Cardio for heart health

[DicedSix]

I don't do cardio for weight loss reasons, I let my diet/macros mostly dictate my bodyfat. I do however, throw in some cardio for heart health.

Would you say that 20 minutes of treadmill work on a 3.5 incline with the speed set between 3.5mph and 4.5mph is adequate if done 4-5 times a week after weights? Weights are moderate volume for about 30 minutes with some sets taken to failure.

 

[BIGGMIKE295]

Absolutely.

Yes, absolutely. I am a big believer in doing cardio year round for heart health. I do 30 mins, (sometimes 45 mins) 5 x a week for general health.
I have found my circulation is better, general health and feeling of well being is improved with regular cardio.

 

[SL1CED]

Yes, it's the primary reason I do it.

 

[DicedSix]

OK. I wasn't sure if 20 minutes after weights walking on an incline of 3.5 at 4mph was enough.

Thanks

 

[Kaladryn]

OK. I wasn't sure if 20 minutes after weights walking on an incline of 3.5 at 4mph was enough.

Thanks

It all depends on your heartrate.

 

[DicedSix]

It all depends on your heartrate.

31 years old, during my treadmill work it stays low 120's.

 

[lookingforanedge]

Yes, absolutely. I am a big believer in doing cardio year round for heart health. I do 30 mins, (sometimes 45 mins) 5 x a week for general health.
I have found my circulation is better, general health and feeling of well being is improved with regular cardio.

Do you use your HR as a gauge or other parameters?

 

[BIGGMIKE295]

Do you use your HR as a gauge or other parameters?

No, not in the offseason as I get tired of putting on the damn chest strap! LOL But during prep yes I do use a HR monitor. In the offseason I gauge it off of the generic HR monitor you grip on the treadmill or better yet I do cardio with my wife and get my heart rate up to where I can only get a few words out every other breath as we talk during cardio. After doing cardio all these years for preps, you kind of get a very good idea where your at by feel.

 

[Kaladryn]

31 years old, during my treadmill work it stays low 120's.

If you take your blood pressure, you can gauge the effect of your cardio by how much it is lowering your blood pressure. I think if you push your heartrate up into the high 130s to low 140s you will see better improvement at lowering your bloodpressure, I know I do.

 

[nothuman]

Yes, absolutely. I am a big believer in doing cardio year round for heart health. I do 30 mins, (sometimes 45 mins) 5 x a week for general health.
I have found my circulation is better, general health and feeling of well being is improved with regular cardio.

Going to have to agree here. I feel better generally when I do cardio, as opposed to when I'm not doing it.

 

[Kaladryn]

An efficient cardiovascular system also improves recovery at rest, improved recovery indirectly leads to more size, therefor cardio and equal size gains.

 

[dawona]

If you take your blood pressure, you can gauge the effect of your cardio by how much it is lowering your blood pressure. I think if you push your heartrate up into the high 130s to low 140s you will see better improvement at lowering your bloodpressure, I know I do.

Would you let your heart rate get this high do this fasted in the morning?

 

[Kaladryn]

Would you let your heart rate get this high do this fasted in the morning?

I don't consider 130-140 very high. But lets talk about heartrate and cardio for a bit. I personally feel your body has a heartrate it "likes" work be at when the cardiovascular system is "fully opened up." If you do cardio a lot, you can really feel this point, it's not far below your anaerobic threshold (the point when you start going anaerobic, you can usually feel the burning in the muscles involved when you push past this point). It takes me about 10 minutes to get my cardiovascular system fully opened up, I can feel very clearly when I'm there. It takes some time to get to the point where you can exercise at this intensity level for a longish period of time. You will also find that in the beginning your heartrate may be even higher at 100% aerobic output (but still below your anaerobic threshold), but as your stroke volume increases, you will reach 100% aerobic output at a lower level. Keep in mind that I'm not talking 100% of you maximal heartrate, just 100% of your purely aerobic heartrate.

Everyone is different, but for me, fasted cardio makes it easier for me to do cardio at this level, probably because I'm releasing cortisol and metabolizing muscle, however I still prefer fasted AM cardio.

 

[gnosis]

Curious, does anyone do sprints, repeats, intervals etc? I personally love them. Less time, less boring for me, almost like a leg workout on its their own.

High intensity took over for me after I saw how fast my 40 yard dash got.

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[Ehren]

I think for most people 130-140 is ok for 20-30 mins. But 20 minutes is AFTER you reach that target heart rate. Takes me about 3.5 minutes of fast moving to get there or 7 minutes if I'm not in a hurry.

To take it a step further than cardio health, and lower hematocrit (and to help with MMA training), a couple-few times a week I get up to 170+bpm, let it lower to 150 and repeat for 30 mins.

Otherwise, I keep it around 140-145.

40/yo, 6'2", 228, by the way.

 

[Incognito1]

I do cardio at least 3-4 times per week, mainly cause it makes me feel refreshed. A positive is the fat loss but I also like to get the heart going and expand my lungs.
You guys might think I'm crazy as some of your cardio heart rates are considerably lower than my cardio heart rate. I usually get up to about 160-165 for at least ten minutes. I don't know what it is but my body seems to open up and switch gears around this heart rate

 

[t.c.jones]

I do intense cardio 5 time a week. For heart and lung health. It also helps with my mental focus

 

[NOSUPERMODEL]

I will get on the treadmill and walk for 3 minutes at a 3.5, jog for 5 minutes at 5.5, then walk 2 minutes, jog 5, etc... do this for about 25-30 minutes.

 

[jt4330]

I have been doing only like 20 minutes or so. Then again I am doing it on the stair master so I'm sure that makes a difference oppose to the treadmill or elliptical.

 

[DOGGCRAPP]

Very good

Kaladryn incognito and ehren can you state your resting heart rates?