Effective intensive cardio training technique
Intensive Cardio Basics
In this article, you will be described an effective method of aerobic training, which contributes to the rapid burning of excess fat and has virtually no negative effect on muscle tissue. It is capable of triggering anabolic processes in muscle tissues, that is, you actively burn fat and build muscle at the same time.
This cardio training is a high aerobic intensity, manifested in a 16-minute period of time and progressing from training to training. Most importantly, each subsequent workout should be more intense than the previous one. In other words, you have to spend more energy (burn more calories) in every next 16-minute workout than in the previous one.
Preparation for work
Since this cardio training is carried out with the highest possible intensity, the choice of exercises in it is limited. Most of all for training the “lying” exercise bike is suitable. However, if you do not have the opportunity to work on this simulator, then transfer the basic principles of this technique to any type of cardio training that is convenient for you.
But now, as an example, we will consider this technique on a “stationary” exercise bike, as this machine does not require any special skills and is convenient both in terms of intensity and in terms of stability and safety. On a recumbent bike, you can maximize the exercise without worrying about balance or possible mistakes. All this is very important, since traditional aerobic exercises require a compromise between the stability of the simulator, the ability to operate it, the presence of certain skills and the development of intensity.
The simulator has many different settings that you need to know and understand. With correctly set parameters, the recumbent bike is ideal for working on this system.
Time: Everything is simple here. Set 16 minutes.
Software settings: The software settings of most recumbent bicycles allow you to adjust the load. One of these settings is called “Interval”, with which you can program a progressive increase in load as you overcome a certain distance.
This setting is most important for generating intensity, since a progressively increasing load allows you to generate more intensity and spend more calories.
“Load Level” setting: This setting increases and decreases resistance. The higher the load level you set, the greater the resistance of the pedals, and the greater the distance with a higher intensity you “drive” in one pedal revolution (RPM).
Primarily
So, the first thing you should do. First of all, determine the initial level of your intensity. It’s simple. You perform a 16-minute workout with a very slight excess of your usual intensity, and then record statistics. All speed bicycles save statistics in the form of the number of calories burned and the distance traveled.
Capturing statistics will allow you to control a constant increase in intensity. Do not forget that each cardio training should be more intense than the previous one. In other words, at each regular cardiosession, you must “drive” a greater distance than at the previous one, and at the end of the lesson, record the latest data on calories burned.
After your first cardio workout, you will determine the starting point of reference – the distance that you will need to exceed in the next lesson. This is a very important element. Since, you should always strive to increase the load in order to force your body to continuously adapt. Thus, at each cardio training, you will increase the speed of your metabolism, raising its level higher and higher.
Why 16 minutes?
There are several reasons that explain why training lasts no more than 16 minutes, and all of them, one way or another, are associated with increased intensity and accelerated metabolism.
16 minutes is the optimal time interval that allows you to work with maximum intensity and at the same time keep the pace unchanged. It is very important that the pace remains constant throughout the cardio training, as this contributes to the maximum possible energy production.
It is also psychologically much easier to tolerate a short, high-intensity 16-minute workout than a long, low-intensity session.
And finally, 16 minutes of extreme intensity increase the metabolic level, without exerting any negative effect on muscle tissue.
First steps
You should conduct your first training session with an intensity of only 5-10 percent higher than your usual (and already outdated) level. The results of this workout will determine your starting point. The distance that you record after the first training session will be the result that you need to exceed in the next lesson. And your third workout should be even more intense than the previous one (that is, the second in a row), etc. Such a progressive increase in intensity “accelerates” your metabolism and burns fat deposits much more efficiently than regular aerobics.
The effect of cardio training on fat metabolism
In matters related to energy consumption during aerobic training there is a lot of confusion. Working in an aerobic regimen, the body consumes, first of all, glycogen, and only to a very insignificant degree fats. Even if you didn’t eat anything a few hours before your workout, during work your body will still use glycogen as the primary energy source. Do not think that when you pedal the bike, your body actively burns fat. Nothing like this!
Studies have been conducted, and in order to burn one kilogram of fat at a time, you need to run about 130 km. It is clear that this is an average value, but still wow!
What benefits does aerobics bring to us, apart from the benefits to general health?
Aerobics, in the first place, is valuable in that it increases the basal metabolic rate (BMS), due to which intensive burning of body fat occurs. (BMS is the amount of energy expended by the body in a state of complete rest per unit of time). Any aerobics raises the level of this basal metabolic rate, thus enhancing the body’s ability to process body fat.
The problem with standard aerobics with its long, low-intensity work is that it depletes glycogen stores, while only slightly affecting BMS. And in order to somehow compensate for these reserves and satisfy the need for energy, the body is forced to process and use pure muscle tissue as fuel. You can say that prolonged aerobics literally eats up your muscles.
Here is a great example of the effectiveness of this Cardio training, and its differences from traditional aerobics. Compare two types of athletes – sprinters and stayers . Sprinters are very slim and extremely muscular athletes. And long-distance runners are lanky, dry, with small muscles, similar to reeds. And despite this, their bodies contain more fat than the bodies of sprinters.
Sprinters to a certain extent train according to the principles of this technique, performing short, explosive races with maximum intensity. Styer distances are more reminiscent of typical aerobics with its low intensity and high duration. Which of these two types of addition would you like to have?