How to Add Cardio to Your Physical Fitness Plan

Article by Bryant Towell

How to Add Cardio to Your Physical Fitness Plan – Health
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Cardio is an important part of physical fitness plans, but it can also be boring and time-consuming. People on physical fitness plans for muscle and strength often leave it out, and even those who want to lose weight hate to do it. Fortunately, cardio doesn’t have to involve long, monotonous treadmill sessions. In fact, there are much better ways to stay lean and get in shape. Here are a few of the best ways to add cardio to your physical fitness plan.

Intervals

Want a great workout in under fifteen minutes? Interval sprints are an ideal way to add cardio to your routine without taking up a lot of time. Head over to the nearest track with a stopwatch, and do fifteen-second sprints. If you really want to reap the benefits, you’ve got to run all-out! After each sprint is done, walk or jog for forty-five seconds and repeat for ten total rounds.

You won’t burn a ton of calories in that short amount of time, but the intensity of the work will boost your metabolism for hours afterwards. This type of exercise is tough, but it’s far more efficient than slaving away on a machine for hours on end. Just make sure you allow time for adequate recovery — two or three interval sessions per week is plenty.

Barbell Complexes

If you hate running — or you just don’t have time to hit the track — barbell complexes are another way to get an intense, quick conditioning workout. Find yourself a corner in the gym, and load up a barbell with a very light weight. If you’ve never done this before, an empty bar may actually be fine. Then do five rounds of the following:

10 push presses10 squats10 rows10 deadliftsDon’t rest in between exercises or rounds, and don’t even let go of the bar! This may look easy on paper, but you will be winded like never before when you’re done. Once this routine becomes easy, you can add more rounds, more reps, more weight, and more exercises — there are tons of ways to use barbell complexes in your physical fitness plan.

Hill Sprints

Are regular intervals too easy for you? Want a real test of toughness? If you’ve got a big, steep hill in your area, you’re in luck. Hill sprints may be the best all-around builder of conditioning and mental strength. Simply start at the bottom and sprint up as fast as you can. Your rest period will be the time it takes you to walk back down. How many rounds you do will depend on the size of your hill, but make sure you’re constantly challenging yourself with more runs and a quicker pace.

Faster Workouts

Even if you’re focusing on pure strength and muscle-building in your physical fitness program, you can probably stand to pick up the pace in the gym. Most people waste a lot of time between their sets, but quickly alternating between different exercises is a great way to get in better shape. Just pair exercises that won’t interfere with each other, like bench presses and rows. You don’t need to turn every workout into a cardio session, but if you’re not sweating when you lift weights — you’re going too slow! The best physical fitness plan is one that incorporates strength AND conditioning.

About the Author

Cardio is an important part of physical fitness plans, but it can also be boring and time-consuming. People on physical fitness plans for muscle and strength often leave it out, and even those who want to lose weight hate to do it.

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Bryant Towell

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Related Benefits Of Physical Fitness Articles

Why Steady State Cardio Is A Thing Of The Past

Article by Ben Wain

Why Steady State Cardio Is A Thing Of The Past – Health – Fitness

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There are a number of well documented training and exercising methods all maintaining to get the coveted effects. Some have more effect than others; some have little effect at all (although with a healthy diet, you should normally see some gains). One of the well documented methods for blasting away fat that as a matter of fact works is High Intensity Interval Training, known as HIIT, and this activity is excellent in pulling off results. Sports scientists have been getting excited over HIIT for a long time, it is becoming ever so more common within amateur and professional athletes, and should be built in any fat loss or muscle definition workout regime. Standard steady state cardio still has some benefits; however, nothing quite gets rid of body fat and increases overall levels of fitness in the shortest time possible quite like HIIT. Would you rather spend forty-five minutes calmly jogging or cycling along at a slow and steady speed in the morning, after your heavy lifting, or on your days off? On the other hand, would you refer to get it finished under twenty minutes, feel desperately short of breath, be sweating furiously and really feel as if you have worked out at your maximum level?

Intense physical activity burns fat far greater during and following the activity than low intensity exercise, this is fact. The so called fat burning zone, which is the level of intensity when your body burns the most fat during exercise, is not the rate of intensity at when your body burns the majority of calories. After performing HIIT, your body will continue to burn calories and fat even when idol, this because your metabolism has now moved into overdrive.

