Intro to Cardio? - a less out of breath bodybuilder

J

jago25_98

0
I have been training for a while lifting weights.

Usually what stops a good workout is getting out of breath - it seems my lack of stamina is limiting my strength training to some degree.

I've always found that I get out of breath just a bit too easily. If I breath through my mouth right now and relax my throat I'll start weezing. Likewise, if I lift a weight I'll have to stop because

IT FEELS LIKE I CAN'T GET ENOUGH AIR IN

I've always been like this, even as a child the longest I could run was about 5mins, yet I've walked 40miles no problem.

Should I see if I have mild asthma? I remember having trouble on cold days especially as a kid.

To combat this I'm now working on my cardio. But I don't really know the first thing about it. All I really know and what I hear is - get your heart pumping regularly. There's lots to learn in bodybuilding so I feel there's probably a lot to learn with cardio. What's the best introduction? Recommend me some concise websites and books please!

I've started playing football on Sundays and after my wieghts workout I do 20mins interval training on the ellipical crosstrainer - start at 4mins then heavy so out of breath for 1min then light for 1min etc.

I also need to learn how to breathe properly. I think this could be part of the problem.

I may sound unfit but I'm the fittest on the pitch compared to non-athletes, it's just that I would like to know what it's like to be able to run for 10mins without getting out of breath. Running especially, it would be amazing to be able to run for 10mins without stopping.
 
I recently took a course from "The Running Room", and we trained to do a 10K run. They used a system whereby on week one, we walked for 9 minutes and ran for 1 minute, and we did this three times, for a total of 30 minutes. We were told that for 'homework', we were to do the same thing twice that week. So, that week, I walked 9 minutes and ran for 1 minute for a total of 30 minutes three times. (Monday, Wednesday, Friday - for example) That was fairly easy, even for the least fit of our group, of which I was part.

The next week, we changed up the routine, doing 8 minutes of walking followed by 2 minutes of running, three times, for a total of 30 minutes. We were, again, expected to do homework twice more, for a total of three times that week.

We were told that we could go as many times as we wanted, but NOT to go any longer than the time allotted. (Dont go over the 9 and 1, and don't go longer than 30 minutes.) We were also told not to go too fast that we tire after the minute, and that a heart monitor watch (which I have since purchased) would help us find a pace whereby our heart rate could stay within the 70%-80% range. (This is EXTREMELY helpful, as until I got my watch, I had no clue that I was actually going TOO FAST, and was up in the 90% heart rate range! DANGEROUS!)

Anyway, as you can imagine, we were upping the amount we ran each week, and doing the homework to improve our stamina. When I did my first week, I'll admit, I cheated and did more than I was supposed to, just to see how tough I was. I'll tell you, I ran at a normal pace for no longer than 3 minutes total before I was completely winded.

Well, I can tell you that at the end of the training, everyone who didn't skip their homework was able to run for 30 minutes non-stop at a moderate pace. I was very very impressed with this method, and recommend it to anyone who is willing to 'go the distance'. It takes a couple of months to complete, but it is a way to improve your stamina over time, without killing yourself in the process.
 
Thanks Smithy.

I did want to also make one other 'confession'. While I did say "everyone who didn't skip their homework was able to run for 30 minutes non-stop at a moderate pace", unfortunately I was one of those who didn't do the required homework, and after four weeks of going, I had to drop out because I did not have the stamina built up.

It was a very proud moment for everyone who did complete it, however, as they all went on to run in a local 10K to benefit Breast Cancer Research. I was extremely impressed to see the number of people who had been in much worse shape than I when they started actually run, finish (and in some cases place well in) the run!
 
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