When I was younger, I always associated increasing heartrate with one simple thing, cardio. And I only thought of one thing when it came to cardio itself, running down the street. When I was overweight and out of shape I knew that running was the key component missing from me being a sleek and sultry pasty Celtic god (I can totally claim that as a descendant from that area, right?). Never mind the fact that I was eating close to 4,000 calories a day at the age of 12 while being only just above 5 foot even. No I just needed to speed up my metabolism by speeding up my pace which was the secret that certain Doctors books hammered into my little head. So I strapped my knock-off Jordan’s up, put my gym shorts on, and took off headed due west. I made it less than half a mile and gave up, it was not my thing. My shins hurt after 3 blocks, I was sweating after 4, and after 5 well, I couldn’t breathe all that well. I turned my flabby excuse for a child around and walked home thinking about what I was going to eat to reward myself for trying so dang hard.
I tried many times after that initial attempt to get into running however I was never happy or successful. We ran every day for football, a half mile in cleats as a lineman is not my idea of a good time. When I did field, we ran as much if not more than the kids doing long distance, try to figure that one out. I never enjoyed moving my feet for that long. At my best after I was finally in shape and motivating myself to run I could barely make it 30 minutes before I threw in the towel of boredom, and this is when I could run dang fast! My best mile was a sub six minute mile, which for a short stocky man, who did not warm up before pulling that off, is pretty impressive if I do say so (and I do so…… take that). While I was running, my body was adapting itself to be better at it; my breath was coming easier with each mile because I would hit a rhythm. My pace and stride were becoming matched to my body to make my legs the best running machines that they could be (not very good, because I am not built for running, you long legged people have that advantage sometimes). Basically my whole body was making it so that I was doing the same distance, with less energy being spent, which is not good if you want to get the most weight loss out of your days.
I eventually found my cardio passion in Tabata or HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training). Both of these methods involved moving my body as fast as it could go, for a short period of time, resting and then doing it all over again. It was awesome. With these two wonderful methods, I was able to avert my mind from the numbing repetitive motions of cardio and get back to what I loved doing, pushing myself to my absolute limit. For Weekend Fitness Warriors, both Tabata and HIIT provide fantastic ways to mix up a workout and a great way to get quick and painful cardio sessions past the taste buds that are our minds. You can do mountain climbers, jumping jacks, jump rope, hitting a punching bag, run hills, the list can go (this almost said Congo, thank you spell check) on for miles if I really felt like boring you with that kind of information.
Here is the simple, down and dirty set up for Tabata, my favorite cardio method. We will be using jumping rope as an example. The secret of Tabata lies in the 20-10 principle, where for 20 seconds you are pushing yourself as hard as you can go until you cannot go any harder. Then you take a 10 second break to regain composure, drink water (don’t drink to much or you may be facing a bucket instead of a side ache), whatever you want, then you jump right back in for 20 seconds and repeat. You do this for 4 minutes and then take a single minute break before starting up again. I personally recommend cycling through it for 20 minutes to get a full workout in. I also sprinkle a round of Tabata in for some of my clients between sets if they want to feel particularly dead (in between sets not recommended if you want to train for strength competitions where the focus should be on recovery, not constant movement) Doing this 2-3 times a week can possibly cause you to see results that are amazing, as long as you are giving your all during every set, every day.
Now do not think that I am saying running is dumb, I am not. Also do not think that I am saying that Tabata is the way to go for everyone, because lets be real, it ain’t perfect! One of the main doctors who helped discover this method says it is able to burn as many calories in four minutes, as cycling does in one hour, but I am not buying that. My only purpose is to point out what I enjoy, what worked for me, and what MAY work for you. If successfully used, and if your body and mind react to it correctly it can help show off all of the hard work from lifting, to show the hard earned gains from the Iron Palace. So Weekend Fitness Warriors, try out Tabata and see what you think of it.
I tried many times after that initial attempt to get into running however I was never happy or successful. We ran every day for football, a half mile in cleats as a lineman is not my idea of a good time. When I did field, we ran as much if not more than the kids doing long distance, try to figure that one out. I never enjoyed moving my feet for that long. At my best after I was finally in shape and motivating myself to run I could barely make it 30 minutes before I threw in the towel of boredom, and this is when I could run dang fast! My best mile was a sub six minute mile, which for a short stocky man, who did not warm up before pulling that off, is pretty impressive if I do say so (and I do so…… take that). While I was running, my body was adapting itself to be better at it; my breath was coming easier with each mile because I would hit a rhythm. My pace and stride were becoming matched to my body to make my legs the best running machines that they could be (not very good, because I am not built for running, you long legged people have that advantage sometimes). Basically my whole body was making it so that I was doing the same distance, with less energy being spent, which is not good if you want to get the most weight loss out of your days.
I eventually found my cardio passion in Tabata or HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training). Both of these methods involved moving my body as fast as it could go, for a short period of time, resting and then doing it all over again. It was awesome. With these two wonderful methods, I was able to avert my mind from the numbing repetitive motions of cardio and get back to what I loved doing, pushing myself to my absolute limit. For Weekend Fitness Warriors, both Tabata and HIIT provide fantastic ways to mix up a workout and a great way to get quick and painful cardio sessions past the taste buds that are our minds. You can do mountain climbers, jumping jacks, jump rope, hitting a punching bag, run hills, the list can go (this almost said Congo, thank you spell check) on for miles if I really felt like boring you with that kind of information.
Here is the simple, down and dirty set up for Tabata, my favorite cardio method. We will be using jumping rope as an example. The secret of Tabata lies in the 20-10 principle, where for 20 seconds you are pushing yourself as hard as you can go until you cannot go any harder. Then you take a 10 second break to regain composure, drink water (don’t drink to much or you may be facing a bucket instead of a side ache), whatever you want, then you jump right back in for 20 seconds and repeat. You do this for 4 minutes and then take a single minute break before starting up again. I personally recommend cycling through it for 20 minutes to get a full workout in. I also sprinkle a round of Tabata in for some of my clients between sets if they want to feel particularly dead (in between sets not recommended if you want to train for strength competitions where the focus should be on recovery, not constant movement) Doing this 2-3 times a week can possibly cause you to see results that are amazing, as long as you are giving your all during every set, every day.
Now do not think that I am saying running is dumb, I am not. Also do not think that I am saying that Tabata is the way to go for everyone, because lets be real, it ain’t perfect! One of the main doctors who helped discover this method says it is able to burn as many calories in four minutes, as cycling does in one hour, but I am not buying that. My only purpose is to point out what I enjoy, what worked for me, and what MAY work for you. If successfully used, and if your body and mind react to it correctly it can help show off all of the hard work from lifting, to show the hard earned gains from the Iron Palace. So Weekend Fitness Warriors, try out Tabata and see what you think of it.