HIIT generally includes combining periods of slow paced cardio with intervals of faster and more intense cardio. Not only does this increase the total amount of calories burned, it also allows you brief recovery so you can conduct the intense intervals at your maximum effort. Research shows this has a massive effect on fat and calorie burning during and following performing cardio activity.

When performing HIIT, you also see a gain in aerobic and anaerobic performance. What this generally means is your fitness will increase over long and short distances, making HIIT an excellent option for both sprinters and marathon runners training for stamina and endurance. Studies have also shown that improvements may occur in conducting heavy lifting, as participants have been able to carry out greater repetitions on the heavy compound exercises such as squats and deadlifts, whilst recovery time between sets seemed to have decreased at the same time.

To totally appreciate the concept behind this, you have to take into account how your body uses energy. If enough oxygen is available, your body will use aerobatic energy roads. When this supply of oxygen diminishes, it starts to use the anaerobic paths. To reach the anaerobic zone, some seriously intense training needs to be performed. HIIT therefore means you stay in the anaerobic zone helping boost your resting metabolic level by increasing what scientists call excess-post oxygen consumption (EPOC), it is thought EPOC may result in increased V02 max. EPOC is basically your body working harder to repair after intense physical activity, which needs greater energy and hence increased calories burned. A greater V02 max means greater calories and oxygen can be handled by your body hence increasing ability over a given time frame.

When you have a depletion of oxygen (represented by the EPOC), your body will have burned off all your blood sugar, which means your body starts burning fat as an energy source. Using fat as energy is appealing in the time frame post training. The substantial amount of energy is burned throughout actual exercise when performing aerobic activity, whereas short intervals of anaerobic exercise (HIIT) substantial levels of energy are burned during and for numerous hours after.

You can plan a HIIT regime pretty much any way you choose, it could be circuit training, performing burpees, cycling or running, anything that will help get your heart rate pumping. The important thing is to make sure you can achieve the activity for as fast and intense as you can for twenty to sixty seconds. You can then recover for anything from twenty seconds to as much as four minutes. You might be wondering that four minutes is a long time to get your breath, however after numerous circuits of flat out sprinting in between you soon start to grasp how hard HIIT can be. To begin HIIT for the first time, you should warm up for a good five minutes before sprinting at your maximum effort for say thirty seconds, before slowing down over the next thirty seconds so you can achieve the same sprint at the same maximum effort for another thirty seconds straight away after. If you cannot, then you should either decrease your max effort interval or lengthen your steady state interval. Remember it is the max effort you put into the activity, rather than the time it takes. It is not necessary to accomplish 100% on every high intensity interval; you can choose to build up to your highest level if you decide to. Once you hit it, you can pyramid back down. Similar to weight-training, just ensure you mix up the intensity. Completing pyramids might support to avoid over-training and injury, however; maximum fat burning and metabolic rate will be caused by maximum intensity.

About the Author

Visit MyTrainingSupplements.co.uk, a UK sports nutrition comparison and supplement store to read more quality articles, tips and advice on diet, nutrition and training. Sign up or follow for regular news and offers. Remember, you have to dedicate to achieve.

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Ben Wain

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Interval Training Cardio Workouts

Cardio is out! Bodyweight exercises rule! If you want to sculpt your body, lose weight, develop muscle mass, and get fit, forget the cardiovascular and do this quick body weight workout as an alternative. It is a real workout.

This is really a extremely unique program, but probably one of the toughest ones I’ve put together. Nevertheless, please make sure you do this after a warmup of bodyweight squats, pushups, and lunges. You will do this after your resistance training in any fat burning workout.

So, here is the order of exercises for the bodyweight intervals from workout A. You’ll start with jumps, and then move into calf jumps, followed by stability ball jackknives, and then Turkish get-ups to finish off the circuit.

For the jumps, you are going to do 10 regular squat jumps, rest 10 seconds, repeating 3 much more times for a total of four sets of 10. As you’re coming down, attempt to have a nice soft landing and absorb the contact with the floor and then correct back up into the jump.

Once you have carried out the jumps, you’re going to move on to the calf jumps. Once more, four sets of 10, with a 10 second rest in between. To do this set of pogo calf jumps, as you land you will be bouncing up using the balls of your feet, and pointing your toes in the air each time.

After completing the initial two exercises from the bodyweight intervals, you’ll move on to the stability ball jackknives. Following the exact same structure as the previous two exercises, you will perform 4 sets of 10 reps, with a 10 second rest in between.

