MrsHyland
MrsHyland Posts: 87 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
This weekend my brother and I were talking about the weight I'm trying to lose. I explained that I'm eating less and walking most nights. I walk with my dad and he walks at a pretty brisk pace, so my heart rate is definitely elevated for the whole walk. My brother said that in order for cardio to be affective for weight loss, I need to bring my heart rate up, then let it drop and bring it back up, and so on. Is this correct? I know HIIT is very popular on MFP, but I always thought keeping a higher steady rate was the way to go. Does it really matter? I kind of think he would have argued with me no matter what I said. He wasn't being very supportive, so I don't really want to be swayed by his advice unless other people with more experience feel he is correct. Any advice you guys can offer is much appreciated!

Replies

  • 3dogsrunning
    3dogsrunning Posts: 27,167 Member
    No.

    A calorie deficit is what matters for weight loss. You can achieve this without exercise at all. Exercise does have other health benefits and can help you achieve a calorie deficit, but it's not necessary.

    HIIT has benefits too, but it also is not necessary for weight loss. HIIT Is also very often used incorrectly. People often confuse intervals with HIIT. HIIT is much more intense. It is not just bringing your HR up, it is bringing it up to a certain percentage of your max hr (too lazy to double check the numbers right now).

    Keep doing what you are doing. Adding intervals won't hurt if you want, but it is not necessary.
  • Hornsby
    Hornsby Posts: 10,322 Member
    Your brother is wrong. Keep on keepin' on.
  • vorgas
    vorgas Posts: 741 Member
    As mentioned, any burned calories is a good thing.

    That being said, there is more to exercise than just extra calories. Pushing limits can help you improve performance, so later on you can burn more calories with the same level of perceived exertion. Intervals are a great way to achieve that. But going from a brisk walk to a slow walk isn't really an interval. Going from a sprint to a walk is.

    So just keep on keepin on with your dad. Enjoy the time together!
  • MeanderingMammal
    MeanderingMammal Posts: 7,866 Member
    My brother said that in order for cardio to be affective for weight loss

    As already highlighted, the contribution of CV work to weight loss is to drive the calorie deficit. Subject to whether you're using the baked in MFP model or not that still means that you're eating back some of what you expend, but it gives you a lot more flexibility about how you eat.
    ...I need to bring my heart rate up, then let it drop and bring it back up, and so on. Is this correct?

    If you're just talking about calorie consumption then it doesn't really matter whether you do steady state at a moderate intensity, steady state at a higher intensity or move into the realms of highest intensities which necessitate an intervals model as the highest intensities aren't sustainable for long. The main thing is finding something that's time efficient, and for most people that's going to be steady state moderate to higher intensity, because that can be sustained for longer.
    I know HIIT is very popular on MFP, but I always thought keeping a higher steady rate was the way to go.

    There is a lot of noise on here from people who will fairly mindlessly say do HIIT, without thinking about whether it helps meet the needs of the person asking the question. That's frequently coupled with the suggestion that five minutes of exertion will burn calories for days afterwards, which rather misses the point of what HIIT does to the system. Post Exercise Oxygen Consumption does burn some calories after exercise, but as you note a longer period of steady state higher intensity will generate as much effect from that perspective. Many of the studies compare HIIT with low intensity, so ambient levels of exertion. That's not where most people who are intentionally exercising operate.

    HIIT is only one mode of training, and to get the most from it the other modes need to be used as well. They're all complementary. That said, the benefits are largely about sports performance, rather than weight loss. In an already trained individual HIIT will help with improving the oxygen uptake of the system, so improving the ability of the body to consume fuel. So as you're walking, you're not going to get the benefits of HIIT. As upthread you're not going to get your HR into the highest intensities with walking anyway. From a personal perspective, when I'm running it takes flat out sprints to get my HR into the 90-95% range that's HIIT territory.

    As you suggest, I'd give the advice from your brother a stiff ignoring at, continue what you're doing.
  • MrsHyland
    MrsHyland Posts: 87 Member
    Thank you everyone for your responses, I really appreciate you taking the time to answer me. For now, I will continue with what has been working. I'm not in good enough shape for anything too high intensity at this point. Maybe once I drop a good portion of the weight I can start building my stamina with some interval training.

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