What am I doing wrong when it comes to exercising?

[ironpony]

I'm using it at home.  The gyms are hard to go to now because of covid.  They are only open the hours I work unfortunately, and you have to book days in advance because of covid, anytime you want to go.

So I think I am stuck at home exercising.  But even if I decrease the resistance, the machine is not giving me enough speed to get my heart rate up though.  I can still run faster than the machine can go, even on it's fastest setting.

[Wiseman2]

Have you tried doing it backwards? Sometimes you work different muscle groups that way.

[ironpony]

19 minutes ago, Wiseman2 said:

Have you tried doing it backwards? Sometimes you work different muscle groups that way.

Yeah I tried that as well, but it seems to be the same.  I thought it was about the speed not being fast enough.  In order to get good cardio and get my heart going, I have to fun fast.  And the machine is not fast enough to do that.  But maybe it's about going longer and I can try that.

[ironpony]

I use to do mostly HITT exercise and jogging where I would run as fast as I can for short amounts of time, till I tapped out and then took a break then did it again, took a break, then did it again, etc.

But my gf told me she felt I was doing it wrong and that I should be running not as fast and hard till I burn myself out so fast, but jog slower, for a much longer amount of time.

Both types of exercises have different results.  The former one causes me to breath heavy, huffing and puffing, like I am getting a good cardio work out.  The latter one I am not breathing hard near as much by comparison, but I am sweating a lot, till the point where I am soaking wet all over, as oppose to just sweating only maybe half as much on the other, but breathing a lot harder in comparison.

Which type of exercise approach is better?  Both seem the same so far, but is one better than the other when it comes to staying in shape?

[Foxhall]

Longer slow jog will build up more endurance or fitness,

Its not always the most enticing prospect though is it, I find it hard to get motivated for long runs.

 

[ironpony]

Oh okay, but is endurance more important than going as hard as you can to burn calories, or is endurance more effective in doing that?

[basil67]

Is your goal fitness or weight loss?   

[ironpony]

Both, but I guess weight loss first if I have to pick one.

[Johnjohnson2017]

On 10/23/2021 at 4:58 PM, ironpony said:

I use to do mostly HITT exercise and jogging where I would run as fast as I can for short amounts of time, till I tapped out and then took a break then did it again, took a break, then did it again, etc.

But my gf told me she felt I was doing it wrong and that I should be running not as fast and hard till I burn myself out so fast, but jog slower, for a much longer amount of time.

Both types of exercises have different results.  The former one causes me to breath heavy, huffing and puffing, like I am getting a good cardio work out.  The latter one I am not breathing hard near as much by comparison, but I am sweating a lot, till the point where I am soaking wet all over, as oppose to just sweating only maybe half as much on the other, but breathing a lot harder in comparison.

Which type of exercise approach is better?  Both seem the same so far, but is one better than the other when it comes to staying in shape?

Do both. It good to mix it up so that you don't get bored. Try tennis or basketball etc. Weightlifting if you have time.

[AngryGromit]

On 11/28/2020 at 5:16 PM, ironpony said:

I've been exercising a more lately to be healthier and loose weight.

What are you eating?  Your diet has a big impact on losing weight.  Exercise is good for overall health, but doesn't necessarily cease you to loose weight.  

[czanclus]

 

On 11/28/2020 at 4:16 PM, ironpony said:

I've been exercising a more lately to be healthier and loose weight.  However, I find that the more I exercise, I keep getting hungrier, and it's hard to keep going without a little snack every hour or so if I exercise for say 2 or more hours in the day.  But I feel like this defeats the purpose, cause I am trying to loose weight, and not eat more in a day.  Unless this is normal?

You are exercising. That right there. 😛

For a while, when I trained for a marathon, I followed this group of runners on a social medium of whom a disappointing majority went in to this pretty high-commitment feat if I may add, in order to fuel their motivation to lose weight. I mean, running is one of the highest calorie burning exercises there is, and the more you run, the more you burn, the more you lose, amirite? What can possibly go wrong with that plan... Only that 1) your appetite increases accordingly and you crave food even more, leading you to overeat the next meal opportunity setting you off course your initially imagined clean diet, 2) spiraling into further overeating on the next meal due to temporarily lost motivation to keep it clean for the rest of the day, and besides you've got a 12 miler coming up this weekend, you'll burn it off, 3) waking up sluggish the next morning and missing your tempo run or underperforming on it, setting you up for a bad mood and self-doubt if you can do this, 4) half-a**ing that 12-miler you *did* bother to tie your shoelaces for, 5) feeling hungry nonetheless afterward, ditching the clean diet for something convenient and soothing, 6) setting yourself up for a sanity-trying cycle of high motivation days/hours of clean eating/reducing/compensating for past derailments interspersed with just as frequent can't-do-this/what's-the-point/I'll-get-back-to-weight-loss-regime-tomorrow derailments.

Delusions on calories expanded during exercise modulo food allowed now that one is exercising are countless. You can continue being part of that club, part of 'beautiful at any size' club, part of 'fake it till you make it that you don't care about how fit your body is' club, or you can prioritize high nutrition while severely demoting the notion that you need as much food as you 'feel' you need. You do not. The key is to get proper amount of nutrients properly timed so that you don't have to devote mental bandwidth to resisting the incessant urge to eat. This itself requires initial investment of 'mental bandwidth', but after that pays nice dividends. As for exercise, getting out and petting a squirrel, or just watching it climb a tree while breathing will do just fine. Ample, uninterrupted, unapologetic sleep too.

