Cardio Help

[fitharp]

Cathe,
I am currently doing the STS program. I LOVE it! I have seen huge improvement in my strength and fitness level. When it comes to cardio I need the same help that STS has given me for strength. Is there a program for cardio like STS? It seems like when I do cardio it is either to easy or so hard I can't breathe. I keep doing the workouts but I don't see any improvement in my cardio. With STS I can see and feel the improvement. I hope there is help out there so my cardio can also improve. Thanks for sharing all your knowledge and encouragement in all you do!
Michele

 

[Linda1]

I would also like an answer to this question. Any suggestions for increasing cardio " strength"-especially for those of us who are past fifty. Is increasing length of steady state cardio the best or some combination ???? I know on Tabatacise Cathe talks in the Intro about starting with just one and working up to doing five. But how?

 

[ReneePruitt]

I was wondering this too about the tabatas, but im thinking i will do a steady state cardio that is about 40 minutes and add two tabatas on either in the beggining or the end, then kinda add on one more tabatas once it feels easier. I havnt done it yet but im def afraid of the tabata one. But like i said i think only one tabata isnt long enough so if i add steady state medium intensity it should be enough that way. Im not an expert and really only thinking outloud..or um .thinking with my fingers!
I hope Cathe will answer this one!

 

[maddiesmum]

Renee:

sounds like a sensible approach to me. This will work.

There's no one approach that guarantees improved cardiovascular efficiency, there are many ways to achieve this. Renee's is one.

There is a whole series of STS cardio workouts that accompany the weight training. It includes different sorts of cardio (step, dancy and atheltic; kickbox; boxing; plyo; HiiT; circuit training) and different levels of intensity. You could alternate some of these workouts each week, along with your weight training and improve your cardiovascular efficiency. But you could achieve the same with all sorts of different workouts of Cathe's.

There is a chart here on the forums which lists the "perceived difficulty" level of each workout of Cathe's. You could consult this, buy a variety of workouts of different levels and alternate them.

Basically, however, you want to try incorporating workouts of different intensities each week: some steady state, some interval training, some higher impact, some lower impact, etc.

The results will follow.

Clare