Using cardio to lose weight can be a very difficult thing to do. The common thought with most people is that doing cardio to lose fat is the fastest way to burn fat there is. Unfortunately, using cardio to burn fat can set back your results if you don’t do it right.
The most common method of using cardio to lose inches is called “steady state” training. This involves going at the same speed for long periods of time. This type of cardio is the most common thing I see in most gyms I’ve been to.
Many of the people who use the steady state method of cardiovascular training rarely lose fat unless they follow a very restricted diet. The reason steady state training isn’t the method all comes down to supporting your metabolism.
As you probably already know, your metabolism is how your body burns calories. The higher your metabolism, the more fat you will burn. The best ways to increase metabolism through exercise are to add muscle mass or use high-intensity intervals while doing cardio. Steady-state cardio may burn a few calories while doing it, but it has very little effect on your metabolism!
Not only that, but your body adapts very quickly to constant cardio training, which can make it difficult to burn fat with this method. The first time you get on a treadmill, elliptical, stationary bike, etc., it feels very exhausting just doing a little bit of work. But as you progress, your body adapts more and more. It gets to the point where your body is so adapted to the same steady state training that you have to push yourself harder and harder to keep challenging it!
The cardiovascular solution
As you can see, doing steady state cardio to burn fat is not the best option. If you want to burn fat with cardio, a great alternative to steady state is called interval training. Interval training is different than steady state cardio because it will play a huge role in burning calories and more importantly increasing your metabolism.
Interval training is a great way to progress because it involves alternating between high and low intensities.
Here’s how to burn fat with interval cardio training…
Use a stationary or recumbent bike if you are a beginner.
- Start by warming up for 5 minutes.
- Then slightly increase your pace and resistance for the next 2 minutes.
- Then go really fast for 30 seconds, 1 minute, about as hard as you can go.
- Repeat the 2 minute slow – 1 minute fast interval 3 to 6 times.
- Finish by cooling for 5 minutes.
If you try doing this type of cardio to burn fat, you’ll find that it’s much better than constant cardio. By using interval training as a cardio method to burn fat, you’ll see how changing intensity every minute or two really makes the whole workout go by so much faster. As I mentioned before, the best part of using interval training as a cardio workout to burn fat is that it will rev up your metabolism for optimal fat loss.
Remember to consult a doctor before beginning any exercise program that involves cardio to burn fat. So try interval training as your next fat-burning cardio workout. Work hard, train hard and stay safe!
