Hey Gina,
I am just wondering what type of cardio you do during prep? I’ve been in touch with my trainers and they said that I will start with 45mins of low impact cardio (treadmill or bike) 7 days a week. I asked if I could use swimming as cardio and they said that the cold water can effect fat burning. I was just wondering your opinion? I noticed that your client Kristie used the stepmill…do you think its best?
I am just wondering what type of cardio you do during prep? I’ve been in touch with my trainers and they said that I will start with 45mins of low impact cardio (treadmill or bike) 7 days a week. I asked if I could use swimming as cardio and they said that the cold water can effect fat burning. I was just wondering your opinion? I noticed that your client Kristie used the stepmill…do you think its best?
Great question yet doesn’t yield a simple and straight forward answer as everyone has different goals and it varies… Depending on what my goals were at the time, depends on the type of cardio I did. Each show was different.
-Arnold 2008– when I won, all I did was incline 15% walking, super fast (4.7-5.mph) To really bring down my legs and balance them out to my upper body.
-Olympia 2009– I did a lot of walking on incline but also running, to mainstream my legs that much more.
Before the Arnold ’08 I did a lot of variety from treadmill to stepmill to elliptical and bike sprints for HIT. Honestly, I do not like the elliptical and find it really boring so I have not used it much at all over the past few years.. Only in emergency if all the machines are taken 😉
Other than the running, low impact cardio is great for maintaining muscle while burning body fat. It depends on your physique and goals. For me I did not have to worry about maintaining muscle, as I actually was trying to mainstream, so I could get away with more HIT and running. For those that are trying to obtain and maintain muscle, you should be careful with the higher impact training. If you do HIT, you should keep it to a minimal or not do any HIT long duration cardio. The stepmill is awesome and Kristie also used the incline treadmill with a weight vest to really target her glutes. It sure worked for her… look at those legs.
As far as swimming, I wouldn’t use this as your only means of cardio but I do think swimming is great because it is such a low impact way of cardio. Great on muscles, joints, etc. As far as being cold… well yes, of course, initially but once you get warmed up, I think it is a great supplement to your cardio program. Like I said, super low impact and if you use the kick board, wow, can you get a great lower body workout. I am all about changes so using the pool for cardio here in there, In my opinion, adds variety, keeps it fun and again is great for your muscles. I would listen to your trainer though, my just my two cents…
Keep it fun, exciting, fresh and change things up.. Hope that helps! 🙂
-Arnold 2008– when I won, all I did was incline 15% walking, super fast (4.7-5.mph) To really bring down my legs and balance them out to my upper body.
-Olympia 2009– I did a lot of walking on incline but also running, to mainstream my legs that much more.
Before the Arnold ’08 I did a lot of variety from treadmill to stepmill to elliptical and bike sprints for HIT. Honestly, I do not like the elliptical and find it really boring so I have not used it much at all over the past few years.. Only in emergency if all the machines are taken 😉
Other than the running, low impact cardio is great for maintaining muscle while burning body fat. It depends on your physique and goals. For me I did not have to worry about maintaining muscle, as I actually was trying to mainstream, so I could get away with more HIT and running. For those that are trying to obtain and maintain muscle, you should be careful with the higher impact training. If you do HIT, you should keep it to a minimal or not do any HIT long duration cardio. The stepmill is awesome and Kristie also used the incline treadmill with a weight vest to really target her glutes. It sure worked for her… look at those legs.
As far as swimming, I wouldn’t use this as your only means of cardio but I do think swimming is great because it is such a low impact way of cardio. Great on muscles, joints, etc. As far as being cold… well yes, of course, initially but once you get warmed up, I think it is a great supplement to your cardio program. Like I said, super low impact and if you use the kick board, wow, can you get a great lower body workout. I am all about changes so using the pool for cardio here in there, In my opinion, adds variety, keeps it fun and again is great for your muscles. I would listen to your trainer though, my just my two cents…
Keep it fun, exciting, fresh and change things up.. Hope that helps! 🙂