For this exercise, you are able to do it with either your hands on the floor or elbows on the bench. Together with your feet on the stability ball, bring your knees to your chest, keeping your back flat and then back out. If you want a little extra burn, however, you can ‘rest’ within the plank position.

For the Turkish Get-ups, you are going to do 5 repetitions per side, rest 10 seconds, and then perform 1 more set, for a total of 2 sets. To be able to perform this exercise you will use either a dumbbell or a kettlebell and begin by lying on the ground.

Now, together with your arm extended up in the air, and the leg on the same side bent at 90 degrees, get up to a standing position. Once you’re standing straight up, proceed to lie back down although keeping the DB or KB extended up within the air. Complete 5 repetitions per side and then switch.

This is really a extremely challenging, advanced bodyweight interval training workout. Be sure to do this workout not on pavement or concrete, but instead on a fairly soft surface. Ideally, this workout would be done out on the grass.

Nevertheless, if you aren’t comfortable doing some of these exercises simply because you are worried about the impact or your technique, then you are able to easily substitute lower impact bodyweight exercises like; squats or jumping jacks.

Train hard, but train secure. And have enjoyable with this bodyweight interval training workout for fat loss. This program takes much less time than lengthy, slow, boring, ineffective cardio and you will get much more results from bodyweight exercises.

More Cardio And Weight Training Articles

Circuit Training Basics – Crossing an Intense Weight Workout With an Equally Demanding Cardio Routin

Circuit training is one good way to engage in a workout. Since it is a mix of an intense aerobic exercise and resistance training, it is a good weight workout that is also great as a cardio. With this activity, you not only get to buff up your muscles, but you also get to toughen up your heart.

Usually, sessions are held for small groups. Since it contains a high intensity routine, it is somehow in need of closer supervision, so no one will be in danger of over exerting his or her body. Every session is very short; sometimes it can even be done in under a minute or maybe just fifteen seconds so you can quickly proceed to the next activity without pausing to continue the next equally demanding workout.

Other benefits of circuit training are:

1. It is a great way to change your boring, daily routines by livening things up a bit.
2.

It is an ideal workout if you are always on the go and busy with everything. It takes up very small amount of time but with a very demanding and intense.
3. It is very lively, with a wide variety of energetic routines, you are guaranteed to not get bored.
4. It allows you to opt for an intensity that suits your capabilities and level so you will not be overworked, but can still enjoy the group setting.
5. There are numerous circuit training DVDs available that you can easily access so you can do the workout anytime you feel like it.

Circuit training only requires you to work out some twenty to sixty minutes weekly. Like mentioned earlier, it is very friendly for those with tight, busy schedules. It is also equally attractive for those who want to burn calories instantly since it boasts of success rates of 544 calories per hour burned for a person weighing 150 pounds and up to 726 calories per hour for an individual weighing 200 pounds.

Easy Cardio Exercise Tips

One of the best things you can do to lose weight is to get some regular cardio exercise. Cardio is short for cardiovascular, which means it involves your heart. So cardiovascular exercise is exercise that raises your heart rate, and keeps it elevated while you work out.  Cardio is great because it strengthens your heart and lungs and it boosts your metabolism and increases your energy all the time . In this article we will look at a few easy cardio exercises that you can do to lose weight.

Running

Running is a good easy activity and the best thing is you don’t need any special equipment, and you can do it anywhere. If you can afford a pair of good running shoes, this will definitely help you avoid strain or injury to your knees and ankles. You can burn up to 300 calories in just half an hour of running.

Bike Riding

Bike riding another good cardio exercise you can do.

You can ride in your neighbour or use an indoor track if there is one in your area. Increasingly, dedicated bike trails are being created.

Swimming

Swimming is a really good exercise that works out your whole body the best results try different strokes. Half an hour of swimming every day can burn more calories than running and it is much easier on your knees.

Walking

Walking is a good way to ease into an exercise routine but you can still burn a lot of calories if you just walk for 30 or 40 minutes per day. Include some uphill sections in your walk to get even more benefit.

Whichever cardio exercise you choose, spend at least two or three days a week exercising at first. Slowly build up, starting with an easier exercise and then increasing the length of time you exercise or trying some more difficult exercises as you get fitter.

