two questions

[bridge]

I'm sure these have been asked and answered, but i was wondering if two shorter workouts equal one long one. For instance, do two 1/2 running sessions a day on the treadmill give as much benefit as one 1 hour session?
Also, what is the verdict on Chromuim Picolate?(SP) I used to take it and I am thinking about starting it again, 400 mcg/day. Has anyone heard bad stuff about it? When I used to take it, it was fairly new to the market, and maybe it's not such a good idea anymore.
Thanks for any information!

 

[kathryn]

I've heard in the last year or so, a lot about exercise being cumulative, that is, three 10 minute workouts equallying 1 30-minute workout. At the same time, when experts talk about needing 30-minutes of aerobic exercise several times a week, they don't count the warm-up or cooldown.
I just read somewhere (Self? Shape? can't remember) that there is no valid research that shows that chromium picolinate helps burn fat.

 

[Marlene123]

RE: chromium supplements

I have a little paperback book on vitamins called "Your Complete Guide to Vitamins and Supplements" by Angelo DePalma published in 1999 and re-edited in 2001. Here are some excerpts regarding chromium (all quoted directly from book...not my own rendition):

Chromium's most important function is to help regulate the amount of glucose (sugar) in the blood. Insulin plays a starring role in this fundamental biological process, by regulating the movement of glucose out of the blood and into cells. Scientists believe that insulin uses chromium as an assistant to unlock the door to the cell membrane, thus allowing glucose to enter.

Chromium supplements appear to improve blood sugar control in people with diabetes.

Recent evidence also suggests that chromium supplements might help dieters lose fat and gain lean muscle tissue.

RDA for adults: 50 to 200 mcg

Recent evidence also suggests that chromium may be an effective aid in weight loss. A three month double blind study of 122 moderately overweight individuals attempting to lose weight found that 400 mcg of chromium daily resulted in an average loss of 6.2 pounds of body fat, as opposed to 3.4 pounds in the placebo group. There was no loss of lean body mass. These results suggest that chromium can help you lose body fat without losing muscle. It may work by helping the body process its insulin more effectively.

However, in one small double blind placebo-controlled study, chromium picolinate at a dose of 400 mcg actually led to weight gain in young obese women. When combined with exercise training, chromium picolinate produced no net effect. Interestingly, 400 mcg of chromium nicotinate combined with exercise did induce weight loss.

I guess we all have to draw our own conclusions and decide if this supplement is what we need.

 

[bridge]

RE: chromium supplements

Thank-you for the information. Yes, I guess its one of those things that a person has to decide for themselves. I was just worried that maybe it can be harmful if taken in too large of dose. And I guess the fact that it may not help in anyway, so why bother. I'll have to give this some serious thought. Thanks again!

 

[trevor]

I believe I have heard that 2 shorter workouts can have cumulative effects i.e. 2-15 min workouts equaling one-30 min. workout. I must be slow or something because I don't see how this could be. In my way of thinking if you are doing one long 30 min. workout, physiologically, your body is under a different type of stress in the last 15 mins. of that workout than it is when you start over each time for 2 "fresh" 15 min. workouts each time. And I believe a key element , especially for competitors, is how your body withstands/responds as the fatigue sets in over time. This, to me, is what separates the two. Of course, if we were tireless machines, the story may be different. I don't know. Maybe the tireless machines known as Honeybunch and Debbie H would like to chime in?
Trevor :-jumpy

 

[DebbieH]

Hey Trevor!

Thank you very much for the compliment! (Although I DO tire!!)I am with your thinking totally. I would feel that the heart is just getting started and the metabolism thing is just getting going AFTER the first 15-20 minutes. I know I just read "Outsmarting The Female Fat Cell" & her thinking is that your fat burning mode doesn't even start til AFTER 30 minutes!? I know from research in the past that at least 20 minutes of nonstop cardio was the minimum for conditioning the heart, lungs & circulatory system. Also, that was 3X per week. Would be interested to hear anyone else's opinion on this. I guess if 2-15 minute periods was all a person could fit in, it would definitley be better then nothing. JMO!

Your-Friend-In-Fitness, DebbieH http://www.plaudersmilies.de/wavey.gif If You Get The Choice To Sit It Out Or Dance...I Hope You DANCE!!!

 

[DebbieH]

One More Thing!

Something else I just thought of~When I am jogging, which has been anywhere from 3-6 miles per session, I have noticed lately that my heart rate stays very consistant the first 3 miles or so, but as soon as I start into mile 3&1/2 to 4 miles, my heart rate starts to climb even though my pace is the same. I think this is a good indication that my furnace is burning hotter (metabolism). Does that make sense?

Your-Friend-In-Fitness, DebbieH http://www.plaudersmilies.de/wavey.gif If You Get The Choice To Sit It Out Or Dance...I Hope You DANCE!!!

 

[honeybunch]

Well, I guess I WILL chime in here....I DO agree with you two. I never felt that 3 ten minute walks would equal one 30 minute walk, if that's all you did. I HAVE, however, walked extra spurts, or taken extra flights of steps IN ADDITION to a longer exercise period.

Picture doing Imax in 10 minute spurts.....stopping would be a problem for me!!!!!!

 

[kimlav]

RE: I am with Debbie

I know I would not get the same workout in 3 ten minute spurts as I do with one 30 minute workout but for the people who are currently sedentary, it is a way to get them up and moving and it can only be beneficial to them. When it comes to burning fat or increasing one's cardiovascular ability, I know I want at least 45 minutes of cardio - all at once.

I am also with Honeybunch in that I will add on some stairs or a walk on my coffee break but do not even begin to count that as my workout time.

Kim

 

[Aquajock]

I really can't believe mini-sessions of shorter duration can give the equivalent benefits of full sessions on proper duration, for all of the reasons cited by previous posters on this thread, especially the comments about the time needed to warm up and maintain an elevated heart rate.

IMHO, admittedly a crabcake opinion, I believe a lot of fitness researchers are laboring valiantly to encourage sedentary people to do something, ANYTHING, and 10 minutes of something is better than 60 minutes of nothing. Die-hard sedentary people seem to be flat-out rejecting the real physiological truth about what it takes to maintain a vibrant body, and a lot of professionals are watering down their rhetoric just so that more people might listen to them.

Annette The Crabcake

 

[bridge]

Thank you so much all for the information. I was thinking that I would do two 30 min.(3.5 miles each shot) treamill sessions a day sometimes, just to break the bordeom. I would not call any warm up or cool down as part of that 30 min. This is likely one of those, ask two experts, and get two different answers kind of a question.
Is this a good place to get advice or what!

 

[kathryn]

Hey Crabcake! I tend to agree that a lot of exercise advice is geared to sedentary folks who are doing no exercise, and looking only for the minimum cardio benefits. For them, 3 10-minute sessions of walking might be enough.

 

[Debra]

Your body shifts from burning mostly glycogen (sugar) to mostly fat after 20 minutes of moderate exercise. For weight loss, ultimately all that matters is how many calories are burnt not the fuel source. But most people find weight management easier with longer sessions in their "fat burning" zone. Like Debbie H, I find my perceived exertion higher than my heart rate would suggest when I start out. The first mile after a warm-up is always tough.

I'm with the others, the 30 minute cumulative exercise idea is just an effort by public health efforts to get people moving. Anything is better than nothing & a lot of North Americans do nothing. For fitness, you need to put some minutes together.