The Best Cardio You're Not Doing ...

[Dreamliner]

Walk as fast as you can for 15 minutes. Aim to walk farther and farther over that time each time out. My neighborhood block is 1.1 miles around. So, I may just experiment with walking that distance in less and less time. Or I might walk further and further out, in 15 minutes, and then walk leisurely back.

Spares the joints and doesn't fry your CNS like other forms of cardio. For further explanation:

http://www.t-nation.com

Go to left column and click "Best Cardio ..." entry by Chad Waterbury.

[jdrgator]

Weird but I was just thinking about something like this while at the gym this morning (not the walking part, per se) but perhaps doing some cardio exercise as hard as I can for 15 minutes rather than the interval training I do for 30-40 mins.

Actually, dream, it was you who got me thinking in that way with your less is more comments.

[Dreamliner]

Weird but I was just thinking about something like this while at the gym this morning (not the walking part, per se) but perhaps doing some cardio exercise as hard as I can for 15 minutes rather than the interval training I do for 30-40 mins.

Actually, dream, it was you who got me thinking in that way with your less is more comments.

Whereas there may be an advantage to performing programmed intervals, my personal preference is to go as hard as I can, for a short time, then be done with it. In my view, my strength training is more akin to intervals in that I exert maximum or near maximum effort for maybe 10-20 seconds at a time and then rest until fully recovered. It's akin to short intervals. My backyard bag workout is akin to longer intervals in that I do have to take a breather from time to time. But the walking thing is a different animal.

[jdrgator]

Whereas there may be an advantage to performing programmed intervals, my personal preference is to go as hard as I can, for a short time, then be done with it. In my view, my strength training is more akin to intervals in that I exert maximum or near maximum effort for maybe 10-20 seconds at a time and then rest until fully recovered. It's akin to short intervals. My backyard bag workout is akin to longer intervals in that I do have to take a breather from time to time. But the walking thing is a different animal.

My interval training is really tough though, even on an elliptical. I use the highest "height" and my base resistance is 10 (out of a max of 20). I do regular sprints for 30 second intervals (total of 10-12) and I "climb the hill) on the resistance to a max of 18 now. So I am pushing it, though eventually I'll need to change.

The more I think about it the more I am willing to give it a try, though not yet. Not for anything but what I am doing right now is working and I haven't yet reached a physical or psychological point where I think I need to alter my routine aside from increasing weight or changes to my cardio (probably because I only just started up again two months ago). But I see that day on the horizon somewhere...in due time.

I will need to go a different route at some point and the I will WANT to go a different route. Exercise can really be fun even when one is kicking their own arse. So adopting new routines can be exciting. And I certainly don't want to close myself off to it.

As for that walking with a bag thing, can you explain more of what you do and why (i.e. what are the benefits and how might they differ from other exercises)?

[LeafUF]

Dreams backyard workout always makes me think about Sandbag Death.

http://www.trainforstrength.com/workout3.shtml

Sandbag Death

This routine was put together after sampling one from another site. I felt that while the other routine was certainly difficult, once the grip was exhausted the workout was pretty much over since most of the exercises involved picking the bag up.

I scrounged up some gear that I had left over from the military days and put this routine together. Even if you don't have old military gear laying around the house, you can get it cheap at a military surplus store if there's one near your home.

This routine is not easy, by any means. The stress varies from upper to lower-body and this allows more work to be done over time so while holding a bag for 30 seconds doesn't seem like a long time, keep in mind that you have a lot of other things to do after that.

Good luck.

Equipment:

Make sure you have two cones (or something you can put on the ground, like a water bottle), 3 different weight bags: 60-75, 150, 200-pounders*, Army Ruck or backpack that is strong enough to tow the 150-pounder with (I use an old white belt and caribeener to attach the bag to my Ruck), 100 pound dumbbells* or something equivalent to grip and hold, dips and pull-up bars, a big water bottle for chugging precious fluid before, during, and after the workout, and a partner to help you carry some of this stuff around.

This routine is probably best done at a local park that has playground equipment already set up and a nice open field to tow the bags around in.

*The weights for these bags were determined by my own body weight of 200 pounds at the time. Make similar adjustment according to body weight and strength levels.

