Hydration
Hydration has got to be among my ‘numbero Uno’ cardio workout tips. You may have already known that over 70% of our body is made up of water, every cellular function our body performs requires water to operate.
Inadequate water in the cells of our body can hinder the ability at which you carry out your workouts.
In fact, a depletion of 2% of water in the body can cause an augmented effort of working out of up to 20%.
As a note drink 1 litre of water every 2 hours prior to undertaking your workout routine.
Post Workout Recovery
After your workout you should feel pretty drained. This is as a result of burning up glycogen which has been stored in the cells of our body. Glycogen is responsible for giving us energy and when this energy is used up during exercise it result in an overall fatigued feeling.
To restore our body and regenerate new muscle tissue we must restore these depleted glycogen cells.
Simple carbohydrates are ideal for doing this as they are fast acting energy source which go straight to the muscles.
Any example of simple carbohydrate nutrition for post workout would be something like a liquid protein shake or a banana.
The Warm Up
The warm up is essential to prevent injury that may occur during your workout routine. While warming up may sound quite boring it is vital as a torn hamstring or aggravated back can put a halt to any improvements you aim to make in your body.
With that said be sure to spare 5-10 minutes prior to a workout for a light warm up. This can be anything from a light jog or some skipping.
Duration
A message I always send to people who are desperate to see results fast is to not go overboard with working out. For exercise to be effect it must be completed consistently and not just at a ferocious pace once and while.
As a rule of thumb keep your workouts under an hour. This will ensure that your body will recover and that you will be enthusiast about the workouts to come.
Intensity
As we alluded to earlier, workouts should be kept short in duration. It is for this reason why we should aim for the 30 minute to 1 hour session and give it everything we’ve got (intensity).
This means short rest periods between exercises that are completed at no less than 100%. Not only is high Intensity one of the best weight loss workout tips but it also is the same when trying to build muscle.
My Own Thoughts
To be honest, it amazes me sometimes when I walk into my gym when I see so few people in a sweat or even breathing heavily for that matter. Almost all goals whether it be to build muscle mass or to burn fat require a moderate to high intensity.
Unfortunately, I frequently see people who spend 1-2 hours in the gym lugging up a few heavy weights or doing a bit of walking on the treadmill which is in my opinion a waste of time. I’d much rather go full out at the gym for 30 minutes and spent the other hour and a half doing something else.
So, before you step inside the gym know exactly what you’re going to do and be prepared to give it everything you’ve got for the 30 minutes or so you spent inside there.
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