Clash of the Titans: Cardio vs. Strength Training

Article by Sean Keats

Clash of the Titans: Cardio vs. Strength Training – Health – Fitness

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More than likely, you know people who are nuts about cardiovascular exercise. They love running on the treadmill and riding the stationary bikes. Lifting weight? No thanks. And if you know many people, you likely know a few weight lifting folks who would rather be stranded on a desert island than have to spend time doing cardio.But not you. You’re wise to the ways of overall good health. You know the benefits that are offered through a well-rounded exercise routine that incorporates cardiovascular exercise as well as strength training. You’re just unsure how much to get of each and when each is appropriate. That’s about to change.Understanding Your BodyBefore going any further in this article, there is something you should know. Everything from this point forward requires you to know what is best for your body. To have this knowledge, you need to spend time in the gym, trying out different routines and intensities to have an idea of how your body responds to certain exercises and how well you like certain exercises. If you’re already armed with this knowledge of your body, you are clear to continue reading.Order of OperationsOne of the biggest questions about strength training and cardiovascular exercise is which should go first in a routine. Ask certain people, and you’ll learn that getting your cardio in upfront helps you burn more calories during your strength training. Ask others, and you’ll hear the exact opposite. And ask a few others, and they’ll say you’ll burn the same amount of calories regardless.While there is no consensus on which should go first, you need to make sure you get in strength training and cardiovascular exercise on a regular basis. And to make sure you don’t suffer injury during either, spend a few minutes warming up and stretching before each. Warming up is as simple as jogging lightly or performing a few repetitions lifting very light weights. Once the warm-up is over, gently stretch the muscles you plan to work out during your routine.Separate But EqualWhile some advocate performing cardio and strength training in the same routine, others claim separating them is the secret to health and strength. With this, you’re not stuck trying to figure out whether to go with cardio or strength training first or last. Rather, you do nothing but strength training on one day, while you save the cardio for another day. The upside to this is being able to focus all your energies to one pursuit each day. The downside? If you really only like strength training or cardiovascular exercises, spending an entire workout doing what you don’t prefer can seem like torture, and you may wind up skipping those days that are filled with exercises you don’t care for.Intensity DefinedOnce you figure out when you are going to lift weights and when you’re going to head to aerobics class, you’re still stuck with a question: How hard do you work out? A question that can be exceptionally difficult to answer and depends largely on your goals and how you go about your routine.Doing both cardio and strength training on the same day? You’ll want to push yourself on whatever you choose to do first, but don’t push so hard that you won’t be able to push yourself during the second half of your routine. This may mean you give 80 to 90 percent in your first half so you’ll have the energy to give about that much during the second half.Planning to split up your cardio and weight lifting on different days? Then you give yourself the opportunity to push your body to its full abilities on both. Choose this path and go ahead and push yourself as hard as you can. With a good night’s rest, you should be ready for the next day’s routine.

About the Author

Sean Keats is a personal trainer in Windsor, Ontario. He owns a Windsor boot camp called Insanity Boot Camp.

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More Cardio And Strength Training Workouts Articles

2-in-1 Cardio Dual Trainer

• Use as an Elliptical Trainer or Exercise Bike
• Patented design technology with forward and backward movement
• Dual action handle bars for total body workout
• 2-way adjustable seat
• Computer LCD Displays: Heart Rate / Calories Burned / Time / Distance / Speed

Product Description
Bring home two pieces of fitness equipment in one! Work up a sweat and add variety to your workouts with the 2-in-1 Cardio Dual Trainer, which can be used as an elliptical machine or an exercise bike. It offers magnetic resistance and features patented elliptical motion design technology; the pass-through frame promises comfort, while the 2-way adjustable seat makes it ideal for any user. The programmable electronic exercise console easily displays your workout metr… More >>