The Workout:

200-pound bag: 30 second hold. Straddle the bag with your legs on either side, work your arms underneath/around it and, using your legs and keeping your back straight, drive your shoulders towards the sky holding the bag to your chest. Have your partner place a cone on the ground to designate your starting point.

Pull-ups. Perform as many as possible.

200 pound 30 second hold. Same as before.

Tow 150-pounder: for distance: Have that Ruck ready to go so you can start right away. Put the Ruck on, walk to the end of the line you have attached to the bag to take out the tension, then walk/run as fast as you can for as long as you can. Obviously you'll have to lean forward to pull the bag so use this opportunity to look down and make sure you are placing one foot in front of the other and not out to the sides with each step.
If you have a training partner, he should be carrying the smallest bag and the cone next to you. When you reach your distance limit, he will drop the bag and put the second cone on the ground.

Dive Bomber Push-ups: Perform as many as possible.

Carry 150-pounder: back to starting point. Straddle the bag with your legs on either side, work your arms underneath/around it and, using your legs and keeping your back straight, drive your shoulders towards the sky holding the bag to your chest. Now, walk back to the starting cone with it. You can drop it if you want but remember, you have to pick it back up.

Chin-ups. Perform as many as possible.

200-pounder: 30 second hold. Same as before.

Push-ups. Choose any position: regular grip, Diamond grip, wide grip, etc, and perform as many as possible.

100-pound DB Farmer's Walk: 30 seconds. Grab the dumbbells and stand up straight while holding them at your sides. Now walk for 30 seconds.

Dips. Perform as many as possible.

100-pound DB Farmer's Walk: 30 seconds. Same as before.

Dips. Perform as many as possible.

200-pounder: 30 second hold. Just like before.

Tow 150-pounder: back to far cone. Put that Ruck back on and pull the bag back to the far cone.

Chest Pass 70-pounder: to starting cone. Without using handles or straps, grip the bag and clean it to your chest. You can take one step forward and two-hand pass the bag as far as you can throw it. Walk up to the bag, clean it and throw it again. Repeat until you reach the starting cone. Think of passing a basketball and you'll do it just fine.

Sprint back to far cone. Notice I didn't say walk, mosey, saunter, crawl or die. SPRINT!

Tow 150-pounder: back to starting point. You know how to do this by now.

Lie down on ground and pray for death: Take your time with this one.

[Dreamliner]

My interval training is really tough though, even on an elliptical. I use the highest "height" and my base resistance is 10 (out of a max of 20). I do regular sprints for 30 second intervals (total of 10-12) and I "climb the hill) on the resistance to a max of 18 now. So I am pushing it, though eventually I'll need to change.

The more I think about it the more I am willing to give it a try, though not yet. Not for anything but what I am doing right now is working and I haven't yet reached a physical or psychological point where I think I need to alter my routine aside from increasing weight or changes to my cardio (probably because I only just started up again two months ago). But I see that day on the horizon somewhere...in due time.

I will need to go a different route at some point and the I will WANT to go a different route. Exercise can really be fun even when one is kicking their own arse. So adopting new routines can be exciting. And I certainly don't want to close myself off to it.

As for that walking with a bag thing, can you explain more of what you do and why (i.e. what are the benefits and how might they differ from other exercises)?

I just bear hug a heavy bag and walk back and forth across my backyard until I have to drop it. Goal is ten times across the yard in one trip. I do this particular workout for two reasons: (1) I used to push this same bag across the backyard ... until I left it out in the rain, one time too many, and it got water-logged and impossible to push and (2) because either pushing or carrying the bag is a joint-friendly workout that still provides a good strength-endurance workout. It's a total body workout, yes, but a concentric-only workout that does not cause soreness. I also do a cardio finisher that features jump squats. But jump squats on top of the pistol squats is hard on the knees. So, it's good to vary things a bit.

[StrangeGator]

I was doing 15 minute walking sessions on the treadmill at a 15% grade until recently. That was part of what I "hacked."

[Dreamliner]

I was doing 15 minute walking sessions on the treadmill at a 15% grade until recently. That was part of what I "hacked."

Hacker!

For fun with a treadmill ... just turn it off. Seriously, turn it off and just use shear grit to move the belt. You can go forwards and backwards. You can also turn away from the console, put your hands on the floor, feet on treadmill and bear crawl.

