If you fail to plan, you plan to fail. Doing cardio just for the sake of doing cardio is a plan for failure. Without a clear goal, it’s going to be tough to know where you are, and if you’re progressing. Many people – both bodybuilders and the untrained – begin their cardiovascular training with a very unclear path in front of them. They know they want to lose some of the fat on their body, but other than that, it’s hard for them to quantify where they’d like to be, or even where they currently are. You can avoid this pitfall by taking measurements of your waistline with a tape measure, and having a body fat percentage analysis completed at your local gym or fitness center. Then you’ll be able to set realistic fitness goals for your cardio. Realistically, a man should want to get down to 7 or 8% body fat, and a woman should aim for 9 to 12% body fat. Take a test every 2 to 4 weeks to measure your progress, but no more frequently than that. Otherwise, the daily fluctuations may cause premature feelings of success or failure.
Mix it up
Variety is the spice of life. While it may make for easy planning to write “30 minutes elliptical machine” on your morning to-do list, actually following through with this repetitive and tedious task may not be nearly as easy. However, if you plan out a variety of activities for cardio, you’ll be much more likely to quit out of boredom.
Train early
Cardio training should be completed immediately after you awake in the morning, on an empty stomach. Wake up, stretch out, urinate, grab an ice cold bottled water, turn on the television (the news or sports works great) and complete your cardio training before you consume a single calorie. This will ensure the energy being spent comes from fat stores in your body, not carbohydrates in your bloodstream.
Granted, this isn’t always the rule. If you enjoy a nice cheat meal with a loved one and seriously feel like you need to knock out a nice 30-minute walk after dinner, then by all means, put on your walking shoes and get out there. Rather than limiting yourself to only early-morning cardio, make it your focus but allow for the introduction of cardio later in the day when applicable and necessary.
Stack it up
In addition to the cardio, make adjustments to your diet and supplement regimen as well. Use a fat-burner such as ECA (ephedrine, caffeine & aspirin stack) to speed up the fat-burning effect in your body. Lower the amount of simple sugars and starchy carbohydrates in your diet, and you’ll notice the cardio working even faster than you could have imagined!
Dane Fletcher is the world’s most prolific bodybuilding and fitness expert and is currently the executive editor for BodybuildingToday.com. If you are looking for more bodybuilding tips or information on weight training, or supplementation, please visit http://www.BodybuildingToday.com, the bodybuilding and fitness authority site with hundreds of articles available FREE to help you meet your goals.
