Burn More Fat During Cardio
We all have different goals for our daily workouts. Maybe your morning workout is to get you out of bed and feed you energy for the day. Tomorrow’s workout may be to let off steam from the frustrations of your busy day. At any rate, the common goal we share when we workout is to burn more fat.
Here are a few ways to give your fat burning engine a tune-up.
First, you need to know your target heart rate. THR refers to the zone at which the body uses more fat as a fuel than carbs or protein. To figure out your THR, you must first find your MAXIMUM HR: 220 minus your age. The rough estimate for your THR is 60-70% of your max HR. Staying in this zone consistently allows the body to work just hard enough to break down the heavy stored fat cells and use them as fuel.
Walking and cycling are great ways to maintain this level.
Interval training is also a popular prescription for fat burning. An example of this is performing 5 bouts of maximum-effort running for 3 minutes with 2 minute jogging intervals in between. Changing up the lengths of rest, work and frequency keeps this type of training fresh and challenging. Please note: One precaution may be joint and structure restraints. If you suffer from knee, foot and back pain, all out sprinting may be more hazardous to your overall health and compromise your fitness goals.
Extend the length of your workout sessions. As the muscles are fatigued, they are depleted of their carbohydrate content. As a bout of exercise lengthens, your overall blood sugar becomes low. This combination triggers the body to use fat as fuel. This happens at around 90 minutes of consistent exercise.
All three of these are great ways to increase your fat burning during cardio. Go into each session with a plan. What is today’s workout’s focus? Am I going to be burning off steam or focused on burning fat? Having these questions in your mind will help keep your goals in view.
Enjoy Your Exercise. Your Enjoy Your Day.
