You walk into the gym and there are a number of cardio machines available to use. There is the treadmill, cross trainer, upright bike, recumbent bike, rower, stepper…and then a few more machines that you don’t even know the names of! Which is the best cardio exercise to undertake?
Well, unlike with resistance training, cardio exercise is a far more even playing field in regards to the effectiveness of various exercises in regards to weight loss.
Firstly, why is this so?
The goal of cardiovascular exercise is to elevate your heart rate to induce a response (whatever you are performing the cardio for). Disregarding exceptional cases (medical concerns, injuries, super-specific training etc.), so long as you can get your heart rate up on a particular machine, then it’s going to be effective.
You may have read yesterday’s post entitled “Debunking the Fat Burning Zone Myth“. If you proceeded to read my article “The Fat Burning Zone“, you would be well aware that the most effective way to lose weight is to get the intensity of the exercise up.
So now we are at the point where we no longer are considering “the best cardio exercise for weight loss”, but rather “how to increase the intensity of the cardio exercise for weight loss”. Here is the key to increasing the intensity:
Pick a cardio format that you enjoy using!
You see, if you actually enjoy using the format (whether that be a treadmill, upright bike, cross trainer, outdoor running, outdoor bike riding etc.), then you are going to be able to push yourself that little bit harder to maximise your results. Why force yourself to undertake a form of exercise that you loath? You are going to be bored, you won’t be able to wait until your cardio is over…why in the world would you want to make your cardio more miserable than what it already is?
Oh and a really, really big benefit to this is that, if you enjoy your cardio, chances are that you will stick to it for longer! By eliminating your dislike of a particular exercise from your regime, that’s one less thing working against you to achieve your weight loss goals.
At lower intensities, weight bearing cardio exercises (such as treadmill, walking, jogging, running, cross trainer) may be more effective in maximising the number of calories burnt during your workout. However, when considering high intensity cardio workouts, a bike can more far more effective than a cross trainer, even though less muscles are being utilised. It all comes down to what the best cardio exercises are for YOU.
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