I have this secret insecurity about running around other
people. As my last name suggests, I am not a runner, nor do I have a lot of
endurance when it comes to running. So when I go to the gym and all of these
girls are running at 7 mph for 30 minutes to an hour, I get pretty self-conscious. However, I hear girls complaining about how they are always running but not
losing any weight. This makes them run even more. Well, if you are one of those
girls, I'm here to tell you that “running until you don't jiggle” might not be
the way to get the results you want. Once again, I'm no expert, these are just some things I've learned and changed about my workout routine. So
grab a snack, sit back, and get comfortable.
Hopefully I won’t ramble too much…
Change up your routine
Our bodies are very adaptive to
the exercises we do. So just like you would do a variety of leg exercises and
not just squats, maybe a little change in your cardio routine could be
beneficial to you. Instead of jogging for an hour, jog/walk for 4 minutes,
sprint for 1. Do this until your workout
is complete.
Space out your workouts
Running is a high impact cardio
workout on the body. Think about it: you're constantly pounding on your leg
muscles and bones, not to mention your entire spine as well. While running is
important and is a great way to stimulate muscles all over your body, doing
something that is so high impact every day for long periods of time is not
giving your muscles enough time to heal. After a high impact/high intensity workout, it
can take your body at LEAST 3 days to heal.
But you don’t want to wait for more than 6 days before you repeat your
cardio workout, or do another type of cardiovascular exercise.
What I like to do (take it or leave it), is
to work my legs on Mondays and Fridays, arms/back Tuesdays and Thursdays, and
cardio Wednesdays and Saturdays. That
is, if I get in every workout that I plan.
You might be wondering how I manage to keep up my amazing 6 pack (lol
right). I work out my abs every day that
I think about it. According to the
strength and conditioning coach at Troy University, you can work out your abs
and calves every day if you wanted to.
These muscles are really thick and can heal quickly.
Slow it down!
There is a difference between cardio and
fat burning exercises. While cardio workouts CAN burn fat, they will not
maximize the potential fat burn. You can actually alter a few things from your
normal cardio workout to make it a fat burning workout. During a steady run,
your heart rate will be around the 180 bpm range. At this point, your body is
in “cardio mode”. Your body is gaining the ability to take in more oxygen and
is improving your lung, heart, and blood vessel functions. However, when your
heart rate stays between 120-140 bpm, your body is in “fat burn mode”. The best
way I've found to keep my heart rate in this range is to walk on the treadmill
at about 3-3.5 mph (enough to keep you breathing slightly heavy) with a 4+
incline. Something that helps me know that I've reached the fat burning point
of my workout is when my stomach sweat is cold. Gross, I know. If you get to
this point, don’t quit!
Let me know if any of these tips have helped you, or if you
have any of your own. Also, if you have
any suggestions or ideas of things I could write about, feel free to comment
below or let me know on any of my social medias.
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