Category: Cardio

Common Cardio Workout Mistakes

Common Cardio Workout Mistakes

Cardio exercise machine workouts are great and fun for burning excess body fat and building good cardiovascular health. These exercises not only help to burn body fat fast it will also strengthen your heart and lungs and thus reducing your chances of getting high blood pressure, stroke and heart diseases. Regular cardio exercises can also reduce bad cholesterol and raise the level of good cholesterol.

However, are you getting the most out of your cardio machine workouts? Are you using the cardio workout machines efficiently to gain maximum benefits of the exercises?

Well, you probably are not if you are an average gym user without any personal trainers to guide you because you will probably commit common cardio machine mistakes when exercising.

We shall now examine the more popular cardio workout machines and the common cardio workout mistakes people commit when using these machines for their workouts.

The most common cardio workout mistakes that people make when using these machines are:

Cardio Workout Mistakes • Step up stair climber

This is perhaps the most common mistake for not getting the most out of the step up stair climber machine. Almost invariably, everyone when exercising with this machine will rest their arms on the railing. By doing so, the railing now becomes sort of like a crutch as it will now support some of your body weight making the exercise less intensive.

Cardio Workout Mistakes • Treadmill

The treadmill is perhaps the most popular cardio workout machine in the gym. A careful observation will show that many treadmill users run with too much up and downs. This mistake will wear out the person’s ankle and knee joints over time. The correct method is to take long, smooth and purposeful strides during the exercise.

Cardio Workout Mistakes • Stationery Bike

When exercising on the stationery bike, do adjust the height of the seat to a comfortable level. I really don’t understand why many stationery bike users adjust their seats to be either too high or too low. I mean, why be uncomfortable when exercising when you can be comfortable.

When the seat is too low, it adds strain to your knees and spine. When too high, your will butt will rock from side to side. So besides not getting the best from your cardio workout on the stationery bike because your body weight will be involved when you peddle, you will also look weird. It is such a silly workout mistake right?

Another common mistake is that I often see stationery bikers reading a book when exercising. That means that they exercise at a very low intensity level. Hey, how can low intensity cardio exercises work your heart and lung effectively?

Cardio Workout Mistakes • Elliptical Trainer

This is also another bewildering common cardio workout mistake. You use the elliptical trainer to tone your body and to exercise for your cardiovascular fitness right? Then why is it I often see people who use the elliptical trainer exercising at a high speed? So what is the mistake? The mistake is that they have set the resistant level too low.

You see, if you do not puff, pant and breakout in sweat, you are not getting the best out of your cardio exercises. Is it any wonder then that people are not losing weight and not improving on their cardiovascular health even when they are doing their cardio exercises regularly?

Now that you know how to avoid these common cardio workout mistakes, you can now head for the gym and get the best out of these exercises. In a very short time, you will see your body toning up nicely, improvement on your cardio health being felt and visibly losing excess body fat.

Best Cardio for Fat Loss

What type of Cardio is best for fat loss?

Depending on your fitness goals, the type of cardio you choose will vary. Not to say that one type is better than the next, but the specific cardio path you take might lead you to another destination or outcome that you didn’t want. So it’s important to understand the different ways that a person can go about cardiovascular training for fat loss.

Let me use a simple analogy that I’ve heard over and over during my training experience…

If you wanted to get from Point A to Point B, (let’s say its Phoenix AZ to New York) there are many different ways you can go about traveling to get there. The fastest way would be to fly, obviously. Other ways could include driving, taking a train, cycling, or even walking. Whatever way you choose to get there is up to you. Some are faster than others and some are slow and steady. The point is that all of these will get you to the same destination; it just depends on your individual preference and what works best for you.

It’s the exact same thing with cardio for fat loss. Cardio is just a vehicle to get you to your fat loss destination. The fastest way may give you quick results, but it could have its costs. With high intensity cardio, you might end up sacrificing some muscle to get to your ideal body fat percentage at a faster pace; just like flying across the country, the fees will most likely leave your wallet feeling empty.

So with that being said, how do you know which type of cardio training is best? Remember, your body is unique. Everyone will have their own way to get to Point B. My suggestion to you is to experiment with your various options. The key here is to not jump around from one to the next on a week-to-week basis. Try High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) for 3-4 weeks and record your results. This type of cardio involves intervals of high intensity for a short period (30 sec to 1 minute), then a slower pace for the next 2-3 minutes, then repeat. This is one of the best forms of cardiovascular training for fat loss. The reason why is because the body MUST HAVE oxygen present in order to call upon fat for fuel. If you stay on the same pace for the full 30-45 minutes of cardio, some fat may be called upon, but most likely your energy will come from your glycogen stores instead.

If you are a less experienced exerciser, this method may be too much to begin with. Simply walking around the block or on a treadmill may call upon your fat stores as well.

So if you like to play sports or train outside, do that. If you are a swimmer and you spend the majority of your time in the water, then do that. The best part is that HIIT can be applied to almost any type of cardiovascular activity, even walking. I’ve personally gotten my heart rate up to 210 beats per minute just from a walking interval; so I know it can be done.

My advice to you is to find a few cardio training methods that best suit your needs and goals. Try experimenting and see how your body reacts after a few weeks. Once you’ve done the elliptical, bike or treadmill, move on to something else. The body must be forced to adapt to new changes in order to progress. So keep the fat-loss ball rolling and you’ll see results in no time!

One last thing…

Diet and cardio go together like peanut butter and jelly. You won’t get results from just using one. Does a jelly sandwich sound good to you? Nah, me either. So make sure you’re burning off more calories than you’re taking in when you’re training for fat loss!

-Mitch Muller

CPT – MindsetFitness.net