[deviation]

I started doing HITT on the stair master. 70 speed for 5 minutes then 130+ for 2 minutes, back down to 70 for 2 minutes and back to 140+, then all over again.

In 14 - 15 minutes time i burn over 220+ calories. 30 minutes it's over 500 calories.

[jdrgator]

I just bear hug a heavy bag and walk back and forth across my backyard until I have to drop it. Goal is ten times across the yard in one trip. I do this particular workout for two reasons: (1) I used to push this same bag across the backyard ... until I left it out in the rain, one time too many, and it got water-logged and impossible to push and (2) because either pushing or carrying the bag is a joint-friendly workout that still provides a good strength-endurance workout. It's a total body workout, yes, but a concentric-only workout that does not cause soreness. I also do a cardio finisher that features jump squats. But jump squats on top of the pistol squats is hard on the knees. So, it's good to vary things a bit.

Interesting workout. How long does it take you? This might be a silly question, but aside from relieving stress on your joints too much, is it better than a traditional training program (i.e. weights)?

[Dreamliner]

Interesting workout. How long does it take you? This might be a silly question, but aside from relieving stress on your joints too much, is it better than a traditional training program (i.e. weights)?

It's IN ADDITION TO my strength training and purely to build in a little work capacity. It falls under the heading 'cardio finisher' and probably takes less than ten minutes. Let me outline my strength training routine and then explain why I do any cardio at all:

Mon: handstand pushups and tuck levers

Wed: pistol squats and barbell deadlift

Fri: one-armed pushup progressions and weighted pullups

As you can see, upper-body mon and fri, lower body wed. I add a cardio finisher on mon and fri just to hedge my bets. I've seen studies that indicate that upper-body training specifically stiffens the arteries but that a brief bout of cardio counteracts the affect. Lower-body workouts do not produce arterial stiffness.

Also. because the cardio is leg-oriented, and because my knees are fussy to begin with, I feel like one hard leg day is all I need. The cardio amounts to a light leg workout. The deadlifts also stimulate the upper-body. So, in a sense, I do three total-body workouts per week but work is distributed in a way to provide adequate joint recovery.

[jdrgator]

It's IN ADDITION TO my strength training and purely to build in a little work capacity. It falls under the heading 'cardio finisher' and probably takes less than ten minutes. Let me outline my strength training routine and then explain why I do any cardio at all:

Mon: handstand pushups and tuck levers

Wed: pistol squats and barbell deadlift

Fri: one-armed pushup progressions and weighted pullups

As you can see, upper-body mon and fri, lower body wed. I add a cardio finisher on mon and fri just to hedge my bets. I've seen studies that indicate that upper-body training specifically stiffens the arteries but that a brief bout of cardio counteracts the affect. Lower-body workouts do not produce arterial stiffness.

Also. because the cardio is leg-oriented, and because my knees are fussy to begin with, I feel like one hard leg day is all I need. The cardio amounts to a light leg workout. The deadlifts also stimulate the upper-body. So, in a sense, I do three total-body workouts per week but work is distributed in a way to provide adequate joint recovery.

Again, an interesting approach. I like some of the reliance on body weight exercises. That's something to think about when I get down to a weight that my body can adequately handle such exercises.

[Dreamliner]

Again, an interesting approach. I like some of the reliance on body weight exercises. That's something to think about when I get down to a weight that my body can adequately handle such exercises.

It's certainly true that my leaner frame gives me a distinct advantage in some of the bodyweight movements. Although some of them are a bear when you're lean, never mind when you're overweight! The one-armed pushup, elbow tucked and feet together is the hardest. It may take me months to nail it.

[gatorsfan530]

Interesting idea, I should actually give that a shot. Now, I love my walking but I do both brisk walks and slower strolling walks too. I haven't really looked into doing a brisk walk for that long though, but I do enjoy it for the short periods of time I actually go at a brisk pace.

That said, I like my slower leisurely walks too :)

[Dreamliner]

Interesting idea, I should actually give that a shot. Now, I love my walking but I do both brisk walks and slower strolling walks too. I haven't really looked into doing a brisk walk for that long though, but I do enjoy it for the short periods of time I actually go at a brisk pace.

That said, I like my slower leisurely walks too :)

Honestly, at least 90% of my walking is leisurely. And one study showed that leisurely walking helps reduce inflammation.