Best cardio exercise to lose body fat?

Hey guys, I'm 18 and I workout at my local gym.  I am about 5'8 and 143lbs give or take a lb.  I have about 10 percent body fat last time I checked.  The only thing is I want to be able to lose some body fat off my belly, which is probably the reason why its hard to get my lower abs to show and the v cut at the waist.  What do you guys suggest is a good cardio exercise to perform to lose the body fat and how many days a week should I be doing this and how long should each cardio session be?   By the way, I workout from Sunday-Thrusday which is 5 days a week.

supersetting your weightlifting would work best as long as you reduce the rest periods, after that, I would go to HIIT (high intensity interval training).  This is basically adding sprints to whatever cardio you are doing, so instead of just hitting the treadmill at 3 mph for 30 minutes, every couple of minutes crank it up to 10 mph for a minute.  Speeds will vary on your fitness level, but you get the idea.

And also Who the heck doesnt find running the same speed for 30 minutes boring. HIIT will be funner to lol :D

check out guerilla cardio. its crazy, and it only takes 15 minutes. I recommend starting out on something like a stationary bike tho then working your way up to actual sprints.

There is a sticky on one of these boards that has a link to a good article on it.

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Optimum health has got a good idea. Well thats what I do during the cold seasons, inside. Interval training  on a tread mill. I stay between 8 mph and like 10.5 mph. Do 8 for a few minutes then jump to 10.5 for about as long as i can then take it back down. BBBUUUTTT!!! idk where you live, but the weather is starting to get warmer around here and I'm gonna start running at the track or field. One word: Sprints. idk what guerrilla cardio is and I don't doubt its crazy but I promise you sprints will cut that weight faster than anything I know of. I was so lean during my track seasons in high school and every summer I'll throw on some football cleits and head to the field and just bust my ass with anything from a 40yd to 100yd. You burn the fat everywhere. Remember its about the heart rate

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Guerilla cardio= 4 minute warmup followed by intervals of 20 second sprints and 10 second rests for 4 minutes, followed by a 4minute cool down, so as far as sprinting it is similar to what DSM does, which i am also going to start doing now that it is finally warming up!

No food tastes as good as looking good Feels.
"Body Becomes Its Function"

Do you play any sports?
I do basic 20-30 minute cardio in the gym before I workout, but my main cardio is playing basketball 2-3's a week or at least i try to. When I feel a bit flabby a few games gets me back into it.  Maybe adding a day or 2 of playing some sort of sport could help you.

I'm with Zero, full court basketball is an amazing workout and you are toast after a few games.   Plus you get outside which mixes things up...personally I get tired of being inside for all my w/o's.

no, no, no...

Do your lifting before your cardio, your killing your gains by doing cardio first.

But nice point on sports, great cardio and you get to have fun at the same time.

ZeroJointPain


Do you play any sports?
I do basic 20-30 minute cardio in the gym before I workout, but my main cardio is playing basketball 2-3's a week or at least i try to. When I feel a bit flabby a few games gets me back into it.  Maybe adding a day or 2 of playing some sort of sport could help you.

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+1...Definitely do your cardio after your workout. For warmups, 5-10 cardio is ok, but save basketball or 30 min treadmill rides for post workout to really burn that fat off.

Nm0ney34


no, no, no...

Do your lifting before your cardio, your killing your gains by doing cardio first.

But nice point on sports, great cardio and you get to have fun at the same time.

ZeroJointPain


Do you play any sports?
I do basic 20-30 minute cardio in the gym before I workout, but my main cardio is playing basketball 2-3's a week or at least i try to. When I feel a bit flabby a few games gets me back into it.  Maybe adding a day or 2 of playing some sort of sport could help you.

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Cardio IMO is something that should be used differently, I'll elaborate.

Cardiovascular exercising is exactly what it says - exercising of the heart. The heart is the most important muscle in the body so should get worked.

When you run or even when you lift weights or just set on the couch - you convert calories into energy. When your recently consumed calories falls short of the calorie requirements, you begin using fat as a source of energy.

So you won't burn fat regardless of how much cardio you do unless you're in the calorie deficit where you're burning more calories than you consume.

Calories converted into energy is determined by how fast the heart is beating. If your body gets used to running, the heart won't pump as fast and therefore you will counter dict whatever it is you're trying to do; therefore, switching cardiovascular exercising gives the heart something new and doesn't allow it to get immuned.

High repetition workouts, burpies, running, uphill running, swimming, bicycling, sports, etc.. all of which are phenomenal ways to exercise the heart. The faster the heart pumps and the longer the heart pumps - the more the calories the body converts into energy. If you're in the calorie deficit, then you'll use fat as energy, if you're in the surplus - you'll just burn glycogen.

 

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Anbe Sivam. Period.

If you burn 700 calories more per day than you consume, you'll lose 1 lb every 5 days.

You'll need to adjust to continue to lose weight, since you'll be losing weight you'll need less calories as you go.

ACE-CPT, NASM-CPT, AFPA-Nutrition Consultant 

Racquetball, no joke.

Basketball.....Interval intense running (run at 100% for minute then go 80% 4 min...rinse repeat for 30-45min)

Tired Of NOT Getting Noticed?

