do you think intensity is the end all be all with working out? i wanted to discuss this as now it seems that all the magazines and other fitness forums are all about harder=better. even with cathe's workouts i've noticed that they are more and more intense. i'm starting to think though that this is not the only way. even when i limit the high intensity stuff to 2 times a week it makes me feel runned down and tired. I find that when i do high intensity workouts i'm way hungrier and i sit on my butt more throughout the day as i'm tired from my workout. Do any of you find this? It seems that the harder i push, the farther away from my goals i'm getting and not to mention i feel overall fatigue. So i wanted to start a discussion on intensity and what it means to you or has/has not done for you.
intensity question
- Thread starter kariev
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Great discussion idea Karie! For me, I get better results if I do more intense, cardio workouts 2x/week. But, I don't do any heavy weight training. I do bodyweight or lightweight circuits 3x/wk. I also do floorwork 2x/wk that focuses on trouble spots (legs, glutes) This way, I'm only beating myself up when I do the intense cardio. I do more moderate intensity cardio the other days.
I don't really do planned rest days. I find that life creates unplanned rest days for me so I just roll w/ it rather than going psycho and trying to double up workouts because I missed a day.
I find I'm leaner, my arms & abs are more defined, my legs have slimmed and my knees feel a lot better. My appetite doesn't vary from one day to the next. It's more even keel.
Everyone is different, but this approach works for me.
I don't really do planned rest days. I find that life creates unplanned rest days for me so I just roll w/ it rather than going psycho and trying to double up workouts because I missed a day.
I find I'm leaner, my arms & abs are more defined, my legs have slimmed and my knees feel a lot better. My appetite doesn't vary from one day to the next. It's more even keel.
Everyone is different, but this approach works for me.
kathryn
Cathlete
Intensity as the be-all and end-all of working out? Absolutely not!
I think working out smart and maintaining fitness in a healthy way (and having fun while doing it!) are what is important. A balance of intensities is the best way to go, and we each have to find the balance that works for us.
Also, something that seems intense to one person may not seem so to another. For example, the same workout of one type will seem less intense to someone who is used to that type of workout (step, kickboxing, spinning) and more intense to someone whose body has been training in that type of workout.
High intensity cardio? I'm really not feeling the love for high impact (and neither do my knees or hips) so I limit it and modify (trying to find challenging substitutions for moves that are still high intensity, but not so jolting).
I do think that there is a distinction to be made between 'intensity' and 'impact.' Some seem to think that high intensity = high impact (and maybe for them, it has to be?)
I think at times, impact can be more than is needed for a certain level of intensity. As a personal example: my cardio of choice in the late spring through late fall is outdoor speed walking. I can truck along at close to a 5 mph average for 3-5 miles or so, including some small hills, sweat like a pig, and get in a very intense workout, BUT rarely do I feel it later in my knees or hips (unless I try to do too much too soon). On the other hand, I can do one high-impact/high-intensity workout with no modifications and I can feel it the next day.
Another example: I've done Cardio Coach workouts (interval workouts on CD that you can use with equipment) on my rebounder, which reduces the impact, but allows for high-intensity sprints (at least they feel high-intensity to me, YMMV!)
I find that higher intensity weight workouts/rotations make me hungrier and more tired and, for me, the results may be nice, but they are not maintainable at that level. Something a bit less intense is both more maintainable and doesn't spike my hunger as much or make me as tired.
I have done 'every day" challenges in which all of us worked out to some degree every day. For that, I definitely varied intensities and workout modalities, doing one interval workout per week (I might get away with 2 in a not-every-day rotation), heavy upper-body weights one day, heavy lower body another, and a circuit workout on another day, with kickboxing on another day, and one day for stretching/yoga and another day of moderate cardio or core work (depending on what I felt I needed).
That offered me a doable level and amount of intensity for me.
I think working out smart and maintaining fitness in a healthy way (and having fun while doing it!) are what is important. A balance of intensities is the best way to go, and we each have to find the balance that works for us.
Also, something that seems intense to one person may not seem so to another. For example, the same workout of one type will seem less intense to someone who is used to that type of workout (step, kickboxing, spinning) and more intense to someone whose body has been training in that type of workout.
High intensity cardio? I'm really not feeling the love for high impact (and neither do my knees or hips) so I limit it and modify (trying to find challenging substitutions for moves that are still high intensity, but not so jolting).
I do think that there is a distinction to be made between 'intensity' and 'impact.' Some seem to think that high intensity = high impact (and maybe for them, it has to be?)
