Becca Swanson » Cardio

It’s Okay to Let GO…

Becca — Sat, 26 Jun 2010 21:33:11 +0000

I mean it is actually better for you!! When you are doing cardio. Try not to hold on the the handles. And if you need balance, try to balance with two fingers per hand.

I tell you, it drives me nuts when I see a person putting the incline up on the treadmill then they hang on to the console and recline. They completely cancel out the intention of the incline; might as well put the treadmill horizontal. So, if you are a hanger on’er…. next time, let go and swing your arms. See the difference in actual work being done… which is MORE calories burned. OR, if you like to hang on, just know that you are not burning as many calories as you think you are (and your pissing me off, lol!) Same thing applies to leaning on the stairmaster.

A good way to test this theory is to wear a Heart Rate Monitor
and use the watch to count calories. Then compare the calories burned on the watch to the calories the treadmill thinks you burned. It will be a big difference. And I will encourage one more thing. Wear thatHeart Rate Monitor
and do cardio outside, off the treadmill. You will be happy with your results; more calories burned if you hit the pavement.

You could also use a The Biggest Loser bodybugg ®
for this test. Which is a larger financial commitment, but it offers a lot more information.

NOW GO OUT AND GET FIT!!

Fat Loss Cardio

Becca — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 10:05:25 +0000

Whenever I am on the fat loss plan, I do cardio in the morning before I eat anything. I also do it within the first hour that I wake. You are in your fat burning phase at this time! The cardio doesn’t have to be intense. I choose to do cardio in the fat burning zone. To find out what your fat burning zone is, get a Heart Rate Zone Chart for your home gym or as a gift to your public gym.

Personally, I own a Nike Imara Heart Rate Monitor Watch. I absolutely love it because I can set my upper and lower heart rates and it will beep at me to tell me when I am out of my zone. Plus, when using modern cardio equipment, some of them read the chest strap and adjust the intensity of the workout to your zone!!You don’t even have to pay attention to the console!

My favorite piece of cardio, because it isn’t easy, is the StairMaster Stepper. Plus, I think some of the other pieces of cardio equipment are inaccurate about the amount of calories you burn. You can use your Heart Rate Monitor to compare with the console on this matter.

Anyway, as long as you are in your fat burning zone for at 45-60 minutes, you are successful! I do this 5 days per week.

Back Day

Becca — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 19:52:09 +0000

Oh, crap, broke the lat pulldown. I swear it is a design issue! LOL! Good thing I got some good sets in before it failed. And couldn’t do the low row, because it is being fixed. Um, wonder who broke that one… er, uh?!! I replaced the low row exercise with bent over rows, overhand, wide grip. So, I guess, if you want to know if you want to test the integrity of your equipment, ask me to lift at your gym.

This morning, 450 calories burned before breakfast.
This afternoon, Deadlifts and back assistance work.
This evening, pro-wrestling practice.

Todays Workout Plan:
Deadlift – keeping reps at 3 on the heavy sets
Underhand Lat Pulldown
Low Row – ONE OF MY FAV
One arm cable row from low pulley
Weighted Abs

LET’S GET IT ON!!