Hi everyone! First, let me give you my stats: 19 yo, 5'2", 128lbs.

I just recently joined 24 Hour Fitness and am excited about improving my diet and getting back into the swing of being active.

My main question is regarding how many times/week and for how long one should do their cardio. My plan is M-Thursday for an hour everyday. Is that too much or too little? Ideally I would like to lose weight, perhaps get down to 110lbs (and who knows if that's possible, I've never been below 124 in my life--post growing and all that). I was told by a friend that an hour a day 4-5 times a week is perfect for weight loss, but after today I am not so sure if it's a good idea. Today I did my 60 minutes broken down like so: 20 on the precor (elliptical?), 10 on the treadmill, 10 on the sitting bike, 5 on the normal bike, 5 on the stairmaster (My muscles in my legs are REALLY tight, so I couldn't do any of those for very long), and 10 on a different eliptical. I came home and felt pretty good for awhile, but after about an hour I started feeling really weak and just BLAH. I think it's because I was pushing myself too hard (the machine said my target heart rate was 135 and I was up at 180 for most of my time on the eliptical trainer).

Sorry for writing an essay, but just to break it down...
Cardio for weight loss: how many days a week and for how long?

Thanks!!
Jodi

Hi Jodi,

as you've just joined the gym, I would start with 3 cardio sessions per week. If you are able to do 20-30 minutes in the beginning, that's fine. Just make sure you are running/biking/etc. in the right training zone with regards to heart rate. As you are getting more trained, you can increase your cardio time but I wouldn't increase it above 45 min. And one more recommendation: I would stick to one machine per cardio session, and not change between machines. On day 1 you can use treadmill, elliptical on day 2, and, say, bike on day 3.

I would do some weight training, and also don't forget that your diet is at least as important as your exercise sessions.

I agree with Dexter. Did you eat after the workout? Getting some food in you after the workout is VITAL.

Dexter: Thanks so much, I think I'll switch it to MWF for 30 or 45 minutes. However, the reason I was switching machines was because the trainer I saw the first day told me to switch it up...he said to do 10 or 20 on one machine and switch. But maybe I'll try sticking to one machine per day. =)

Nixona: Yes, I did eat afterwards and before... I think I just pushed myself way too hard for the first time exercising in a LONG time. My body was not pleased. But thanks for the advice, I'll make sure to eat afterwards!