There’s so much back and forth about whether or not cardio’s useful that it’s tough to know what to believe However, take the time to look into this subject matter and you’ll quickly realize that “traditional cardio” is what’s worthless, not cardio in general. Because of this assumption, cardio does become ineffective due to the fact that people are misunderstanding it.

Well what is cardio?

Most people would consider cardio to be pumping away mindlessly on a treadmill, riding a stationary bike, or coasting on an elliptical machine, while watching the TV screen at their state of the art gym. This type of cardio will actually give you no results and therefore I consider it to be “traditional cardio.”

But by definition, cardio exercise is considered any motion that strengthens the cardiovascular system or in other words makes you breath heavily. If this definition is taking into consideration when defining cardio then you can consider just about any exercise in the world as cardio even such things as weight training exercises because they are still strengthening your heart. Therefore, the next time you want to refer to weight training as solely a muscular system exercise, think again.

To the inexperienced, the bench press is considered only as a weight training exercise. However, I challenge you to do a hard set of around 10-15 reps on the C&P. If you used a challenging enough weight, what you’ll find is that your heart rate is probably up to about 80-90% of your recommended max, and you are huffing and puffing like you just ran a 100-meter sprint (which by the way, sprinting kicks the crap out of jogging any day if you want the easiest way to lose the flab).

Try the same thing for a set of 20 reps of one-arm snatches or swings with each arm with a kettlebell or dumbbell, and tell me your legs aren’t burning, heart racing, and you’re gasping for breath. How about trying squats for a set of 15 reps? Again, you will find yourself breathing heavily and breaking a sweat.

Try and tell me you’re not conditioning your heart with this style of training! Conventional thinking says that these are weight training or strength training exercises.

So if today’s “weight training exercises” also are proven to strengthen your cardiovascular system then through these full body exercises you are strengthening and conditioning your entire body in nearly half the time! Now when you are pedaling on an elliptical machine for an entire hour, are you getting a full body workout? (NO!)

If you can watch TV while doing cardio in fact, I’d go so far as to say you’re doing it wrong Through these types of exercises you will see the results that you could never find in your “traditional cardio.” If you want some specifics though for better weight loss online, check out physical becomings.