Hello again!

Just curious. I have been going to the gym about 5 days a week, now, for the past couple of weeks, and have am really enjoying things, so far. My cardio consists of walking at a 3.8-4.0 mph speed, at an incline of 6-7, usually lasting for 35-45 minutes. I really work up a sweat doing it, and my heart rate is always at LEAST at 80% of its max. rate (within the "high impact" range as posted in the gym i attend...does that make sense?). Is this a good cardio workout?? I always have a pink face and lots of sweat when I am finished.

However, I've been reading all of these things about walking not being as good of a cardio workout as other cardio routines. But, I really like the walking and it SEEMS like a good workout when i do it. Am I wrong/right? Can someone tell me if I'm doing a good cardio workout with these results??

Thanks!

In my opinion, you can make any cardio as intense or easy as you want. You could get on a stationary bike and casually pedal and that is a different piece of cardio equipment, but you won't get results like that either. My point is....if you are aggressively walking, getting your heart rate up (which is the key), than the walking your doing is fine. I think those posters who said walking isn't the bast cardio are for those who take a casual 2 mile walk for an hour. That type of exercise will not get the results. Again this also depends on your goals. Based on what you said and the amount of time you are doing it, that should be good coupled with weight training and a good clean diet if fat loss is your goal.

The reason why some (including myself) refer to walking as not the best form of cardio is for several reasons.

First off, it is something we all do, everyday and for the duration of our lives. There comes a point where walking just isn't the challenge to bring about the results that we want.

Secondly, walking just involves the lower portion of the body, the legs. Swimming was actually rated the #1 form of cardiovascular exercise because it involves all joints, upper and lower body movement and full-range of motion.

In order for cardio to be effective (for fat loss) you must first completely use up your bodys carbohydrate storage before it will look to fat storage to serve as a source of energy. That could mean 1+ hours of low intensity cardiovascular exercise! There are reasons why your body reacts the way it does to cardiovascular exercise - and its not because your body is burning fat, but because you are using its main source of energy to fuel your workouts - carbohydrates.

You could (and should) spend 3 of those 5 days you are currently using for cardio and switch them over to strength training. This will be much more effective for not only your goals but being able to maintain those goals longer as you are increasing your metabolic rate over a longer duration of time when compared to cardio.

Hello again...

Well, i have upped my powerwalking to about 4.1 mph, at a 6.0-7.0 incline for a good 50 minutes, and then I do about 10 mins of the elliptical. I am working my way up to doing running for a period of time, as well as working on other cardio equipment, that way i am switching things up a bit. I also do about 30-45 mins of strength training at the gym every time I go. Do you think this is OK?

My biggest goal is to tone up a lot. I would like to see some muscle and lean definition all over. I used to compete in long distance running when I was about 15...but am now 28 and have gotten waaayy out of shape over the course of 13 years. After toning up, I would like to increase my endurance and get back to running..although I am having a harder go at it than I anticipated! A bit of weight loss would be great, too... BTW, I started doing intervals of running at the gym today. I prob. ran for about 5 mins. total within a 36 minute racewalk on a high incline.

oh yeah, and I am definitely going for some nice, muscular, arms...not bulky but defined.