You see them on at  gyms pounding tread-mills, mashing elliptical trainers, and sweating their way through step classes. These are the cardio lovers.  And they all share certain characteristics and no I’m not talking about headbands and neon colored workout clothes. They share certain physical characteristics like sallow skin, lack of vigor, and physiques that would make nobody envious.  Brainwashed by the likes of the American Heart Association and the American government these are the same folks who eat low fat food, drink diet sodas, and think that soy is actually healthy.

You hear the words overrated and underrated all of the time especially in regards to Sports. People fall in love with a certain athlete because they have pleasing personalities, have been hyped up by the media, or they play for a winning team.  Maybe this athlete is somewhat skilled but is so likeable that his actual rating has gotten blown out of proportion by fans and the critics. That is how one becomes overrated. Production cannot match the hype. In the fitness world that overrated athlete is cardio.

Listed are some myths and facts about Cardio:

• Myth- you can lose weight a developed a “toned” physique just by doing cardio

Fact-you can lose weight staring at the TV all day if your diet is perfect. But no one is going to develop a great physique without weight training

• Myth-cardio is the best way to burn body fat

Fact-Eating a diet that is right for you metabolic type and doing regular resistance training is the best way to burn body fat

• Myth-You only burn body fat while performing cardio

Fact- First you body will begin by burning all of the body’s stored carbohydrate, then it will start burning off some stored fat, and if done excessively will start eating the body’s muscle

• Myth-More is always better when it comes to cardio. The more cardio you perform for long peroids of time the more lean and healthy one will become.

Fact- The most effective way to perform cardio is for short durations of time at a high level of intensity (see interval training program below)

• Myth-Cardio is a better form of exercise than resistance training

Fact-Nothing could be further from the truth. Besides benefiting the heart and the lungs resistance training is better for bone density, weight loss, and the overall function of the muscular system.

Let me finish by saying this- cardio should be any part of any well designed weight loss program. But, it should be thought of as an accessory to resistance training. Never the focus of your program.

Interval Training Program:

Select your favorite cardio machine- Treadmill, Spin Bike, Recumbent Bike, Stair Climber, Elliptical, Etc....

Select a resistance that is extremely challenging and perform cardio for one minute. As soon as that minute is up select a resistance that is so easy that you could do it on your worst day. Do another minute of cardio at that resistance at a very, very slow pace. Repeat for 20 minutes.

You can do intervals in any time increments you prefer. One minute hard, 30 seconds easy, 30 seconds hard, 30 seconds easy and so on and so forth. There are no rules. Just pick times that you are comfortable with.

*Note* Interval training is not for beginners and the very de-conditioned. It is for intermediate to advanced trainees. An appropriate starting point for a beginner should be 20min on any easy cardio machine (think treadmill or recumbent bike) at a low level of intensity throughout.

Brandon