08 May What is the best cardio for weight loss?
NOTE: The purpose of this article is not to tell you which cardio approach works and which doesn’t. This article explains the science behind different cardio approaches to educate you, and in turn help you maximize your results and achieve your personal fitness goals efficiently.
You walk into the gym and hop on the treadmill. First of all, kudos. You’ve won the mental battle. You got your butt into the gym and you’re ready to go. Now the only question is what to actually do on the treadmill. You start to look at the different program options the machine offers. “Cardio performance? Eh, I’m not doing a triathalon. Intervals? Seems intense. Fat loss! Now that’s obviously the one I want, right?”
Where does this omniscient treadmill get its knowledge from? Does the treadmill really know what the best workout is for you to lose fat? Let’s dive in to the science that the treadmill uses to tell you how to live your life.
The Fat Burning Zone
If you’re relatively new to fitness, this may be your first time hearing of the “fat burning zone”. If you’ve been around the block, however, you might have heard that the fat burning zone is a myth.
Let me first make one thing clear- the fat burning zone is not “total B.S.” as many online fitness articles will tell you today. The fat burning zone is based on respiratory exchange ratio (RER), which essentially reflects the percentage of calories your body is burning from fat rather than any other source, such as carbohydrates. The fat burning zone is simply the exertion level during which your body is getting the majority of its fuel from fat.
——> I just read over that last paragraph and realized it may sound complete gibberish if you’re new to this, so let’s see if I can simplify: Your body uses two major sources of energy: carbohydrates and fat. During most of your daily activities, your body is using a combination of BOTH carbs and fat — not just one or the other. However, as the intensity of your exercise increases, your body starts to burn MORE carbs and LESS fat. So the “fat burning zone” is a lower intensity level (like walking) during which your body burns MORE fat and LESS carbs. Make sense?
So again, the fat burning zone is NOT a myth. Bodybuilders have used this approach for decades to achieve insanely low levels of bodyfat before their competitions. (It’s actually fair to assume that the approach originated from bodybuilders since they were once considered the fitness experts. It wasn’t until more recent years that exercise for the general population gained popularity and the field of personal training was born.) But let me ask you something — are you a bodybuilder? Well, if not, then you probably shouldn’t train like one. Here’s why:
The only time you are truly burning 100% of your calories from fat is when your body is in a state of rest, like you probably are right now while reading this article.
So why doesn’t sitting and reading all day result in weight loss? Because although you’re currently burning all your calories from fat, you’re not burning enough calories to make the slightest difference.
So the fat burning zone says this- let’s perform only low intensity exercise, such as walking, for long periods of time (60 min). That way we’ll burn more calories than we would while sitting but we’re still using fat as our main source of energy.
Sound pretty good?
Well here’s the thing…
Even bodybuilders realize that low intensity cardio is an inefficient approach to weight loss.They are well aware, as they yawn on the stationary bike, that they could be burning triple the calories in half the time. However, since bodybuilders often have excessive amounts of muscle mass and use crazy crash diets, they are concerned that their bodies will start breaking down their muscle protein for energy. Therefore, they stick with low intensity cardio to ensure that their bodies burn more fat than muscle.
Now why shouldn’t you use this approach for your weight loss goals?
Losing fat while maintaining excessive muscle mass can be very complicated. This requires the precise manipulation of macronutrients. Hence the reason why bodybuilders devote their lives to eating exact meal plans at exact times.
But here is the good news:
Weight loss is simple. Yeah, I said it. Now it may not be easy, but the science behind it is simple When it comes to losing weight, all that matters is “net calories”, or calories in VS. calories out. As long as you burn more calories than you consume, you will lose weight. So if your goal is to maintain a healthy amount of muscle and lose fat, then here is what you need to do:
1) Follow a consistent strength training routine
2) Eat a generally healthy diet (proper amounts of protein, fat, and carbs)
3) Burn more calories than you consume
So what is the best cardio for maximum calorie burn? Well if you’re just starting out, low intensity cardio is actually a good place to start. You’ll need to build up an aerobic capacity before moving on to anything more advanced. However, if you feel like you’re ready to step it up, let’s kick start your weight loss.
High Intensity Interval Training
High intensity interval training says forget walking at a snail’s pace for an hour, let’s maximize our benefit and minimize our time. The idea is that although low intensity exercise may burn a higher percentage of fat calories, high intensity exercise will burn a significantly higher amount of TOTAL calories, and result in greater fat loss.
HIIT is performed by alternating periods of high intensity exercise with lower intensity recovery periods. For example, alternating sprinting with walking. The sprint should be at a pace that you can only maintain for a minimal amount of time. You will work harder during the 30 sec sprint than you would during an hour of walking and therefore you will maximize your calorie burn. True HIIT uses intervals so intense that they can only be maintained for 30-60 sec, such as sprinting. If you’re new to HIIT, using moderate intensity intervals, such as jogging for 2 min, will still produce a greater caloric burn in 30 min than walking will in an hour.
A good ratio to start out with is 1:4 high intensity to recovery. As you progress you may want to shorten your rest periods bringing you to a ratio of 1:3 or 1:2. The workout should be no more than 20-30 min plus a 5 min warm up and a 5 min cool down.
HIIT can be performed using any type of normal aerobic exercise. Here are some great examples to get you started:
Outside: 1 min running to 4 min walking
On the bike: 30 sec speed cycling to 90 sec slow pedal
On the treadmill: 15 sec incline sprint to 45 sec walking
In your living room: 30 sec jumping jacks to 1 min marching in place
Keep in mind- as you raise the intensity of your intervals and shorten your recovery periods these workouts will become pretty intense. To avoid overtraining, alternate days of HIIT with days of lower intensity exercise.
The Afterburn Effect
One more gift for you. Not only does HIIT burn more calories in half the amount of time, it also raises your resting metabolism for as long as 12 hours post workout. This occurs through a process called excess postexercise oxygen consumption (EPOC). Basically, your body continues to burn calories postworkout while it goes through its chemical processes to recover from your hard work. Just one more added benefit of HIIT.
So if you’re stuck in a weight loss plateau or you’re simply looking for the most effective use of your workout time, this should provide you with enough info to start shedding fat.
