Cardio Sucks! Who Hates Cardio?

[biggerthanu450]

Haa anyone heard of Max-OT cardio? I have been doing this with exceptional results. It's basically a 16 minute "sprint" Skip Lacour and Jeff Willet (both heavyweight pro "Natural" bodybuilders) use this method over standard cardio.
www.astresearch.com explains the details of this type of cardio.
I burn 400 calories in 16 minutes, so it saves time.

 

[babbabuee]

It sounds to me that each person on this post is defining cardio differently. Plus I think some people try to use "cardio" for different purposes. With that being said, I am one of those "morons" that hopes to keep trim, or lose a bit, while lifting hard 4 days a week and doing cardio 2-3 times.
Now I love "cardio" days. However, i don't ride a life cycle or stair master for 30 minutes, fuck that. I play basketball at full speed for 1-2 hours, surf for 1-2 hours, run a very steep hill 3-4 times and mountain bike 1.5hrs.
do you guys think that much "cardio" is going to hinder my muscle gains?

 

[solidspine]

It is easier for me to lose weight by gaining muscle than trying cardio, only do cardio when I am on clen.

Absolutely can’t stand it.

 

[Ulter]

Cardio does NOT...

...burn fat or improve the health of your heart more than other forms of exercise.

What other forms?


There are some people who think that resistance train needs to be accompanied by cardio. While they might not be as colorful as Nelson they are just slightly more educated about total fitness.

I cut the flexiblity Position Stand because it doesn't pertain to this thread. However this is the Postion Stand of the American College of Sports Medicine.


The American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) has updated its position stand on the quantity and quality of exercise to maintain cardiorespiratory and muscular fitness. The revised ACSM guidelines include for the first time a recommendation for flexibility training as a component in maintaining fitness in addition to aerobic and strength training exercises.

The ACSM position stand is published in the June 1998 issue of Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise (vol. 30, no. 6). The 17-page position stand also provides the rationale and supportive research for the recommendations. The following information highlights the ACSM recommendations for exercise in healthy adults.

Cardiorespiratory Fitness and Weight Control

To maintain cardiorespiratory fitness and weight control, the recommendations state that aerobic exercise should be performed three to five days a week for 20 to 60 minutes at an intensity that achieves 55 to 90 percent of the maximum heart rate and 40 to 85 percent of the maximum oxygen uptake reserve. In place of one 20- to 60-minute session on a given day, the recommendations state that two to six 10-minute periods of aerobic activity throughout the day can be used to fulfill the requirements for the amount of exercise.



Muscular Strength

According to the recommendations, resistance training should be a part of a fitness program and of sufficient intensity to enhance muscular strength and endurance and to maintain a fat-free mass. One set of eight to 10 exercises that work the major muscle groups should be performed two or three days a week. The guidelines advocate for most persons eight to 12 repetitions (or to a near-fatigue level) of each exercise.

Cardio DOES...

...make you better at performing cardio

And that's the idea. CARDIOVASCULAR FITNESS.
Why do think all these physicians, who by the way would earn more by not tell people the correct way to maintain their health, would publish a Position Stand in favor of strength training AND cardiovascular training if it wasn't more beneficial to do both.

 

[EngiCream]

there's already been a huge thread about this.

here's what animal had to say:

http://boards.elitefitness.com/forum/showthread.php?postid=2334952#post2334952

You guys are really missing (post #108)

Some key elements and a whole host of biochemical and metabolic events which take place when aerobic exercise is engaged including, but not limited to, raising NA/NE levels, passive glucose uptake, increased insulin sensitivity, raises T3, etc.

Yea, now sit there and tell us how somebody who has LESS insulin sensitivity because they sit on their ass devoid of aerobic work is gonna have a better biochemical profile for uptake of normal glucose from the diet. Hell, even show us how someone who has THE SAME insulin sensitivity who doesn't do aerobics as someone how does.

Awww shit! I'm totally wrong cause I guess that the one thing they DO NOT tell people with adult onset diabetes which is nothing more than 'you are a fat lazy ass who eats and does no aerobics, to start an aerobic exercise program. Damnit, they just tell them to sit on their ass some more and the pounds will melt away as long as they don't eat, right?

you responded with:

http://boards.elitefitness.com/forum/showthread.php?postid=2335046#post2335046

idanimal: Sorry, but you're starting to lose me.

does that response of yours mean that you don't understand what he's saying?

