Best cardio workout for 3 days a week?

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lukasmy2k
lukasmy2k Posts: 10
in Fitness and Exercise
Hello all,

I was wondering if anyone can give me ideas for cardio, recovering from a bad knee so impact needs to be kept to a minimum but im so bored of the Cross Trainer.

I am slowly getting on the treadmill again but ideally with sports 2 days a week i need around a 500 cal balance from cardio 3 days a week.

Or would i see better results from a little less cardio but more weight training?

I look forward to your advice

Luke

Replies

  • itsuki
    itsuki Posts: 520 Member
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    Lifting more is always a good thing, as long as it doesn't interfere with your bad knee!

    Swimming is great for low-impact cardio if you have access to a pool.
  • ShannonJohnson
    ShannonJohnson Posts: 86 Member
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    My friend told me strength training is better too. Make a plan for some of the things you can do with your injury and make a circuit training out of it. Just keep your HR up.
  • fromfattytohealthy
    fromfattytohealthy Posts: 60 Member
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    Do cardio 4-6 times a week, weight training 3 or 4 days a week. It's a good balance and will be awesome for your body.

    The best cardio exercise is the one you love. Riding bikes are always great, swimming is way fun, and dancing is just awesome! Pick up some Zumba DVDs if you've always wanted to learn Latin dancing. If you don't enjoy the workout, you're not going to do it, so find something that gets you moving that you actually enjoy doing.
  • samanthatricia
    samanthatricia Posts: 24 Member
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    I personally love the elliptical - can turn up the resistance and flip the magazine page for as long as you want! It's such a great burn, too, and it keeps tracks of your calories (usually about 10cals/min for me). I hate the treadmill because I always feel like I'm going to fall off - I'd rather run outside.
  • bpotts44
    bpotts44 Posts: 1,066 Member
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    Cycling. It is the best low impact cardio workout by far.
  • GiddyupTim
    GiddyupTim Posts: 2,819 Member
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    I agree with the cycling comment above.
    I just had my ACL replaced and a cartilage procedure in my left knee. I had to rehab for eight months. I was always a runner and a soccer and tennis player. But, I was not allowed to pound until the end of six months. I was allowed to bike, however, and I found I kinda like it.
    I can cycle for two hours and burn 1,200 calories, about.
    My knee actually felt better after I cycled than before.
  • Spanaval
    Spanaval Posts: 1,200 Member
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    You could do something like Tabata. Since the workout can include pretty much anything, done at high intensity (push-ups, burpees, high knees, jumping jacks), you can completely leave out things that bother your knees.
  • bpotts44
    bpotts44 Posts: 1,066 Member
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    I agree with the cycling comment above.
    I just had my ACL replaced and a cartilage procedure in my left knee. I had to rehab for eight months. I was always a runner and a soccer and tennis player. But, I was not allowed to pound until the end of six months. I was allowed to bike, however, and I found I kinda like it.
    I can cycle for two hours and burn 1,200 calories, about.
    My knee actually felt better after I cycled than before.

    I too had ACL, but cycling was something I just stumbled across. It is great for you.
  • mndamon
    mndamon Posts: 547 Member
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    Anything involving a pool would be a good start to build strength, burn calories and avoid any major stress on your knee.
  • postrockandcats
    postrockandcats Posts: 1,145 Member
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    Hello all,

    I was wondering if anyone can give me ideas for cardio, recovering from a bad knee so impact needs to be kept to a minimum but im so bored of the Cross Trainer.

    I am slowly getting on the treadmill again but ideally with sports 2 days a week i need around a 500 cal balance from cardio 3 days a week.

    Or would i see better results from a little less cardio but more weight training?

    I look forward to your advice

    Luke

    My BF has a bad knee. He does his cardio on a recumbent bike and doesn't have a problem. Of course, it's knee injury vs knee injury here, so it might not work for you, but it's work trying :)
  • ahamm002
    ahamm002 Posts: 1,690 Member
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    Hello all,

    I was wondering if anyone can give me ideas for cardio, recovering from a bad knee so impact needs to be kept to a minimum but im so bored of the Cross Trainer.

    I am slowly getting on the treadmill again but ideally with sports 2 days a week i need around a 500 cal balance from cardio 3 days a week.

    Or would i see better results from a little less cardio but more weight training?

    I look forward to your advice

    Luke

    Pick whatever you enjoy doing. If you like cycling do that, if you love swimming do that instead. Or do all of them on different days. Definitely do upper body weight training. depending on your knee injury though, you may have to avoid any lower body resistance training for the time being.
  • jukyu
    jukyu Posts: 80 Member
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    If you find the treadmill is worsening a preexisting injury, try the bike or elliptical, but do high intensity intervals (HIIT) for 30 minutes. You can follow up with 15-20 minutes of steady state cardio to maximize calorie burn. Through HIIT and lifting combined, you'll turn up the excess post-exercise oxygen consumption (EPOC) thus, burn more calories around the clock.

    Good reads about HIIT:
    http://www.t-nation.com/free_online_article/sports_body_training_performance/the_hiit_revolution_for_fat_burning_success
    http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/ultimate-8-week-hiit-for-fat-burning-program.html
    http://www.askmen.com/sports/bodybuilding_100/135_fitness_tip.html

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