Heart Rate Zones (Weight Loss)
Discussion
Greetings folks. I'm two weeks into my first proper attempt at losing weight, having been a member at my local gym for nearly 5 years now it was about time that I stopped pissing about and did some exercise.
I've spent the last two weeks doing cardio, mainly on the cross trainer with a bit of exercise bike thrown in. I've been avoiding the treadmill as it played a part in my back problems a year or so ago when I had a go at the couch to 5k plan. I've been sticking to a standard routine where I increase the resistance on the cross trainer every few mins in order to burn the maximum amount of calories as I can in the 30 mins that I spend on the machine.
I had a go with the "fat burn" option on the cross trainer today and it wanted to me to keep my heart rate below a certain level. I noticed that after 30 mins whilst I had burnt around 100 calories less than my usual routine I felt a hell of a lot less tired so in theory I should be able to increase the amount of time I am spending on the machine.
Just wondering what the experience fitness folk on here think to the whole idea behind an optimum heart rate zone for weight loss. Is it worth trying or should I stick with my usual routine?
On a side note, is it best to do my cardio on a morning on an empty stomach instead of mid to to late morning as I am currently doing it after a light breakfast?
I've spent the last two weeks doing cardio, mainly on the cross trainer with a bit of exercise bike thrown in. I've been avoiding the treadmill as it played a part in my back problems a year or so ago when I had a go at the couch to 5k plan. I've been sticking to a standard routine where I increase the resistance on the cross trainer every few mins in order to burn the maximum amount of calories as I can in the 30 mins that I spend on the machine.
I had a go with the "fat burn" option on the cross trainer today and it wanted to me to keep my heart rate below a certain level. I noticed that after 30 mins whilst I had burnt around 100 calories less than my usual routine I felt a hell of a lot less tired so in theory I should be able to increase the amount of time I am spending on the machine.
Just wondering what the experience fitness folk on here think to the whole idea behind an optimum heart rate zone for weight loss. Is it worth trying or should I stick with my usual routine?
On a side note, is it best to do my cardio on a morning on an empty stomach instead of mid to to late morning as I am currently doing it after a light breakfast?
I'm not a great fan of the whole 'fat burn zone' thing.
Look at it this way - when you exercise moderately you will burn X number of calories and yes a significant (60-70%?) proportion of these calories will come from fat.
However if you work out at a much greater intensity (interval training for example) you will burn more calories overall and yes perhaps only 40% of these come from fat but it's still 40% of a much larger number.
In scenario 1 it's 70% of a moderate number of calories and in scenario 2 it's 40% of a significantly larger number. So the fat burnt during exercise is probably the same BUT with intensive exercise you will not only get fitter quicker but your basal metabolic rate will be elevated even after you've completed your workout so you will continue to burn an additional amount of calories post workout.
So as long as you don't have any heart or serious blood pressure issues then I'd attempt to get my heart rate as high as possible and for as long as possible. Interval training on the rower is great for this.
Look at it this way - when you exercise moderately you will burn X number of calories and yes a significant (60-70%?) proportion of these calories will come from fat.
However if you work out at a much greater intensity (interval training for example) you will burn more calories overall and yes perhaps only 40% of these come from fat but it's still 40% of a much larger number.
In scenario 1 it's 70% of a moderate number of calories and in scenario 2 it's 40% of a significantly larger number. So the fat burnt during exercise is probably the same BUT with intensive exercise you will not only get fitter quicker but your basal metabolic rate will be elevated even after you've completed your workout so you will continue to burn an additional amount of calories post workout.
So as long as you don't have any heart or serious blood pressure issues then I'd attempt to get my heart rate as high as possible and for as long as possible. Interval training on the rower is great for this.
Edited by BlackLabel on Monday 10th February 23:56
mrdemon said:
you want to loose weight or get fit ?
you eat your self thinner.
you exercise to get fit , end of.
hence why you always see loads of fat people at gyms
Absolutely (all bar spelling ; )you eat your self thinner.
you exercise to get fit , end of.
hence why you always see loads of fat people at gyms
Being fit does not always = thin. Diets get you lean. Exercise makes you mea... I cant bring myself to say it...
You know.
BlackLabel said:
In scenario 1 it's 70% of a moderate number of calories and in scenario 2 it's 40% of a significantly larger number. So the fat burnt during exercise is probably the same BUT with intensive exercise you will not only get fitter quicker but your basal metabolic rate will be elevated even after you've completed your workout so you will continue to burn an additional amount of calories post workout.
Good point, I did some googling after starting this thread and read the same elsewhere about the basal metabolic rate being elevated for up to 24 hours after the workout. Todays routine involved 2 mins at low pace on a low resistance level the cross trainer followed by 3 mins of full pace at a higher resistance, repeated with differing levels for 30 mins followed by a cool down. Not sure if that is the best way to go about it.mrdemon said:
you want to loose weight or get fit ?
you eat your self thinner.
you exercise to get fit , end of.
hence why you always see loads of fat people at gyms
I've been doing both for two weeks and seem to have dropped a few kilosyou eat your self thinner.
you exercise to get fit , end of.
hence why you always see loads of fat people at gyms
MajorProblem said:
I do fasted cardio in the morning on a stairmaster stair mill at 800kcal/hr seems to work pretty well.
Is your evening meal a sizeable one? I tend to have a light(ish) dinner so I'm not sure I could handle an hour of cardio in the morning on an empty stomach. Might give it a try tomorrow though.Grandfondo said:
Calories consumed versus calories burned will get you fat loss if you do your sums right! 
That's what I have been doing so far. The poster about heart rate zones at the gym got me pondering.SuperDude said:
mrdemon said:
you want to loose weight or get fit ?
you eat your self thinner.
you exercise to get fit , end of.
hence why you always see loads of fat people at gyms
Absolutely (all bar spelling ; )you eat your self thinner.
you exercise to get fit , end of.
hence why you always see loads of fat people at gyms
Being fit does not always = thin. Diets get you lean. Exercise makes you mea... I cant bring myself to say it...
You know.
Grandfondo said:
SuperDude said:
mrdemon said:
you want to loose weight or get fit ?
you eat your self thinner.
you exercise to get fit , end of.
hence why you always see loads of fat people at gyms
Absolutely (all bar spelling ; )you eat your self thinner.
you exercise to get fit , end of.
hence why you always see loads of fat people at gyms
Being fit does not always = thin. Diets get you lean. Exercise makes you mea... I cant bring myself to say it...
You know.
SuperDude said:
Grandfondo said:
SuperDude said:
mrdemon said:
you want to loose weight or get fit ?
you eat your self thinner.
you exercise to get fit , end of.
hence why you always see loads of fat people at gyms
Absolutely (all bar spelling ; )you eat your self thinner.
you exercise to get fit , end of.
hence why you always see loads of fat people at gyms
Being fit does not always = thin. Diets get you lean. Exercise makes you mea... I cant bring myself to say it...
You know.
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