2-in-1 Cardio Dual Trainer

You Would Like Aerobics Cardio Exercise

If you’re carrying around some pounds you want to urge rid of, then you wish to try and do some cardio exercise for weight loss. If that sounds horrifying, do not worry. There are various styles of cardio exercise that you’re certain to enjoy.
If you’ve not been exercising or doing any form of cardio exercise for a while, you may feel extremely intimidated by the thought of starting. However you should not be. Cardio exercise can be one thing as straightforward as taking a brisk walk.
You do not have to shop for tights and leg warmers. There is no demand as far as fashion or equipment to start out performing some good weight loss cardio. You do not even would like an exercise DVD. Step out your door and walk briskly for regarding twenty to 30 minutes, or as long as you’re snug at first.
If you need to strive something besides walking, aerobic dancing is a smart choice. You’ll be able to just dance around your living area, but an exercise DVD could be a smart approach to try to to it. You’ll notice DVDs that will let you are doing basic dancing moves. Or you’ll be able to select a weight loss DVD of salsa dancing or belly dancing, and virtually any kind of dancing you think you’d enjoy.
Cycling, swimming, hiking, and any kind of activity that gets your heart rate and your respiration up are aerobic activities. That means it’s a cardio workout. Doing any of this stuff for at least 30 minutes four times a week is a nice approach to use cardio to lose weight. It
Specifically for weight loss though, the best thing to try to to is to change up your exercise routine. If you start taking brisk walks for 5 times a week, that is wonderful. It can help you lose weight and it’s good for your body. But you’ll be able to lose weight even a lot of efficiently and build your endurance additional efficiently if you vary your routine.
Rather than simply walking, try to additionally incorporate jogging or running. Walk for some minutes, and then run for a very little while to urge some cardio work in. You can time the sessions or you’ll be able to just do it as you are feeling it. This is known as circuit training.
If you’re cycling for cardio exercise, cycle at a leisurely pace for a few minutes and then go terribly quickly. If you are on an exercise bike, cycle at a normal pace for a while and then spin like mad. The same goes for any exercise that you just do. If you are walking or cycling, using hills for this type of thing is wonderful.
You can conjointly circuit training in another sense. Opt for brisk walking someday, and then the next choose cycling or aerobic dancing. You’ll be able to easily get into a rut doing the same factor every time.
Doing the identical sort of exercise is better than nothing, and it’s wonderful. However if you’ll be able to amendment it up a very little bit, the cardio exercise for weight loss that you do will be more effective.

Cardio Twister – Best Cardiovascular Fitness

• Arms, back, shoulders, abs, obliques and 20 more core muscles!
• Cardio Twister combines bi-directional up & down + in & out stepping that firms tour entire core.
• Increasing muscle mass, strength, endurance and energy
• Improve your self-image!

Product Description
Cardio Twister the machine that combines aerobic and twists exercise!
Arms, back, shoulders, abs, obliques and 20 more core muscles!! The cardio twister makes them all workout more than any other machine!
Why? Cardio Twister combines bi-directional up & down + in & out stepping that firms tour entire core.
You adjusted your own speed? Your own resistance?? Now grab the rotating handle bars… Step on the roomy foot pads… and twist!!

Nothing is eas… More >>

Cardio Twister – Best Cardiovascular Fitness

Give Your Metabolism A Boost Through Cardio & Strength Training & Healthy Eating Habits! Bowflex TreadClimber!

Article by Mark Sejnowski

On a Bowflex TreadClimber you can get an excellent cardio workout that will help you burn fat and boost your metabolism. Bowflex has combined the walking of a treadmill, the stepping of a stairclimber and the smooth, low impact of an elliptical to give you the best and most efficient workout available. Besides working out on the treadclimber, there are some other ways that you can boost your metabolism. First of all eat a healthy breakfast Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Many people skip breakfast because they don’t have time or they don’t like traditional breakfast foods. But if you wait until lunch to eat, your body assumes you’re fasting and responds by slowing your metabolism. Another simple thing is to drink Green Tea, because Green tea has been shown to boost metabolism. Researchers believe that antioxidants in green tea can cause the body to waste calories as heat, which increases your caloric burn. Just as important as eating breakfast is not skipping meals Our bodies have a built-in survival mechanism to conserve calories when we go for a long period of time without eating. So, when you skip meals, your body slows your metabolism to prevent you from starving.

Strength training with a set of Bowflex SelectTech dumbbells can also boost your meatbolism. The more lean muscle you have, the more calories you’ll burn, even while resting. As we age, we naturally lose muscle mass, so it’s important to work at building it. Even doing resistance or weight training just twice a week can make a big difference. And, ladies, don’t worry regular strength training will make you look toned, not bulked-up. With a set of Bowflex adjustable dumbbells you won’t need a lot of space. They take the place of 15 sets of dumbbells and It’s one of the most space-efficient and flexible strength-training options available with its unique and effective design. With just the turn of a dial, you can automatically change your resistance and quickly change from 5 lbs to 52.5 lbs. When you are strength training and doing your over-all workout your body needs protein. Our bodies have to work hard to digest the foods we eat, and your metabolism revs up in response. However, eating protein boosts your metabolism a little more than consuming carbohydrates or fats with the same number of calories. Remember eat well, train hard and you’ll be amazed at the results!

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