[endobendo]

i preferably want something i can do at the gym. my primary goal is to have a healthier heart with a secondary goal of performing better in bed. i'm not trying to lose weight.

should you run/bike/eliptical machine for long periods or short periods and how many days a week? how do you decide

[Smitty]

One option is to look into High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT). You basically alternate with light jogging for say, 45 seconds, and sprinting for, say, 20 seconds. Supposed to help with burning fat but I know that's not your goal. Still recommend you check it out because when I was using an HIIT routine, I found myself in shape pretty quickly...was able to run the stairs better than I ever had.

[DonovanVC]

(10-18-2011 06:44 PM)Smitty Wrote:  

One option is to look into High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT). You basically alternate with light jogging for say, 45 seconds, and sprinting for, say, 20 seconds. Supposed to help with burning fat but I know that's not your goal. Still recommend you check it out because when I was using an HIIT routine, I found myself in shape pretty quickly...was able to run the stairs better than I ever had.

This is a great suggestion.

I would recommend running for about 20 minutes at a jog or somewhat higher pace for a few weeks before trying HIIT.

I would also try jump-roping. I did that for a summer, three times a week with great results. I would skip fast for about 1.5 minutes, then do a set of 15-20 pushups, then break for 2 minutes. Then do that whole thing again. Do a few sets of those for about 10 minutes.

[speakeasy]

I've found there's nothing more effective for me than the stairmaster machine. And I don't mean the one you pump your feet up and down on, but the one that's like a never-ending escalator. Set that on a brisk pace for 30 minutes and you're good. 3 or 4 days a week. I also do uphill cycling when I need a good cardio run. High intensity martial arts are great too. You can take up some Krav, BJJ or boxing.

[Vacancier Permanent]

I find running boring so instead I'd rather play tennis, swim or even rowing which gives an awesome workout plus it's more fun. Do rowing/kayaking/paddling for 2 hours a day for 3 months and you'd be built like an All Blacks forward at the end of it. Also, guys do not underestimate the power/benefits of swimming regularlry.

[La Familia]

(10-18-2011 09:01 PM)Vacancier Permanent Wrote:  

I find running boring so instead I'd rather play tennis, swim or even rowing which gives an awesome workout plus it's more fun. Do rowing/kayaking/paddling for 2 hours a day for 3 months and you'd be built like an All Blacks forward at the end of it. Also, guys do not underestimate the power/benefits of swimming regularlry.

My friend's dad messed up his knees badly from running all the time, and switched over to swimming. He swims daily and looks great for a man approaching 70. Swimming is easier on the joints, provides resistance, and is a full body workout. Find a gym with a swimming pool, and swim as many laps as you possibly can. You'll be on the verge of tears by the end, but it's worth it.

[vinman]

Tabata sprints. 20 seconds of sprints with 10 seconds of rest for 4 to 5 minutes. It's a ass kicker.

[Stitch]

Tabatas will KICK YOUR ASS. Very effective.

Myself, I jump rope. Easier on the joints than running, pretty darn strenuous, very portable, very cheap, difficult to master so it keeps me interested (been at it a few years and still slip up occasionally). For my last fitness test, I scored well on the run (ahead of many guys younger than me) despite having done ZERO running in preparation for the test, which I attribute to my rope skipping.

[gypsy]

(10-18-2011 06:22 PM)endobendo Wrote:  

should you run/bike/eliptical machine for long periods or short periods and how many days a week? how do you decide

Cycling is great but stay away from it for cardio work unless you actually like cycling, the time and effort you have to put into it is a lot greater than it is for something like running.

I would stay away from machines, cardio is a great way to do shit rocky style and get outside whenever possible. If your knees are ok do some running, preferably trail running. The tabata intervals mentioned are a great idea, so are hill springs and stair running. Side benefit, hill running is much easier on your knees.

I love VPs suggestions on paddling and swimming too.

[Laser]

Big believer in HIIT. One of the simplest exercises you can do is burpees. I started off with 3 sets of 5 w/ 1 min rest in between. I did this every morning, adding 1 rep per set every other day or so until I was up to 3 sets of 25. Coupled with heavy lifting and changing up my diet, I lost 30 pounds of fat in 2 months.

[Luckystar]

(10-19-2011 10:06 AM)Laser Wrote:  

Big believer in HIIT. One of the simplest exercises you can do is burpees. I started off with 3 sets of 5 w/ 1 min rest in between. I did this every morning, adding 1 rep per set every other day or so until I was up to 3 sets of 25. Coupled with heavy lifting and changing up my diet, I lost 30 pounds of fat in 2 months.

I do burpees, mountain climbers, and the treadmill...all in HIIT format. It works like charm...I dropped 20 lbs in a couple months.

