Fat Burning Zone

[TrenSweater]

I am new to the whole cutting and cardio , I have always bulked. I just started cardio a couple days ago and am told to stay in the fat burning zone , which for me is about 118 , I am not even close to breaking a sweat at this rate. I tried the hiit system and seemed to like that better , I would all out sprint for a minute then go back to an easy pace for 3 or 4 or however long it takes to get heartrate back down then do it again, i seemed to get a much more effective cardio session that way ,, any advice on this fat burning zone ??

 

[gh101]

are you lifting then doing cardio? cuz if i start at cardio ya its hard to stay at this rate but if u lift and get a good 1-2 hr weight training then go on the step mill or eliptical or treadmill it wont be too hard to keep your HR there....unless youre in super great shape....which i know youre not...

slow and steady bro stepmill 30 mins a day after weights

 

[aussiebulldog]

My fat burning zone is usually when on caloric deficit.

 

[bieberhole69]

It's not supposed to be intense. Like others said do it after weights and the amount of "work" you have to do will be less.

Here's the science behind it

(this is just an example, don't take this as an "ALWAYS" as the rates differ based on the intensities and your conditioning) Cardio at lower rate may utilize perhaps 45% carbs, 55% fat from calories burned as fuel. Cardio at higher rate may utlize 75% carbs, 25% fat from calories burned as fuel.

Yes your total calories burned will be higher on the on the more intense exercise. The total calories burned from FAT will be about the same, maybe even a little more from the lower intensity. Guess where the calories from carbs comes from if your body doesn't have any carbs to spare (i.e. in a caloric deficit after weights)? That's right, from muscle.

Don't take this as an absolute, there's a ton of variables I'm not accounting for.

Also, constantly doing cardiovascular work will make your cardiovascular system improve. This means your body will get better at utilizing fat as a fuel, among many other things. You don't need to get winded or sweat your ass off for your body to realize these improvements, and as your cardio improves you *will* have to increase the intensity a little bit to keep the same target HR.

Hope this helps convince you some.

 

[Chode Logan]

118 is nothing. I know a lot of "experts" say low low intensity, but I personally feel like I'm wasting my time doing that crap. If you aren't sweating 10 mins in, wtf are you doing? Muscle isn't going to vanish by doing 20 mins of more intense cardio.


Personally I do 30 mins low intensity (walking the dog) in the morning, then post workout I bust my ass for 20. I get better results now then I did doing 1 hour light sessions.


I guess it also depends what you're taking. I say 130-140 is the heart rate goal. For me anyways...

 

[TrenSweater]

118 is nothing. I know a lot of "experts" say low low intensity, but I personally feel like I'm wasting my time doing that crap. If you aren't sweating 10 mins in, wtf are you doing? Muscle isn't going to vanish by doing 20 mins of more intense cardio.


Personally I do 30 mins low intensity (walking the dog) in the morning, then post workout I bust my ass for 20. I get better results now then I did doing 1 hour light sessions.


I guess it also depends what you're taking. I say 130-140 is the heart rate goal. For me anyways...

Well today I did after weights and still like you say 118 is nothing, I plan on doing am fasted cardio and can imagine 118 I wont even feel like i did shit , I guess I am just making sure I understand this correctly for me at my age my zone is around 120 , and yes that feels like I am in slow motion on the eeliptical

 

[heels1]

4mph with a 3 incline gets me where I need to be.

 

[Mini Truck]

Quick ?

How did you figure you target heart rate for fat burning?

 

[bieberhole69]

How did you figure you target heart rate for fat burning?

Mack check this link out. Also talks about the % from carbs / fat for each zone. There are more advanced ways out there, but this is the gold standard.

http://www.thewalkingsite.com/thr.html

 

[qbkilla]

i dont believe in that low intensity stuff,,,my first trainer i hired had me do 130ish,,,looked like crap,,,new trainer has me get up to 170 on stepmill 40 mins after training,,and boom shreds you. i guess you could lose some muscle but burning 900 calories yo ucan eat more food during the day and stay lean so overall i guess its more anabolic.

 

[ds44]

i also think it has alot to do with age and weight..... a person thats 25yrs /195lbs getting the heart rate to 140, would probably kill a guy say 40yrs /240