Seminar: Do You Need C.P.R.? Cardio Program Results!

If you feel you’ve been running, like a mouse on a wheel, without any real results to show for your cardiovascular efforts, you need to attend this seminar. Marty Linclau-Miller, Human Performance Consultant, will give you the 4 key essentials to unlock your cardiovascular goals, whether they are to lose weight, get in better shape, or enter your first endurance race. Endurance training is simple when you have a plan!

When:
 Saturday, July 24th, 
12:00 – 1:00 pm

Where:
 World Gym, 
6615 Crain Highway, 
La Plata, MD 20646

Capacity: 
Limited to 25 Participants

Cost:
 Free for current Longevity Studios clients and World Gym members. 
$10 for the general public. Call 301.934.0855 to register.

Tabata Training for a Cardio Alternative

After my last post I received a lot a questions about cardio for weight loss. First, I don’t believe cardio is bad. I do feel like it is over-emphasized and too easily adapted as a weight loss solution. I also find, for the most part, that long-duration, steady state cardio training DOESN’T produce sustainable weight loss results! If you think you need a second opinion on this, read Stop Getting All Cracked Out On Cardio! 4 Reasons To Try Something Else from Erin Huggins. I’m gonna say she agrees. Pay attention to her point about the adrenals glands, because many times it’s that issue holding back your weight loss progress.

Second, if you are a cardio athlete … this obvious doesn’t apply to you. If you’re a Lance Armstrong, you have to ride your bike for long periods of time! But many times, there are smarter ways to train for those events as well!!

So I got alot of the same questions about “what else is there to do?” The function of cardio training is to increase your heart rate for sustainable periods of time. You can do this without the “cardio” mind-frame that is so pervasive.

One way to do this is a protocol called The Tabata Method. You perform 20 seconds of an exercise followed by 10 seconds of rest. The traditional Tabata Method only has you performing the high intensity cycles for 4 minutes. This form is for highly conditioned people, but the form can be adjusted to fit any level of fitness. You perform cycles of these exercises, much like a circuit, and it can get your heart rate to the appropriate level. You can modify the exercises and intensity to make it right for you. If you are just starting, you can work at a slower pace and use easier exercises with smaller ranges of motions. As you progress, or if cardio fitness is already high, you can turn the workouts in some specials experiences. This is not the same ol’boring routine.

Some examples of these workouts are:

Now, I don’t promote any of these workouts, exercise form, and intensity … and of course, you should always consult your physcian prior to starting any exercise program (for sake of my lawyer!). This may be a way to change your cardio to get some real results.

So let me know what you think … or if you try a Tabata workout, let me know how it goes!

Cardio Exercise Intensity

I get questions all the time about how hard people should be doing their cardio exercise. I could get into complicated heartrate equations and talking about cardiovascular exercise testing to find maximal oxygen uptake capacity, but the quickest and easiest for me is the rating of perceived exertion. It’s a scale from one to twenty that subjectively measures how hard you are working and can be associated back to heartrate. A number between 12-14 usually is a good level for most people. If you’d like to read an article about how to use the rating for perceived exertion, there is a very good one on About.com by Elizabeth Quinn. Click here to get full article.