45+ mins of cardio bad for you?

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daisy968
daisy968 Posts: 7
in Health and Weight Loss
Somewhere I read on here that after 45 mins, your body runs out of energy reserves or something so essentially "too much cardio" is not that great for you? I usually do 45-60 mins of cardio at the gym and I'm wondering others views on this.
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  • rsclause
    rsclause Posts: 3,103 Member
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    Thats why we eat food, its fuel. 45 minutes is where the running starts to get good!
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,874 Member
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    There is a point of diminishing returns...that said, "good" or "bad" for you is all relative. If you're an endurance athlete you're going to be doing more cardio than 45 minutes...this can become an issue if you don't understand how to properly fuel your body as you will start burning muscle mass. This is particularly true if you don't do resistance training and your protein intake is too low combined with low calories.
  • spoiledpuppies
    spoiledpuppies Posts: 675 Member
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    Agree with above that it's relative to your goals. Generally speaking though, you're fine.
  • martinel2099
    martinel2099 Posts: 899 Member
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    Obviously it depends on the intensity, listen to your body and don't over do it. I personally strive to do at least 45 minutes to an hour and a half on my cardio days.
  • clambert1273
    clambert1273 Posts: 840 Member
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    LOL might not be bad for you but it is for me.... but that is because I despise cardio :bigsmile: :drinker:
  • MelodyandBarbells
    MelodyandBarbells Posts: 7,725 Member
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    Three hours on Saturday or die trying. I take a sliced up apple with me :smile:
  • dsjohndrow
    dsjohndrow Posts: 1,821 Member
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    What's bad for you is sitting on the couch eating.
  • Beckboo0912
    Beckboo0912 Posts: 447 Member
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    I'm unsure...hiw about we do this. I do 45 mins of cardio and you sit for 45 mins...then see who fairs hetter in a months time.
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,811 Member
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    Somewhere I read on here that after 45 mins, your body runs out of energy reserves or something so essentially "too much cardio" is not that great for you? I usually do 45-60 mins of cardio at the gym and I'm wondering others views on this.
    Um no.
    2 hours is more like the amount of time it takes to run through your glycogen reserves, in running terms it's often called hitting the wall and in cycling terms it's called bonking.
    Wouldn't even say that is "bad for you" but it certainly makes you feel awful until you refuel. It's actually very hard to burn muscle unless you have a spectacularly bad diet and extreme (not moderate!) exercise habits.

    Too much of anything isn't good for you but think more like running marathons every day rather than an hour a day. Humans are actually supposed to be active.....
  • richardheath
    richardheath Posts: 1,276 Member
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    Somewhere I read on here that after 45 mins, your body runs out of energy reserves or something so essentially "too much cardio" is not that great for you? I usually do 45-60 mins of cardio at the gym and I'm wondering others views on this.

    Are you talking about "hitting the wall"? At some point (depending on intensity, glycogen reserves etc) in a long cardio session your body is going to deplete all of it's glycogen stores and you bonk as your body switches over to fat utilization instead. You can help offset this by eating carbs before or even during the cardio session. There is nothing inherently harmful in this process though.

    The real danger from doing an hour+ of cardio in the gym is boredom! You can switch it up and get a big calorie burn in a shorter time by doing some High Intensity Interval Training.
  • MBrothers22
    MBrothers22 Posts: 323 Member
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    Listen to your body, it'll tell you if that much is "bad" for you.
  • _Zardoz_
    _Zardoz_ Posts: 3,987 Member
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    That's me doomed then ;-)
  • beth0277
    beth0277 Posts: 217 Member
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    This is an interesting topic and one I have researched a lot because I am a runner. There have been studies recently (and I don't have one to link but you can google search and find them I'm sure) that say that cardio exercise, particularly running but really all forms, does have a U shaped curve of benefit. They found that people who run around 15-20 miles a week live longer than those who don't run. But those who run more than 20 miles/week live a similar lifespan to those who do not run. Now, it is very early in researching and I've been told mostly the concern is people who are always training for marathons. The study shows that after a marathon, your body has the same enzyme present that someone has that is having a heart attack. It goes away but I think the study is saying constantly putting your heart under so much stress in the form of long cardio intervals can cause scar tissue and other heart problems. It's very controversial but I have cut my running to around 20 miles a week. I don't need to do more than that anyway. I love running and want it to make me healthy but not be counterproductive. I asked my doctor and she said it is still early in the research and she wouldn't give it up, but she also wouldn't go on 2 hour runs every weekend.
  • jdhcm2006
    jdhcm2006 Posts: 2,254 Member
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    I do about 45-60 minutes of HIIT cardio 6xs a week. And I feel healthier and stronger than ever. I also will throw a bit of light weight training in the mix, but I don't think there is anything wrong with long periods of cardio. I personally wouldn't do over 60 minutes, but that's just a personal preference.
  • RGv2
    RGv2 Posts: 5,789 Member
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    I do about 45-60 minutes of HIIT cardio 6xs a week. And I feel healthier and stronger than ever. I also will throw a bit of light weight training in the mix, but I don't think there is anything wrong with long periods of cardio. I personally wouldn't do over 60 minutes, but that's just a personal preference.

    You do HIIT for 45-60 mins? :huh:
  • SEAFOODMAN
    SEAFOODMAN Posts: 342
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    300minutes a week is the standard now, it was 250.
  • ClinicalTrial
    ClinicalTrial Posts: 55 Member
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    For the general healthy person, no. In fact, it ought to be encouraged.
    I do about 45-60 minutes of HIIT cardio 6xs a week. And I feel healthier and stronger than ever. I also will throw a bit of light weight training in the mix, but I don't think there is anything wrong with long periods of cardio. I personally wouldn't do over 60 minutes, but that's just a personal preference.

    You're either overestimating the time spent or overestimating what constitutes HIIT.
  • Oscarinmiami
    Oscarinmiami Posts: 326 Member
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    I just do 20 min on elliptical 5x a week...I used to do more but I was always tired...I feel much better now, I guess it depends on your body and calorie intake...yep not very helpful sorry...lol
  • jdhcm2006
    jdhcm2006 Posts: 2,254 Member
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    Insanity is considered HIIT.

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