cardio help

[annabelletx]

ladies need some help. . .

trying to get back into shape since i have the wedding coming up and want to look great, but most of all just for me. got out of the habbit the last few months with work, school, moving, and everything else.

bbf is going to be helping me with the weight lifting, but i love to do cardio. even though bbf really doesn't like it. oh well he can deal. this is something i want to do.

i was wondering if anyone could recommend a really good, fun, cardio program. any suggestions would be great.

thanks

 

[Sassy69]

Hmmm, "fun" I guess is also in the eye of the beholder. I don't consider cardio "fun", however it is a great kick in the pants in the morning, it warms my back up very nicely for the day (I have lower back problems) and it just generally helps me clear out the cobwebs. I do precor elliptical in the morning because I have the machine in my basement and I don't have to go to gym.

The quality of your cardio program, aside from actually sticking to the schedule & doing it, is going to be subject to the resources you have available. If you are talking about using just regular old cardio equipment, doing HIIT 2-3 x /week makes it different. Do whatever machine you like, do a 5-10 min warmup on it and then do hi intensity for 30 sec, low intensity to recover for 60 sec, repeat 6-7 times, then cool down for a few minutes. This gives your heart a challenge (as opposed to long cardio at a steady rate) and you are done in 20-ish minutes (so you and BBF can go do more fun things ). Other cardio stuff - do you have classes or anythign available? My gym has a bunch of dance cardio classes that I'm gonna try this week. Additionally you can run laps at track, run "stadiums" or stairs at a sports facility, etc.

 

[The Shadow]

set up a challenge between the two of y'all.......


whoever logs the most weekly miles gets a massage or something

 

[Daisy_Girl]

What Sassy said.

It is all about what YOU find entertaining.

If you need the group energy of a class - take a class, kickboxing, Spinning, etc.

If you need the outdoors - hike, bike, rollerblade, run, walk, stadium stairs. You can join your local running team if running is your thing - they will do weekly runs together. Biking often does the same thing.

If you can be individually motivated and like machines - well, that is easy. Do a machine at the gym. You can spice things up there by introducing intervals, changing intensity, incline, etc. DOesn't have to be as organized as HIIT, but rather just whenever you feel like it, ramp up the intenesity for a couple minutes. Just to keep things changing.

I like combining all the above. I typically do a few group cardio classes, plus individual cardio. Keep thigns different for me.

 

[annabelletx]

thanks ya'll

 

[skittles]

ladies need some help. . .

trying to get back into shape since i have the wedding coming up and want to look great, but most of all just for me. got out of the habbit the last few months with work, school, moving, and everything else.

bbf is going to be helping me with the weight lifting, but i love to do cardio. even though bbf really doesn't like it. oh well he can deal. this is something i want to do.

i was wondering if anyone could recommend a really good, fun, cardio program. any suggestions would be great.

thanks

You could try taebo. There are lots of videos now (from 20min-1hour) That way you can do them at home, and your BF won't have to wait for you. They have been around so long now, you can get them 2nd hand for cheap.

 

[psychedout]

I am pretty boring when it comes to cardio suggestions.

Usually I do 20-30 minutes of something that keeps my hearrate at about 72.5% of my max heart rate after weight training. I do this 4-5 days per week. What keeps me from getting bored in by having someone who does it with me. I just talk to them most of the time. Or if I'm alone, I plug in my mp3 player and giver. And yeah, if your doing HIIT or sprints or whatever, you can't really talk to someone.

My only suggestion about cardio is to avoid AM cardio (although maybe it depends somewhat on goals). I find AM cardio (on an empty stomach) to be terrific for fat loss, but it has not been muscle sparing in my experience.

Also, long sex sessions make for good cardio.

 

[the-short-one]

The FIRM workouts are a great combination of weight training & cardio. (You need free weights and a step.) I hate cardio and always dreaded getting on the machines. This was my answer, although I still hit the eliptical at least once a week.

FIRM alternates upper and lower body (or both at the same time - squats & bis with weights, as an example) to get your heart rate going. What I like most about them is you can never outgrow the workouts. You just up your weights when it starts to get too easy.

www.firmdirect.com - but you can get them cheaper on eBay.