is there a point to slow and long cardio?

[tcsenter]

OK, I've been doing treadmill since the beginning of the year and have lost around 30 lbs so far (went from 230 down to around 200 lbs right now). It seems I have hit a huge plateau though so lately I've been doing about 1 hour on treadmill at around 3-3.3 mph at 7-8 incline 6-7 days a week. I would sweat like crazy by the end and the calorie counter would tell that I have burned 500+ calories and covered around 3 miles in distance. Would doing this help me lose further weight or should I switch over to jogging/faster walking on treadmill?

Any time you increase/change your intensity or the exertion level (e.g. incline or resistance) enough to challenge your body beyond what you're acclimated to and make you 'work' harder, is a great thing. It is during this acclimation period where it is HARDER that you gain the most benefit. So you need to keep changing it up every month or maybe even every couple weeks. Don't forget to mix in a different machine or exercise type that will work different muscle groups every now and then.

Also, how is your nutrition? A couple-few days per week, you should try to work-out in the morning on an empty stomach, then wait 45 ~ 60 minutes post workout before you eat. If you have some hypoglycemia issues, you can try to eat a couple hundred calories in really lean protein with little fat and carbs in the morning prior to your workout. e.g. some scrambled egg whites and a non-starchy veggie, or something else that is almost entirely protein with very little fat and carbs

 

[alkemyst]

Obviously podunk has better weather than Seattle.

Also most machines can vary resistance, check pulse, give you that 'calories burned' ticker.

In general some don't feel comfortable or safe walking outside. Running can even be problematic with so many uneven paths, people throwing bottles/broken glass and cars that don't stop as you cross an intersection.

As far as those going long and slow, it depends. If they are in their target heart ranges then that's the way it goes. Some can handle the impact of faster paces.

Most though are really not pushing themselves...they go through the motions every day and get no results because they don't put any effort in.

 

[Binarycow]

Any time you increase/change your intensity or the exertion level (e.g. incline or resistance) enough to challenge your body beyond what you're acclimated to and make you 'work' harder, is a great thing. It is during this acclimation period where it is HARDER that you gain the most benefit. So you need to keep changing it up every month or maybe even every couple weeks. Don't forget to mix in a different machine or exercise type that will work different muscle groups every now and then.

Also, how is your nutrition? A couple-few days per week, you should try to work-out in the morning on an empty stomach, then wait 45 ~ 60 minutes post workout before you eat. If you have some hypoglycemia issues, you can try to eat a couple hundred calories in really lean protein with little fat and carbs in the morning prior to your workout. e.g. some scrambled egg whites and a non-starchy veggie, or something else that is almost entirely protein with very little fat and carbs

Thanks for that advice, dude, I'll try it out.

 

[CalvinHobbes]

At home we have a treadmill, exercise bike, free weights and a bow-flex. For the last 6 months I've been doing the bike for 30 minutes everyday. I typically use the weight-loss program which just cycles through different resistance settings. Heart rate is usually around 130-140.

After the bike I either do bench press or curls. I'm not really looking to lose weight, I don't need to, but I would like to lose a little more fat and gain more muscle.

I'm going to read about HIIT but is there anything else I should be doing just as a casual exerciser?

 

[tedrodai]

While I don't really care what people do with their own time at the gym(since it's better than nothing), I do have to wonder, why bother walking on a treadmill? I walk too on off days for an hour in the morning but I do it outdoors, the scenery is way better and time flies a lot faster. Sometimes I'd just walk around the supermarket for an hour and read/memorize food labels basically scouting out potential new foods that I can incorporate into my diet. 😛

People think that all the time: why bother doing [this or that] when you could do [something else]? lol. I would ask the same thing about walking around the supermarket for an hour reading food labels.

Different strokes for different folks. A person always has their own reason(s), and people do not all enjoy the same things.

 

[tedrodai]

Also, how is your nutrition? A couple-few days per week, you should try to work-out in the morning on an empty stomach, then wait 45 ~ 60 minutes post workout before you eat.

Well, you definitely have no choice but to burn calories straight from the body doing this (fat and/or muscle). This might help some people of course, as some kind of mental trick that gets them in the right mindset for the day or somesuch thing. However, what really matters is still your overall nutrition for the entire day. If you burn off some weight in the morning through this method, but still end up at your caloric maintenance level (or higher) for the day, you're going to wake up the next day and weigh the same as (or more than) the previous morning.