Fat Burning Zone...?

R

RobDude

0
I'm pretty confused on this, and I've looked it up and found different results.

On the one hand, I've heard if I run too fast I get a great cardio workout, but that I won't burn off much, if any, fat. To burn fat, I need to go nice and slow, around 60% of my max heart rate or something. The bikes at the gym I go to, show this, and have a 'cardio' workout and a 'fat burn' workout.

On the other hand, this seems very counter-intuitive. Which doesn't really prove anything, but besides that, I've heard that high intesity training the best for burning fat.

So, I'm wondering when people say it's better to jog in your fat burning zone do they mean 'jog one mile' verse 'run one mile'. Cause in that cause - you'd be jogging for like 9 minutes instead or running for 7. But if you ran for 9 and jogged for 9 would you really burn less fat?

Er, yeah, I'm just confused. And I'm at work. And I'm bored.
 
Rob,

Any aerobic workout gives you cardio and burns fat. Generally, to lose weight (fat), you need to do whats called a high volume routine. What this is, is simply working with little or non weights for many reps. By many, I mean 50 or more. Then, once you reach 50, you add a little weight, and start again. As far as bikes go, I almost never put clients on them because of the stress being exerted on the knees. Instead, I make them walk on a treadmill at an incline. Whenever you sweat, you are losing weight, so do not look at what the machines tell you, but try things out for yourself.

Good luck,

Roman
 
Rob,

I always train clients on bikes (sorry to disagree). Most physical therapists put their clients on stationary bikes for rehab, because they're nonimpact but still work the knees' flexibility and range of motion...but if your knees are healthy, do whatever machine floats your boat, b/c that's the only time you'll see results.

Secondly, to burn FAT, if that's your objective, you need to work within what's called the "fat burning zone." That's roughly 50-75% of your max (to find max, subtract your age from 220, it's a rough but usable estimate).

A training, or "cardio" zone is simply meant to describe the range of heart rate one must stay in to stay in the aerobic pathway (i.e. using oxygen as the main source of energy). Just remember that it's okay to go above 75%, but DON'T go over 85% of yoru max, which is when training becomes anaerobic (without oxygen), but try to stay lower than 75%, because that's where the most amount of fat will burn. It won't FEEL like you're working the hardest you can, but you are, trust me. You're working the hardest you can for your goal.

The best way to describe it would be that first your body *basically* burns carbs first, then starts to use fat. Once your carb reserves are out , you body starts to utilize fat, changing it into energy. But if you're riding/running at a heart rate higher than your fat burning zone (like, you can't breath for example), you eventually start to burn away lean muscle tissue, which is exactly what you want to build. Not to mention you fatigue faster, which means that overall, you burn LESS calories and fat in one workout.

Just monitor your hr religiously during your workout, do some math first and figure out what your range is, and stick in it. A good point of reference is that you should always be able to talk when you're working out in a fat burning zone. When you get to the point where you're so out of breath you can't even speak, you're too high. I'd suggest coughing up $40 and getting a heart rate monitor too, that'll really get you in the game.

And don't forget about weight training. The best way to lose fat is high reps, low to moderate weights, and at least three times a week. Consult a trainer if you can, even if it's a one or two-time thing. Bigger muscles burn more fat. They say 25% cardio, 75% weight training!

Hope this helps,

LMD
 
The best way to burn fat is HIIT (high intensity interval training). Even if you maintain the ideal fat burning heart rate for 60 minutes you only burn a couple of hundred calories! But if you do HIIT properly for only 20 minutes you create a state where your body releases HGH (human growth hormone) and continues to burn additional fat for hours after you stop exercising. You can do HIIT with any strenuous movement. Hill or stair sprints may be some of the best. Just sprint up hill or up stairs for 30 seconds, active rest for 1-2 minutes (walk back to the starting point), repeat 6-8 times, 3 times a week. You can substitute swimming, rope jumping, bear crawl, mountain climbers, bends and thrusts, or any other strenuous exercise done all out for 30 second intervals.
 
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