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What's your cardio?

assembled

assembled

Bluelighter
Joined
Jan 17, 2006
Messages
105
Location
An extremely flat land.
I'm a runner at heart, no matter what other forms of cardio I do, nothing seems to come close to running in terms of intensity. Cycling and rollerblading are a tied for a very close second. Elipticals don't seem natural to me, don't touch that machine. Steppers I hate, if I want to walk up stairs I'll go do that in a local skyscraper. What a shitty exercise setting though, a stairwell. Sex is obviously the best cardio exercise hands down :D but we'll ignore that one here.

I also do weights; working my entire body. I don't see why anyone who goes to the gym wouldn't. I don't want to be bulky though, so I make sure that the weight is just right. Concentration is on cardio, always.

Like the title says, what cardiovascular exercise do you partake in, on a regular basis? In addition, what specific benefits do you find that that form of it reaps in comparison to other forms? If you don't do cardio, why not?

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Benefits of cardiovascular exercise

- Improved clarity of mind and soul
- Improved lung capacity
- Cardiovascular system improvement
- Weight loss
- Higher bone density
- Better sleep
- Increased energy
- Lowered depression
- Lowered <3 disease and certain cancer risk
- Confidence
- Looking sexy!
- ???
 
During the winter I run whenever it isn't totally freezing. I run a few miles.

During the summer I run pretty much everyday. Working my way up to a half marathon, then maybe a marathon.

I also do full-body body-weight exercises every other day.
 
Rowing on an erg machine, though I'm pretty out of shape right now so I don't stay on very long. Started at 1k meters and adding 100 meters as soon as I can finish consistently under a 2:00 split. Up to 1.2k meters. Generally try to go at the end of weight-lifting sessions, though I haven't much recently as I'm trying to bulk up (though I think I'm just using that as an excuse not to really.. eh.. gonna try to start going just for rowing on 2 of my 3 off days I think..).

I like erging particularly because it works a range of muscles as well as cardio, and is really easy on the knees - my knees tend to give me grief sometimes when running. Plus, with erging I feel like I get a pretty good cardio workout in a much shorter time.

I'd love to run a half-marathon eventually. Got a long ways to go (as a teen I would eat TERRIBLY poorly and almost never exercise as my metabolism kept me skinny, so my cardio is still pretty poor) but got lots of time!
 
I like high-rep bodyweight squats (below parallel). Im currently working my way up to 500. I was thinking of trying for 1000 but I honestly dont think I can stay engaged for that long.
 
i'm the same way with running. other forms just don't compare in terms of satisfaction afterwards.

otherwise, i really have a lot of fun mountain biking (though it's a bigger investment of time and money), and i'm willing to swim when the weather's shitty. i try and avoid the elliptical at all costs.
 
In colder times, 30min elliptical or transverse bike, 3-5 times/wk, keeping a steady heart rate at 80+% of maximum. When it's nice out, I just bike everywhere local I need to go without having to bring anything or anyone, which probably averages out to 2-3 miles/day.

I used to love the rowing machine, until it gave me really bad wrist pain.
 
^If your interested I know a pretty awesome way to strengthen your wrists: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eu5VcfjuwGs&feature=related

Except I dont do it quite like him, instead I stick my hand deep in and pronate and then supinate my hand while pushing downward. I do 2x50 and so far its been a great help in fixing some wrist/forearm problems I had, as well as adding a little mass which is nice too.
 
cycling hills. It's actually fun (unlike running, for me), and it can be as intense of "interval training" as one desires.

ebola
 
ebola? said:
cycling hills. It's actually fun (unlike running, for me), and it can be as intense of "interval training" as one desires.

ebola
Click to expand...
I agree about cycling up hills can be even more demanding than jogging, particularly jogging on the flat. I hate running because I'm too heavy plus everything bounces too much, so far prefer cycling. I also work out with kettlebell weights which can get me smoked.
 
I too love running and nothing else seems to satisfy me as much. I hate the elliptical and don't understand why it seems to be the #1 choice for most women my age. I find it SO boring. Biking (outdoors) is also very high ranking for me in terms of cardio workouts.
 
I'm so done with running. I ran two seasons of track in high school, and am very sure I'll never take it up again. I don't know whether it was due to gait issues, pushing myself too hard, or just anatomical/physiological quirks of my body (I know it wasn't shoe-related), but I could never do a season of track without developing some sort of irritative injury. 13 years after I last ran, I still have sub-patellar calcification that gives me an audible click in my right knee, a result of severe inflammation in that joint one season. Human beings are not horses, we simply weren't built to run lengthy distances on a regular basis. The compressive and shock forces this activity subjects the lower body to are enormous.

The elliptical machine corrects this problem. It works the same muscle groups as running, with almost no shock forces. Swimming is even better, since it works almost all muscle groups in the body, with almost no shock forces or joint / connective tissue strain. But I never learned how to regulate my breathing properly for this sport, and am just not that aquatic.

I also really found the brooding, introverted, perfectionist, self-punishing psychology of many other long distance runners that I met to be the last thing I needed. This is just one of those stereotypes that's largely true, IME. To those of you who'll contend that I'm like that too, well, that's actually the point; when I'm doing something athletic, I need the company of people who provide balance to my darker side and make the activity fun and chill.

Cycling is just great. It's far and away my favorite sport, because it's practical, economical, and highly rewarding. There's nothing quite like pulling off my helmet, grabbing an ice cold beverage, and thinking, Wow, I just went 20 miles under my own power, without one iota of harm to the environment! Since running is slower and less energy efficient, that satisfaction is harder to come by.

I'll be riding a bike the rest of my life, insh'allah.
 
Pretty much anything that gets my hear rate to about 140+

The stairmaster somehow gets the job done a lot better than all the other machines do. Gets the endorphins flowing. :)
 
in the summer I do a bunch of different cardio, swimming, skateboarding, biking, running, playing sports, etc...

in the winter it's pretty much running on a treadmill, or doing the Arc Trainer, which is like running while high-stepping.... a pretty good workout actually.
 
Thinking about giving up running; replacing it with road biking (which I already do... but only when weather permits), and swimming (which is less convenient).

I ran 7 miles yesterday and my hips are sore as hell... Not a good sign for a healthy 23 year old male.
 
I run 3-4 miles 2-3 times a week with the 10lb ankle weights on. My heart rate is above cardio really, it usually stops at 165-170 and stays there while I'm doing my thing. I also use 5lb weights on my ankles when just walking lmost everyday and have seen noticeable improvements in joint mobility in my ankles and knees as well as my legs are extremely strong now. it makes walking without the weights seem so effortless almost like floating along when you're just drunk enough to feel light on your feet. I love it
 
I'm skateboarding in the summer time.. I also started doing kettlebell swings and snatches 3 days a week. Seems very effective so far. Is here any other kettlebell fans?
 
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