cardio question

[kariev]

do you think that doing more frequent shorter cardio workouts are more effective than less frequent longer cardio workouts? for example if one wanted to get 120 min of cardio per week is it better to do 20 min 6 times a week or 40 min 3 times per week? I would think that you might be able to do high intensity with the 20 min one each time you worked out since it was shorter in duration. What do you think?

 

[taekwondomeow]

Hmmm...that's an interesting question that I've often wondered about myself! I guess it depends on what you mean by 'better'....as far as fat/calorie burning goes, you will probably burn more or less the same number of calories doing both kinds of exercise. (you might burn slightly more with one over another but I can't imagine the difference would be that great). If you define 'better' in terms of fitness improvements, the 20minute intense bouts would be better at improving aerobic capacity, whereas the 40-min bouts would help improve endurance. Personally I want to achieve both these fitness goals so I try to mix up the length of my cardio workouts (e.g. 4x20min, 1x40min or 2x20min, 2x40min)...I don't know if mixing them up like this reduces the benefits of both kinds of training but it certainly allows me to fit my workouts more easily into my daily life (if I have to be at work early I do a 20min morning workout, if I have an evening free I do a longer workout), plus the variety makes things more interesting I guess at the end of the day the 'best' exercise routine is one that you enjoy and will stick to.

Sally x

 

[Fit_mommy]

I don't know which is better but I personally prefer a couple of longer cardio sessions as opposed to several short ones. It't not that I don't like or believe in 30 minute cardio sessions because I do that alot but if my goal was to get in 2 hours of cardio per week I would definately opt to go a bit longer and have fewer cardio days.