2610: [Part 1] Cardio for Weight Loss - Everything You Need to Know by JC Deen of JCD Fitness on Losing Bodyfat

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[00:01:10] To Know. Part 1 by JC Dean of jcdfitness.com. And I'm your host and personal narrator, Dr. Neal. Hey there! Happy middle of the week Wednesday and welcome to another edition of Optimal Health Daily where I read some of the best blogs covering health and fitness,

[00:01:27] just like an audiobook and always with a bit of my commentary at the end. Now like I said it is the middle of the week and like I do every Wednesday, I like to share a little bit of inspiration with you. So with that, here we go.

[00:01:39] Quote, If you want love and abundance in your life, give it away. Mark Twain. Now, today's post is a bit longer than what I typically narrate. So whenever that happens, I'll read the first half today and then finish it up for you tomorrow. So with that, let's get

[00:01:57] to part 1 and optimize your life. Cardio for Weight Loss. Everything You Need To Know. Part 1 by JC Dean of jcdfitness.com. Is cardio the best form of exercise for weight loss? The answer will largely

[00:02:17] depend on your goals, wants and needs but we'll cover every possible question you have to make an informed decision. It's common to think that cardio automatically equals fat loss but it's not

[00:02:27] the case at all. In fact, while doing some extra cardio can be helpful, it can also hurt our ability to recover from weight training and can even make us hungrier. And being hungrier causes

[00:02:39] us to eat more which will stall fat loss efforts in a hurry. There are two different ways of doing cardio so let's quickly cover those. Types of Cardio – Aerobic and Anaerobic. To understand what cardiovascular training is, you should know the two types. Aerobic means it requires oxygen.

[00:02:59] When you imagine aerobic activity, think long duration or distance. This is your traditional type of cardio exercise. Most people doing this type of exercise are biking, jogging, rowing, running, hiking or using the stair stepper or elliptical machines. This type of cardio can be

[00:03:18] done for extended periods of time without much need for a rest. Any type of activity you can sustain for longer than about 45 to 60 seconds could be considered aerobic in nature. You'll work up a sweat, muscles will be warm and your heart rate will increase and remain elevated during

[00:03:36] exercise. Aerobic exercise typically relies on fat for fuel at these lower intensities. And then there's anaerobic which doesn't require oxygen. When you imagine anaerobic activity, think quick, short bursts of high-intensity activity. This type of training is for experienced exercisers due to

[00:03:56] the level of intensity it requires. Most doing this type of cardio are sprinting, lifting weights or doing high-intensity movements to improve their speed or quickness such as jumping or skipping. A popular method of anaerobic training is known as high-intensity interval training or HIIT where

[00:04:14] you exercise at your maximum level of ability such as sprinting full speed up a hill or doing a super set of squats and push-ups with minimal rest between sets. Anaerobic exercise relies on ATP which comes from glucose that's made from the carbohydrates stored in your muscle cells

[00:04:33] called glycogen. What's the best cardio for weight loss? In my opinion, the best cardio for weight loss must be in line with the following guidelines. You're able to recover from it and it's something you can do safely over the long term. Just like weight training, no cardio plan

[00:04:53] is going to benefit you if you can't stick to it. High-intensity interval training is amazing for fat loss but it is similar to weight training in that it requires a longer recovery period than something

[00:05:04] like walking. So, depending on your personal goals, the type of cardio will vary. However, for most people, I think a good dose of regular walking each week is a good place to start. High-intensity

[00:05:16] interval training is a great option for burning fat but it poses a risk for injury if you're inexperienced and if you add it on top of your weekly weight training, it can limit your ability

[00:05:26] to recover fully which might result in strength and muscle loss over time. So, if you decide to use high-intensity interval training in your program, it's best to fit it in on a day you're

[00:05:37] training so you're able to maximize your rest and recovery days. If you wanted to incorporate high-intensity interval training into your exercise plan, you would do these sessions on a lower body training day right after your workout. This way, you can still reap the benefits

[00:05:52] of this intense training without it cutting into your ability to recover on off days. How to assess if high-intensity cardio training is for you? To determine if intense cardio training will help your weight loss efforts, let's look at the cost-benefit ratio. The benefits.

[00:06:10] Efficient. It does burn a high amount of calories in a short time period and it's good for muscle maintenance similar to weight training. The costs. The risk of injury. It's easier to injure yourself with intense sprinting and other forms of interval training. And it's hard to recover from.

[00:06:28] If you do too much high-intensity work in a short period of time, it can be hard to recover adequately from workout to workout. At the end of the day, you have to make a decision as to whether or not

[00:06:39] intense cardio training is a good fit for you on a personal level. Why cardio works for weight loss? To put simply, cardio training burns calories. The more active you are during the day, the higher your metabolic rate. Cardio is a form of activity just like weight training,

[00:06:57] playing sports, or dancing. All of these activities will require energy from calories and as a result, the exercise helps you lose weight. Remember, you must be in a caloric deficit in order to lose weight with cardio or any other activity. If you don't manage your total caloric intake,

[00:07:14] you will simply maintain your weight despite lots of cardio and exercise. Is cardio essential for fat loss? In one word, no. You don't have to rely on cardio to burn those extra calories which can lead to fat loss. If you enjoy weight training or some other form

[00:07:31] of activity more than traditional cardio, you can still manage to lose fat without boring cardio routines. Cardio is only a tool. Some people lose fat only weight training 3-6 times per week and managing their diets. Others use a combination of cardio and weight training. Some utilize only

[00:07:49] cardio as their preferred method of exercise. At the end of the day, for fat loss to happen, all that matters is the following. You create a caloric deficit through your diet and or combination with exercise. You do some form of resistance training if you want to maintain

[00:08:05] muscle mass. And, you have enough patience to let progress happen naturally over time. To be continued, you just listened to part 1 of the post titled, Cardio for Weight Loss, Everything You Need to Know by JC Dean of jcdfitness.com and I'll be

[00:08:26] right back with my commentary. Dr. Neil here for my commentary. So, here we're not talking necessarily fat loss. I'm just focusing on, you're just trying to get back into things. So, remember, JC said, walking regularly each week is a good place to start.

[00:08:42] And again, that's absolutely right. In fact, focusing more on getting that walk in most days of the week, if not all 7 days, may be the most important thing. For example, if you can start by

[00:08:55] walking for even just 10-15 minutes 5-7 days per week, that seems to be even better for building the habit than say, walking once a week for 45 minutes. So again, if we want to get back into

[00:09:09] the habit of just simply moving more before we can even think about fat loss, think about incorporating even a little bit of activity every day. That usually gets us into that initial habit

[00:09:21] and then eventually, fat loss will follow. And I don't want to go into too many details about that right now because we still have to hear part 2 of this article. So, for now, that'll do it for

[00:09:33] today. Thank you so much for listening and we'll finish up the rest of this post tomorrow. So, I'll see you there where optimal life awaits!