If you do understand what he's saying, then what's your response to his argument in favor of cardio?

thanks

 

[bicepts101]

I have been following this thread pretty closley, so I decided to see for myself if Nelson knew what he was talking about. I did my normal workout routine this morning, the only difference was that I wore my heart rate monitor. He was right during the actual exerciseing phase and shortly thereafter, my heart rate actually exceeded 150 bpm. This is about 70% of my heart rate max, and when I only rested say a minute between sets, it never got lower than 115-119 bpm. This is in my fat burning zone. So that equates to an hour or so of cardio right there. I can honestly say that during my regular cardio sessions, my heart rate never goes much above 135-140 bpm. We have it so deeply imbeded in our minds that cardio has to involve a track, or a bike or a stepper, all cardio really is, is an exercise that raises your heart rate to a certain zone for a certain amount of time.

Hey man cardio is just like any other exercise, in order to get result you must push yourself to your limits, everytime. Just like muscle failure. Now, im not saying you haveto do cadio 4 days a week. But atleast 2, and treat it like it lifting i garentee you will get better results. People so easily throw away cardio routeins simple because they dont have the drive to run a little faster and for a little longer. Cuase its difficult, no one can disagree to that. My profession calls for me to run atleast twice a week in order to maintain the standards that are inforced. Evertime i run my heart rate gets up to 170. After 2 miles on the tread its not done i get on the bike for 10-15 miunutes and keep it up to 160-165. You just gotta work hard.

Your heart rate never goes above 135-140 simply cause your not working hard enough, bottom line.

Cardio and lifting weight are 2 totally different things and take two totally different kinds of dicipline and motavation.

 

[poantrex]

It is easier for me to lose weight by gaining muscle than trying cardio, only do cardio when I am on clen.

Absolutely can’t stand it.

Having been very overweight in the past and overcoming it...I tried everything to lose the fat and absolutely the most effective way was to bust my ass on he track or treadmill - diet alone didn't work , weight training alone didn't work, but running 15 minutes a day 4-5 times a week sure as hell worked at improving my insulin sensitivity, burning fat, and giving me a general sense of wellbeing following exercise.

I think the best approach is to combine both weight lifting and cardio on non lifting days.

Oh yeah - I don't buy the argument that cardio is overly catabolic either. If you're beyond 10-12% bodyfat, cardio will burn mostly fat. At least in my experience .... drugs like clen and eca work, but in the long term they will slow your metabolism down following cessation of use.

 

[Bulldog_10]

Oh yeah - I don't buy the argument that cardio is overly catabolic either. If you're beyond 10-12% bodyfat, cardio will burn mostly fat. At least in my experience .... drugs like clen and eca work, but in the long term they will slow your metabolism down following cessation of use.

Just like the positives of aerobic exercise, it's not really what goes on DURING the actual exercise, but the physiological adaptations that make aerobic exercise "catabolic."

I don't think aerobic exercise is DIRECTLY catabolic, rather it hinders gains in strength and power of the musculature, which then hinders gains in muscle volume.

It's not known exactly why aerobic exercise is detrimental to gains in muscle strength and power. There are a bunch of theories, none of which can completely explain this:

1. Aerobic exercise may cause a reduction of myosin ATP-ase in type IIb muscle fibers (ie, it may cause a change in fiber type).

2. It may cause a reduction of anaerbic enzymes in the muscle.

3. It may change the pattern of motor unit recruitment.

4. It may cause over-training in strength and power athletes that are already handling near maximum workloads.

5. It may cause catabolism due to its effects on various hormones.

-This was from "Weight training: a specific approach"

 

[Magnússon]

I love it, especially when I'm pumped from my workout

 

[The_Eviscerator]

Personally, I need to do some sort of cardio, whether it is basketball, kick boxing, treadmill, stair stepper or whatever. When I have eschewed the cardio I have felt slow, lumbering and stiff. I think to maintain some semblence of athletic ability, you have to be more balanced in your training. Cardio is just one small piece.