There are a few age old questions, what came first, the chicken or the egg? Why do diagonally cut sandwiches taste better, and that old cardio vs. weights discussion. But Ninjas, we are asking the wrong question if it’s weights versus cardio. A more helpful question to ask is, what kind of cardio should I be doing to compliment my strength and conditioning exercises?
WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT TIFF?
Let’s get some definitions outta the way first before we go anywhere.
Steady state cardio: where you maintain a continuous, steady effort for your workout.
Interval: alternates intense bursts of activity and fixed periods of less intense / rest time.
Weight training: lifting weights of body weight exercises.
I understand you’re maybe wanting to lose a few kg’s, tone up or just find the most effective workout plan for your body, the thing is, you want your results like yesterday, right? While there are no overnight fixes, you can certainly ensure you’re making the most out of your Dojang time and this way you don’t have to spend many hours on the ‘dreadmill’ while watching Netflix.
The first thing to always do before you’re embarking on any new health or fitness venture is getting your diet in check. Cut out the junk and processed food, say see ya to soda and start eating the rainbow – veggies, fruits and lean proteins with nuts and seeds.
CARDIO? MORE LIKE NAH-DIO
Steady state cardio, like going for a run or spending time with the treadmill is generally the easiest way to enter your new healthy lifestyle as the barriers to start are minimal and it’s tough to stuff up. The thing is, it can be a pretty sad time when you’re not enjoying it and you feel like you’re wasting your time run after step up after elliptical machine. Cardio has great benefits for your heart health, however it isn’t the most efficient form of exercise to sculpt that bod. There’s very little Exercise Post Oxygen Consumption (EPOC) with cardio, which means you only burn calories when running; not much happens afterwards.
HIIT IS THE NEW CARDIO
HIIT is always going to be the stronger, most effective opponent to burn fat and build lean muscles because of its afterburn effect (EPOC response). Varying your speed and intensity means your body and metabolism function at a higher rate of burned calories for hours and hours afterwards. Oh yes, I’m talking the EPOC (Exercise Post Oxygen Consumption) response. Tiff, stop talking mumbo jumbo and explain what that even MEANS! It means you keep burning off calories and energy even when you’re back at your desk staring at a spreadsheet, long after your last shine session. It means all of that huffing and puffing and changing and starting and stopping during your workout kicks your metabolism into high gear for hours after you finish exercising.
WHY WEIGHTS ARE GOOD FOR WEIGHT LOSS
Contrary to popular belief, lifting weights won’t actually turn you into the Hulk. The addition of resistance/ weight training greatly accelerates fat loss. Strength training also helps you tone and sculpt (and may make it a little bit easier to play with the kids and bring all of the supermarket goodies in one trip).
WHERE DO I FIND THIS PERFECT COMBO?
I’m so glad you asked! On my online program TIFFXO, I have ensured you can train a combination of strength and conditioning workouts using weights (sometimes cans of beans) and HIIT sessions (high intensity interval training). A combination of the two is going to give you super duper fat burning powers as well as making sure you eat good, real, whole foods at least 80% of the time with my weekly meal plan full of delicious recipes.
At the end of the day, it all comes down to your fitness goals. If your objective is to change your body composition, then you need to swap fat for lean muscle. If toning, strengthening and sculpting is the name of the game, then meet your new besists: HIIT and Strength Training. But it’s not about doing one OR the other, it’s about one complimenting the other to bring you results.
AND FINALLY
Steady State Cardio can be wonderful for the head if you want some fresh air on a long bike ride, or a jog to check out what the neighbour’s dog has been up to. But if you are looking for fast effective results, then it’s about training smart. Your body can still be working for up to 48 hours after a HIIT sesh.
All you need is 20 minute tone workouts, 20 minute HIIT sessions and you will see dramatic results in 30 days, luckily I deliver a Jab Cross Strength Combo by combining the both of tiffxo.com.
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