I think at times, impact can be more than is needed for a certain level of intensity. As a personal example: my cardio of choice in the late spring through late fall is outdoor speed walking. I can truck along at close to a 5 mph average for 3-5 miles or so, including some small hills, sweat like a pig, and get in a very intense workout, BUT rarely do I feel it later in my knees or hips (unless I try to do too much too soon). On the other hand, I can do one high-impact/high-intensity workout with no modifications and I can feel it the next day.
Another example: I've done Cardio Coach workouts (interval workouts on CD that you can use with equipment) on my rebounder, which reduces the impact, but allows for high-intensity sprints (at least they feel high-intensity to me, YMMV!)
I find that higher intensity weight workouts/rotations make me hungrier and more tired and, for me, the results may be nice, but they are not maintainable at that level. Something a bit less intense is both more maintainable and doesn't spike my hunger as much or make me as tired.
I have done 'every day" challenges in which all of us worked out to some degree every day. For that, I definitely varied intensities and workout modalities, doing one interval workout per week (I might get away with 2 in a not-every-day rotation), heavy upper-body weights one day, heavy lower body another, and a circuit workout on another day, with kickboxing on another day, and one day for stretching/yoga and another day of moderate cardio or core work (depending on what I felt I needed).
That offered me a doable level and amount of intensity for me.
I like intensity in moderation. It is very effective for me if I don't overdo it. I was initially disappointed with some of the "easier" workouts in STS Cardio. But I think they are well planned and that when I put them together with STS Strength--as they were designed--I will be very glad for the variety in intensity.
I think it's really important to listen to your body. Also, I go in streaks. Sometimes I really want to push hard, and sometimes I need a break. Sometimes I'm really into cardio and then I really feel like pushing strength. I love variety.
Just my 2 cents.
I think it's really important to listen to your body. Also, I go in streaks. Sometimes I really want to push hard, and sometimes I need a break. Sometimes I'm really into cardio and then I really feel like pushing strength. I love variety.
Just my 2 cents.
Govtgirl
Cathlete
Maybe it's my age, but I'm done with forcing myself to do high-intensity, or feeling like I'm not doing enough if I don't feel like I'm going to pass out at the end of a workout session (like INSANITY!).
I've been a slug lately, but my mindset now is to do what I prefer (endurance, total body workouts) for most of the time, and every once in a while shake it up with a higher intensity session. Like another poster said, I won't plan rest days, I'll let them come to me
and when I get antsy with endurance workouts, I'll do something different!
I've been a slug lately, but my mindset now is to do what I prefer (endurance, total body workouts) for most of the time, and every once in a while shake it up with a higher intensity session. Like another poster said, I won't plan rest days, I'll let them come to me
and when I get antsy with endurance workouts, I'll do something different!
dr.mel_PT
Cathlete
I think that as long as you're moving and challenging yourself, you're doing yourself a huge service regardless of the intensity at which you're working. The key word though is challenge. I don't think you have to go all-out and push yourself to the limit every workout, but it is good to vary the intensity throughout the week. I'm an intensity junkie but I limit myself to 2-3 days/week high impact so as not to aggravate my knees too much.
That being said, part of me thinks the whole craze that came with Shaun T's series is pushing this intensity wave, prompting more and more people to bank on the high-intensity trend. Just a thought, but I do find it strangely coincidental that all of this is coming about right after the Insanity boom. It seems like once a trend comes around, everyone jumps on it.
That being said, part of me thinks the whole craze that came with Shaun T's series is pushing this intensity wave, prompting more and more people to bank on the high-intensity trend. Just a thought, but I do find it strangely coincidental that all of this is coming about right after the Insanity boom. It seems like once a trend comes around, everyone jumps on it.
Lastchance09
Cathlete
I don't think the intensity boom started with Shaun T. I've seen it coming for a while. Study after study have been showing that more intensity or interval training = faster weight loss. I read a lot of fitness magazines and they've been writing about this for a while, along with women needing to lift more weights. Then I started seeing more dvd's and workouts claiming to be more intense, using intervals long before Insanity. You can also look to Hollywood for the focus on high-intensity. Actors getting ripped in 60-90 days for a movie and consumers wanting to know their secret and wanting to look like them. Then I started seeing people do HIIT and intense weight training like P90X.
lioness
Cathlete
Intensity for me is not a particular workout but how I attack the workout. Whatever workout I'm doing I try to give it my all and to push and challenge myself. This is in every workout from running to weights to kettlebells to intervals. It's not about what I'm doing, it's about how I'm doing it. I've always had people tell me that you are very intense when you workout. I guess I just carry that intensity with me during all my workouts.