[mikeymike]

The bottom line with cardio whether it be hiit or regular run of the mill stuff is finding the optimal heart rate and keeping that intensity there. I'll see fat ass people at the gym going an hr everyday on a new piece of cardio equipment wondering why they aren't losing weight or they still can't run a mile but can do the eliptical for an hr and it's cause they've got it at a nice leisurely pace, if you're not pushing yourself you're not going to get better. It's like a lifter who goes in and lifts the same amount of weight every chest workout wondering why he isn't packing on a thick layer of muscle on his chest, they're not pushing it out of it's comfort zone. It's all about intensity so whatever you choose, you don't need anymore than 30 minutes but make sure your ass is kicked in that 30 minutes or if you're doing hiit keep pushing yourself and increasing reps, cutting rest time, adding sets, anything to vary intensity. Personally I still play 3 games of hockey a week so my cardio is kept in check with that but I've been adding in a lot of skipping rope lately as nothing has kicked my ass as much as that. I also play tennis 4-5 times a week so I don't add in much more than that but if I were after what you were doing I'd alternate between hiit and standard cardio. If you don't need to lose weight any more than 4 times a week would probably be overkill. Hiit will increase you aerobic energy to a degree but I find it most effective with your anaerobic energy or your quick bursts and ability to recover from them, you'll need that but by adding in a standard routine where you find a target heart rate and maintain that and above for 30+ minutes you'll work your anaerobic and get the best of both worlds. 2 days a week of each day off in between to rest. As for what machines to use, variety is good, your body adjusts quickly, skip rope, eliptical, run, treadmill, stair climber, versaclimber, row machine, swim, keep it fresh and your mind won't get as bored.

[Pilgrim37]

Run 3.5 miles round the park X 3-4 days a week
Halfway round my run I do 20 mins Callesthenics: press up,sits ups,squats,burpees,stretches
Need to add pull ups to the press ups though,haven't found the right tree!
Out in the fresh air,prefer it to the gym ,with the added bonus of being cheap as chips..

[CPG]

Lots of good suggestions here...HIIT is my preferred way of training for both building endurance and staying in shape, and tabatas are a way to apply that to just about any exercise, including ones that build strength along with giving you a cardio workout (ie tabata air squats). Try doing a set of tabata double-unders with jump rope for something that will both get your pulse up and wear out your arms.

I like doing my strength training and cardio conditioning together, so I usually follow CrossFit...an "average" workout would run 20 minutes, and both wear out some muscle groups and give you an HIIT effect on cardio conditioning. I also do martial arts, and when I switched from traditional weight training to CrossFitting without making any other changes in my training, I noticed that I had more stamina for class and sparring.

[Frost]

Cardio will not result in a healthy heart:

http://www.archevore.com/panu-weblog/200...sease.html

Lots of good advice in this thread though. Interval training, stop-and-go sports, and light physical activity ie hiking are all key. Sprints/Tabatas are badass, I used to finish off my leg workouts with 5 minutes of them.

[Laser]

I prefer HIIT over long form cardio because it fits well with the goal of packing on muscle through heavy lifting.

Possible bro science:

Compare the typical bodies of a long distance runner vs. a sprinter. The sprinter is usually jacked and the long distance runner looks like a waif.

[OSL]

Muay Thai is HIIT with the added beneefit of being able to kick ass!

[tenderman100]

I do Insanity.

It's very intense interval type training. I'd say I get my heart rate up to its correct levels (I use a monitor) about 12-15 minutes out of every 30.

[thekiller]

(10-18-2011 10:21 PM)vinman Wrote:  

Tabata sprints. 20 seconds of sprints with 10 seconds of rest for 4 to 5 minutes. It's a ass kicker.

This, 4 or 5 minutes is all you need to ramp up your metabolism for hours after. Since I don't have hills nearby to sprint up I do this on an elliptical machine with the incline cranked up.

As someone else mentioned would you rather look like a sprinter or a marathoner?

[subutai]

Sparring in a combination of boxing, wrestling, muay thai, and ground grappling -- in other words, MMA -- is all the cardio you need.

In fact, you'll struggle to maintain muscle mass doing this 3-4x a week.

[Aliblahba]

HIIT training is good. We did it in the military and it was great for conditioning. Back then they were called Indian Sprints. Did a lot of burpees (without jumping), mountain climbers, ect. I've used cardio machines with little success, and I've ran 1/2 marathons.

I can't run anymore. Ran WAY too many miles over the hardball, and my knees and ankles won't take anymore. And it's boring. I learned too that walking will make you lose weight faster than running anyway. I'd prefer to swim, but usually don't have access to a pool.

Can anyone recommend a good Crossfit program? I can find the exercises online but not a complete program. I'll be somewhere for the next 6 months where the gym won't be an option.