Good luck and success.

Edited November 1, 2021 by czanclus

[ironpony]

I wanted to get better exercise that would work me out and tire me out more better, and loose more weight, than what I have been getting myself.  I talked to a couple of personal trainers at gyms.  However, both of them had very opposite things to say.  One said that I shouldn't weight lift to try to loose weight, because weightlifting causes the muscles to get bigger, and this will push the fat out more, thereby making me look more fat.

The other said the opposite though and that weightlifting actually burns calories, so it will burn the fat.  Is one of them right compared to the other, if anyone knows, since I got two opposite pieces of advice on this one?  Thank you to anyone for any input on it!

[Andy_K]

Yes, the first one is a moron.

Weightlifting alone will burn a lot of calories, but the additional muscle you gain from it will increase your metabolic rate and cause you to burn more even when you're not working out, making it much easier to lose weight. 

[ironpony]

Oh okay thanks.   The second one also told that weightlifting causes more weightloss than cardio exercise.  Is that true?  I read on the internet that cardio burns more fat, but is one more true than the other?

[basil67]

My PT told me that diet is absolutely crucial in losing weight.   What changes have you made to your diet?

[ironpony]

I made quite a few changes a couple of years ago.  Since then I lost half the weight I wanted to but the other half is still there, since.  I still want to exercise to be healthy and more in shape thoguh, and not just diet only.

[basil67]

That's a great achievement.   And yes, being fit and healthy is so good for you.   But you still need to watch the calories if you want to lose more weight.

[ironpony]

Okay thanks.  Well after trying to eat less and eat healthier as of two years ago, the goal was too loose about 40 pounds, and I lost about half over a few months.  But the other half has stayed consistently.  Is that strange, or is there a reason why a diet would stop after only half the weight was gone?

[basil67]

No, it's not strange.  Our bodies can get used to a diet.    If I plateau, I take a break from dieting, making sure that I don't gain weight, and then try a different diet.  

[ironpony]

Oh okay.  I can do that.  Thanks.  But when it comes to exercise, if I want to loose weight, does weightlifting burn more fat than cardio like the one trainer told me?

[ironpony]

On 10/6/2021 at 10:12 PM, Lotsgoingon said:

If you pick up the speed of your pedaling the workout becomes harder.

As you raise the level of difficulty (resistance) the workout becomes harder.

Either you are pedaling too slowly or you are not raising the level of resistance. Or you are in amazing shape!

 

Well I have raised the ellyptical to the fastest speed and I can still pedal faster than it, and it's not giving me much of a heart workout.  Am I doing something wrong?

[Lotsgoingon]

OK, now increase the intensity ... the difficulty of the pedaling ... On the ellipticals I've used, I think the intensity/difficulty goes up to maybe 15 ... which is really hard to pedal. What intensity are you using?

You could just be in excellent elliptical fitness. 

[ironpony]

Just now, Lotsgoingon said:

OK, now increase the intensity ... the difficulty of the pedaling ... On the ellipticals I've used, I think the intensity/difficulty goes up to maybe 15 ... which is really hard to pedal. What intensity are you using?

You could just be in excellent elliptical fitness. 

I was using the lowest intensity because I was told in order to get a cardio workout, you have to go the fastest which means the lowest intensity.  If I increase the intensity, it will just be slower, and therefore less cardio.

[Lotsgoingon]

No ... the intensity will increase the cardio workout ...

The ultimate workout is fast pedaling AND high pedal intensity ...

If you're not getting a good workout, by definition you need more resistance ... Up the resistance level. The goal is to pedal as fast with the higher intensity, you with me? ... then your body adjusts ... you go up another level or two in intensity ... trying to maintain the speed ....

You've ridden a bike before, I assume. Well when you go up a hill even if you're pedaling slowly, you get a huge workout, huge challenge to the cardio system ... same with running ... well hills in biking and running are similar to the increasing the intensity of pedaling on an elliptical.

The test of a good workout is just that you are tired at the end. 

How long are you working out on the elliptical for?

 

Edited December 30, 2021 by Lotsgoingon

[ironpony]

I can only go on the elliptical for about five minutes at a time and then take short breaks in between.  What's the difference between intensity and resistance, when you say increase the intensity and increase the resistance?

Here's the problem for me.  When I went on the treadmill before, I was huffing and puffing and out of breath and my heart was burning.  So it felt like a good cardio workout.  But when I go on the elliptical, my thighs and arms tire out before the heart starts going.  I get a much more tiring arm and leg work out, before the heart can get going and that's the problem with the elliptical for me.

How do I exercise the heart on it, if it's going to tire out the arms and legs much quicker with the intensity and resistance increased?  Sorry, I still do not understand the difference between resistance and intensity.

It's the same on riding a bike, my legs and thighs get a huge workout but not the heart so much.  My legs are getting much more exercise than my heart, compared to running.  So what am I doing wrong?

Edited December 30, 2021 by ironpony