Now that the fitness industry seems to be done condemning cardio and realizing it has a place in a well-rounded fitness routine, I am noticing lots of people claiming that they know the best cardio for weight loss. I feel it is my turn to share what I believe is the best cardio for weight loss.
Is it 30 minutes at a 12% incline and 3 mph? How about the 20-2-10? Stairmaster?
I don’t believe any form of cardio is inherently bad. The best cardio for weight loss or any goal is cardio that you will actually do. However, there are limitations with having set metrics or machines. At some point, your body is going to not be challenged by this, or it’s going to be an intensity you cannot yet maintain and do regularly. You progressively overload your workouts, why would cardio be any different? Think of it like running a 5K or a marathon, maybe you can accomplish that once; but can you do it every day so your body can adapt to the new energy demands? Weight loss doesn’t occur from one excessive exercise session where you give your all and then take days to recover. It occurs when you are challenged consistently over time. It also does not need to occur on one specific piece of equipment. If you dread doing a form of cardio, that is not going to be the best option for you.
The best cardio for weight loss is at an intensity that is challenging enough to elicit change but not so challenging that you can’t come back the next day and do it again. You want it to feel like a 7 or 8 out of 10 on the intensity scale. Something that if you were on the phone, they could tell you were exercising, but not to the point where you couldn’t hold a conversation. Do this for a shorter amount of time so that you can fit into the end of your workout regularly. You want to maintain this for a week or two, doing it as close to daily as makes sense for you.
Once it starts to feel easy, you want to increase the intensity in some way. Ideally in one way per increase. This could be done by increasing the time, distance, resistance, speed, adding weight if that’s an option, whatever makes it just a little bit more challenging than before. Whatever works to make it a greater workload for your body to now adapt to, while still keeping it at a maintainable level of intensity. Keep in mind, going from 5 minutes to 10 minutes is a 100% increase compared to the 10% increase you would get from going 10 to 11 on your incline. So just be aware of how much you are increasing it, so you understand why increasing certain metrics will feel more challenging than others.
I have recently been introduced to having a calorie goal for your cardio. That was an adjustment because I did not realize how long it can take depending on the cardio you choose. But I feel this would give a more exact number for your calories in/calories out allowing you to hone in your deficit even more. It also allows for flexibility in your choice of cardio. I have found walking my dog for an hour is about the same amount of calories as around half an hour of an incline walk on a treadmill.
The point of slowly progressing your cardio is to slowly increase your body's daily energy expenditure. Weight loss occurs when the calories you consume are less than the calories you use each day. By progressively increasing the amount of calories you burn in a day, you will start to see your weight go down. Since you are doing this gradually rather than going all out for a few days/weeks, you will have time to build up muscle in your workouts, develop habits that will encourage maintenance of this weight loss, and not burn out and binge. This way we can avoid that yo-yo effect that I’m sure we have all had happen in the past.
I have yet to narrow down the best form of cardio for weight loss for you. But that is because like everything in fitness, it depends. I am a huge fan of hopping on a treadmill, cranking the incline and reading for however long I have to do cardio that day. It is low impact, so my funky knees can behave themselves. I was able to get all of my reading for school done, and now I read other personal development books. If I didn’t get into this while in school, maybe I would have chosen the bike because I enjoy it. If you’re a runner, run. However, keep in mind there is double the amount of ground reaction force on your joints when you run compared to walking. So, if you are trying to lose weight, there is a chance your joints may not appreciate it. If they can handle it and you enjoy running, then run.
I see lots of recommendations for the stairmaster and that’s fine if you enjoy the stairmaster. But not every gym has one, if they do, they are not always available. So you may want to be open to other options. Personally, I don’t enjoy the stairmaster and my main gym doesn’t have one, so I don’t do it. If you like the stairmaster, make that your number one choice. Basically, find something you enjoy enough that you won’t talk yourself out of doing it. That is the best form of cardio for weight loss.
This also doesn’t have to be cardio in the gym. Want it to be dog walks? Maybe add an extra 100 meters each week, find a hill and do laps that increase each week, walk faster, jog, or run. It may not be as structured as in the gym and weather can interfere with your desire to do it, but it is an option.
Of course, for you busy individuals who don’t have the time to fit structured activity into your day, I have suggestions for you as well. Find out your average daily steps, increase them by 500-1000 every few weeks. Once you can consistently maintain your new step goal for a week or two, increase it. Walk around while you’re taking a phone call, get a walking pad for answering emails or joining meetings, park further away, use the stairs when possible. Find movement wherever you can. You may even find that this increases productivity and energy levels which could free up some time for structured activity in the future.
Now, I am never going to tell someone only to do cardio. Well, concussion rehab immediately comes to mind. But for an individual looking to lose weight with no medical reason not to be, strength training should be paired with cardio for optimal results. This will allow for many health benefits that will last you a lifetime. If that isn’t enough, it will also increase the amount of lean mass (muscle) on your body which increases the amount of calories your body burns in a day. This makes your body more efficient at using the food you consume, leading to further weight loss.
I hope you found this helpful and are inspired to add some structure to your cardio!
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