I bought Never Gymless by Ross Enamait and it seems solid, but am not sure how it stacks up against Crossfit. He preaches a lot about high intensity training, with burpees, tabata's, and a generally what you guys have been talking about on the thread.

Thanks for the help in advance.

[pitt]

(10-24-2011 04:55 AM)Aliblahba Wrote:  

HIIT training is good. We did it in the military and it was great for conditioning. Back then they were called Indian Sprints. Did a lot of burpees (without jumping), mountain climbers, ect. I've used cardio machines with little success, and I've ran 1/2 marathons.

I can't run anymore. Ran WAY too many miles over the hardball, and my knees and ankles won't take anymore. And it's boring. I learned too that walking will make you lose weight faster than running anyway. I'd prefer to swim, but usually don't have access to a pool.

Can anyone recommend a good Crossfit program? I can find the exercises online but not a complete program. I'll be somewhere for the next 6 months where the gym won't be an option. I bought Never Gymless by Ross Enamait and it seems solid, but am not sure how it stacks up against Crossfit. He preaches a lot about high intensity training, with burpees, tabata's, and a generally what you guys have been talking about on the thread.

Thanks for the help in advance.

Are you going to the moon? There is a gym everywhere you go to.

[mangadooza]

As mentioned already, sprint all the way. Dont believe all the BS about shit like hour long cardio sessions while fasting in the morning for "ultra fat burning." metabolic boost is negligible, and you burn maybe 400 calories which is in no significant way different from just consuming 400 calories less throughout the day. Hell, a single slice of pizza, two cans of regular soda, or a handful of nuts -- yes, any of those 3-- will wipe out your hour of work. If anything, long and frequent cardio sessions encourage you to overeat because you think you "earned it." go to the gym and watch people sweat their ass off for 60 mins and then down a 500 calorie "recovery" shake. One hour of counterproductive agony of their life, 5x a week. Highly amusing.

Everyone I know that is ripped and athletic just sprints, if that, with high intensity, infrequent weight lifting.

[Aliblahba]

(10-24-2011 05:05 AM)pitt Wrote:  

(10-24-2011 04:55 AM)Aliblahba Wrote:  

HIIT training is good. We did it in the military and it was great for conditioning. Back then they were called Indian Sprints. Did a lot of burpees (without jumping), mountain climbers, ect. I've used cardio machines with little success, and I've ran 1/2 marathons.

I can't run anymore. Ran WAY too many miles over the hardball, and my knees and ankles won't take anymore. And it's boring. I learned too that walking will make you lose weight faster than running anyway. I'd prefer to swim, but usually don't have access to a pool.

Can anyone recommend a good Crossfit program? I can find the exercises online but not a complete program. I'll be somewhere for the next 6 months where the gym won't be an option. I bought Never Gymless by Ross Enamait and it seems solid, but am not sure how it stacks up against Crossfit. He preaches a lot about high intensity training, with burpees, tabata's, and a generally what you guys have been talking about on the thread.

Thanks for the help in advance.

Are you going to the moon? There is a gym everywhere you go to.

Where I'll be the gym will be PACKED 24/7. I'll be impossible to get a workout in w/out adding an extra hour to it. I hate waiting for machines/free weights. I'd rather just build my own weights and go on my own.

[Laser]

(10-24-2011 07:31 AM)Aliblahba Wrote:  

(10-24-2011 05:05 AM)pitt Wrote:  

(10-24-2011 04:55 AM)Aliblahba Wrote:  

HIIT training is good. We did it in the military and it was great for conditioning. Back then they were called Indian Sprints. Did a lot of burpees (without jumping), mountain climbers, ect. I've used cardio machines with little success, and I've ran 1/2 marathons.

I can't run anymore. Ran WAY too many miles over the hardball, and my knees and ankles won't take anymore. And it's boring. I learned too that walking will make you lose weight faster than running anyway. I'd prefer to swim, but usually don't have access to a pool.

Can anyone recommend a good Crossfit program? I can find the exercises online but not a complete program. I'll be somewhere for the next 6 months where the gym won't be an option. I bought Never Gymless by Ross Enamait and it seems solid, but am not sure how it stacks up against Crossfit. He preaches a lot about high intensity training, with burpees, tabata's, and a generally what you guys have been talking about on the thread.

Thanks for the help in advance.

Are you going to the moon? There is a gym everywhere you go to.

Where I'll be the gym will be PACKED 24/7. I'll be impossible to get a workout in w/out adding an extra hour to it. I hate waiting for machines/free weights. I'd rather just build my own weights and go on my own.

If you're waiting a long time in the gym for equipment to free up, you might want to re-evaluate your routine. In my experience, no matter what city I'm in, the power rack (NOT the smith machine) is hardly ever in use. And this is where most of your weightlifting should be done anyway - squats, overhead press, bench, deadlifts, power cleans, etc.