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Yea basketball and badminton are the fastest sports

Anbe Sivam. Period.

HIIT

full out sprints with long recovery breaks.  Me and a growing group of people head up to the track three times a week and sprint the home 100m and walk the rest of the track. 

HIIT is meant to be intense.  If your intense interval lasts a minute, its not HIIT, thats just interval training.  Your rests should be long and your sprints should be all out.  People puke all the time when we do it.

working on explosive phase
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Strength and growth come only through continuous effort and struggle.

The best cardio is the kind that you enjoy doing.  Me, I can't seem to bring myself to run on the treadmill/elliptical/stairmaster/etc.... But I LOVE taking these MMA classes that's practically all cardio.  I've lost almost 40 lbs. since I started taking these classes about 3 months ago, and I'm starting to look pretty damn ripped from it!!! There's no way in hell I would have ever been able to discipline myself to do cardio like that by doing stuff I hate....

I love lifting weights too, so I have no problems sticking with that either.

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I'd love to find a cardio that I LIKE to do - I like swimming but don't have constant access to a pool yet.

I absolutely despise running, my legs are weaker than my chest (sadly) and it has a brutal effect on my quads and posterior chain when I run. It just shows you what three years of mirror training does for you.

Swimming, walking and high repetition exercises I like to do.

ACE-CPT, NASM-CPT, AFPA-Nutrition Consultant 

So you won't burn fat regardless of how much cardio you do unless you're in the calorie deficit where you're burning more calories than you consume.

Let me just point out that is is NOT correct.
There is plenty of vary clear evidence including research on this and we know that you do not need to be in a caloric deficit to use fat for energy or even to burn large amounts of fat while retaining muscle.

Calories converted into energy is determined by how fast the heart is beating.

This is not accurate.  We discussed the reasons for this elsewhere, but for people who read this thread, you should know that this is not a key factor in how much energy from fat is utilized.  While it is is correct that you want to vary your cardio type workouts because as MVP notes, you adapt to it quickly...but this is not based solely or even primarily on heart rate.

The faster the heart pumps and the longer the heart pumps - the more the calories the body converts into energy. If you're in the calorie deficit, then you'll use fat as energy, if you're in the surplus - you'll just burn glycogen.

Just to clarify, this is not accurate!

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danmirage


So you won't burn fat regardless of how much cardio you do unless you're in the calorie deficit where you're burning more calories than you consume.

Let me just point out that is is NOT correct.
There is plenty of vary clear evidence including research on this and we know that you do not need to be in a caloric deficit to use fat for energy or even to burn large amounts of fat while retaining muscle.

Calories converted into energy is determined by how fast the heart is beating.

This is not accurate.  We discussed the reasons for this elsewhere, but for people who read this thread, you should know that this is not a key factor in how much energy from fat is utilized.  While it is is correct that you want to vary your cardio type workouts because as MVP notes, you adapt to it quickly...but this is not based solely or even primarily on heart rate.

The faster the heart pumps and the longer the heart pumps - the more the calories the body converts into energy. If you're in the calorie deficit, then you'll use fat as energy, if you're in the surplus - you'll just burn glycogen.

Just to clarify, this is not accurate!

Thanks for the correction.

But I believe I typed most of that before I asked you about the heart rate and such. My mistake.

ACE-CPT, NASM-CPT, AFPA-Nutrition Consultant 

No harm done, it was a common misconception. 

It is even misrepresented in modern Human health and exercise physiology books!

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Perrynaytor


Racquetball, no joke.

I was going to suggest this. It is absolutely the best.

175 lbs
47 48 years old
Feeling pretty good

designer

Perrynaytor


Racquetball, no joke.

I was going to suggest this. It is absolutely the best.

Absolutely....Raquetball is no joke...

Current Stack: HDROL,Celltech,Superpump 250, Glutamine,Beta alanine,Whey protein.

I agree with you, theres nothing like some bjj or another form of grappling. 

bulkingup

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Perrynaytor


Racquetball, no joke.

I was going to suggest this. It is absolutely the best.

Absolutely....Raquetball is no joke...

You play bulkin?

175 lbs
47 48 years old
Feeling pretty good

KICKBOXING.
cant remember where i read it, but it burns an amzing amount of calories.

and DRUMMING. double bass, play hard, and its a serious workout, that is enjoyable.u can burn UP TO 400 calories per hour.

After a few months: 

Weight: 177lbs

6 reps 
Deadlift: 300lbs
Squat: 240lbs
Bench: on hold. Rotator cuff injury 

bulkingup designer Perrynaytor Racquetball, no joke. I was going to suggest this. It is absolutely the best. Absolutely....Raquetball is no joke... You play bulkin?

 
Yes ...I love it!
I played a lot more before my wife injured her back....But great exercise!!!

Current Stack: HDROL,Celltech,Superpump 250, Glutamine,Beta alanine,Whey protein.

bulkingup

bulkingup designer Perrynaytor Racquetball, no joke. I was going to suggest this. It is absolutely the best. Absolutely....Raquetball is no joke... You play bulkin?

 
Yes ...I love it!
I played a lot more before my wife injured her back....But great exercise!!!

Anytime you are in north western Illinois stop by and we can play a couple matches.

175 lbs
47 48 years old
Feeling pretty good