I’ve spent the last several blog posts focusing on strength training—its benefits, myths behind it, and how to get started—but I wouldn’t be a fitness specialist if I didn’t mention cardio training.

Cardio, or cardiovascular exercise, is intended to keep our hearts healthy, our lungs elastic, and our blood pumping. Most people equate cardio with long bouts of walking or running on a treadmill, rowing, using an elliptical, or riding a stationary bike. However, not all cardio is created equal, and I’m here to break it all down for you!

Here are three types of cardio:

1. Steady State

Steady-state cardio is low intensity, which means you can hold a conversation while doing it, and it usually lasts for longer than 60 minutes. Steady-state consists of repetitive movements like walking, running, cycling, and elliptical machines.

Me thru-hiking in the Olympic National Park

When we exercise in a lower intensity, we tend to burn more fat calories, but in order to get into the “fat burning zone,” you have to devote the time to it; think marathons or long walks, hikes, or bike rides. These adventures take time and lots of fat to keep your body going.

2. Fartlek/Tempo

Tempo training requires more effort and focus to push your intensity up a bit and get your heart pumping; you can speak in broken sentences. If you don’t have hours to devote to cardiovascular exercise but do have at least 30-60 minutes, tempo training can be your jam. If a runner were training to increase their race pace, for example, they might train this way. They push their pacing while they run to increase their tolerance for a certain speed. After a mile, they might relax the pace to actively rest before their next push.

There are pieces of cardio equipment that have programs to allow for different intensities like speed and resistance to up the ante on workouts. For a tougher workout, try using the stair climber or the rowing machine, because they require more of the body to do the workout. If you typically walk on the treadmill, consider adding a few minutes of jogging/running or increase the incline to push that intensity!

Exercising at a moderate intensity allows for a higher caloric burn in less time than steady-state, and it burns a combination of carbohydrates and fat because it requires more effort from the whole body to perform the exercise, and that allows for increased caloric burn.

3. Interval—Short Bursts of High Intensity Exercise

When one says HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training), they’re typically describing interval cardiovascular training. This type of exercise is meant for advanced trainers and taxes the participant so they can’t do anything but breathe! Interval efforts are mere seconds of intense activities that require significant rest in between bouts of exercise. For example, a sprinter runs 100 meters in about 6-10 seconds, but can require three-to-five minutes to recover. A true HIIT session should last between five and 12 minutes and can consist of things like sprints, plyometric training, or agility drills.

When exercising at a high intensity effort, the participant burns carbohydrates pretty exclusively, but the benefits post-exercise last longer than any other type of training. Because the body trains without oxygen (anaerobic training) for an extended period of time, it keeps the body burning hot for hours after training to replenish the oxygen, so the body burns more calories even while at rest. And guess what those calories are…fat!

Regardless of the time you have to devote to cardio training, the heart and body can benefit from it all. Think quality over quantity, and this is the best advice I can give, regardless of the type of exercise you’re participating in! It doesn’t matter how much you lift or how long you go, as long as you’re doing it correctly. If you have any questions about what right looks like, ask a certified fitness professional.

Next time, I will break down the many iterations of HIIT because there are quite a few!

Looking for more wellness tips? Check out 5 Tips for Making Home Exercise Work and Understanding Stress and What to Do about It.

References:

Baechle, T. R. & Earle, R. W. (2008). NSCA’s Essentials of Strength and Conditioning. (3^rd Ed.). Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.

McArdle, W. D., Katch, F. I., & Katch, V.L. (2015). Exercise physiology: Nutrition, energy, and human performance. (8^th Ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Wolters Kluwer Health.