Is Steady State Cardio Good for Fat Loss?

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Steady state cardio is cardio that is performed at a steady rate throughout the entirely of the workout session.

There has been a lot of debate on what the best kind of cardio is to perform if you’re looking to lose weight and keep it off.

Steady state cardio allows you to maintain a steady pace throughout your whole workout session.

It’s a great way to not over exert yourself, so long as you’re moving at a rate that gets your blood pumping faster than you usually would, you’re in the go!

One of the benefits of steady state cardio is that it will acclimate your metabolism to stay moving at an elevated rate throughout the day.

It gets you used to moving at a certain pace so you don’t ever really get tired, as you’re always hitting the base line that isn’t too much, or too little, but just above your usual daily movement.

It also doesn’t burn you out and leave you feeling tired all day long.

High Intensity Interval Training

In the past years, HIIT has become another popular method of performing your cardio.

With HIIT you warm up with a nice slow 5 minute jog, and then you proceed to run as fast as you can for 5 minutes, alternating this sequence.

This really does get your heart rate up, and over time gives you the ability to sprint for longer, and faster.

It burns more calories since you’re running full sprint, but at the same time it is tiring and can leave you feeling sluggish as you rebound from your extreme workout.

There’s a workout technique for everything, and if you’re training to become a sprinter and need to drop some pounds fast and up your speed, then HIIT training may be just for you.

In Conclusion

Steady state cardio is perfect for those of us just looking to wake up and get a run in, burn some fat, keep the metabolism on point, but without burning ourselves out and exerting all that energy just to burn a few extra calories.

It’s nice to just have a long steady run where you can enjoy your music and know you are making progress.

On the other hand if you don’t mind putting in that extra burst of effort then HIIT could be what you’re looking for.

Different strokes for different folks, whatever makes you feel good is the best choice, as dreading your workouts can really hinder your motivation to even do your workouts in the morning!

4 Types of Steady State Cardio Exercise

If you’re looking for a fun and sustainable way to exercise, you may have already come across steady state cardio.

This is a type of cardio where you remain at a fairly consistent pace throughout, so you are not increasing and decreasing your heart rate dramatically throughout your workout.

There are many different types of steady state exercise programs that you can consider, so there’s something to suit everyone.

1) Running outdoors

This is one of the most popular types of steady state cardio, since it’s quite easy to jog or run at a comfortable and constant pace.

If you are new to running, start off slowly and stop if you feel like you are exercising too hard and pushing yourself too far.

When running outdoors, be careful to plan a good route for your workout so that you don’t find yourself suddenly running up a steep hill or having to stop for a few minutes to wait for passing traffic.

2) Treadmill

The treadmill is a great way to ensure that you are moving at the same steady pace during your workout.

Since you have the option to see exactly which pace you are running at, and then to increase or decrease the speed depending on your preferences, it’s very difficult to go wrong.

Another way to utilise the treadmill is to experiment with the features to increase and decrease the incline.

3) Cycling

If you don’t like being outdoors, you can replace this exercise with the exercise bike at your gym or in the home.

Cycling is a great way to spend time with your friends or family at the weekend, burn some extra calories on your commute to work, and just get out of the house and feel the fresh air.

Don’t cycle every day, but allow yourself to establish a good workout program whereby you cycle three or four times in a week.

4) Swimming

Swimming is an exercise which involves every part of the body, so developing it into a steady state cardio program can benefit you in many different ways.

The key to this is making sure that you don’t start at a pace which is too intense for you, since you will struggle to keep up the pace.

The idea of a steady state exercise regime is to allow you to exercise at the same pace.

How to Burn More Calories When You Exercise

We all know that exercising burns calories, but what a lot of people don’t know, is that they could easily be burning more calories each time they workout.

A lot of people exercise very inefficiently; they burn 1000 calories when they could be burning 1,500.

There are a lot of simple strategies that you can use to increase the number of calories that you burn during each workout session. When I say “increase,” I mean it. You can burn up to 50% more calories each session.

Cut the downtime

Exercising and burning calories is all about keeping your heart rate up.

So, it is important that you minimize downtime while working out, otherwise, your heart rate will fall and you will end up burning fewer calories.

Try to keep your breaks as short as possible; depending on what exercise you are doing, your downtime should only be around thirty seconds, and never more than a minute.

Drink cold water

A British study found that those who drink cold water during their exercises tend to exercise for significantly longer. Obviously, the longer you exercise the more calories you burn.

So, if you aren’t already drinking cold water periodically throughout your workout, ditch the sports drinks and just drink plain, ice water.

Use your arms

Many people forget to use their arms when they are using exercise machines like ellipticals and treadmills.

You can still get a good workout without using your arms, but then you aren’t going to be burning as many calories as you should be able to.

So, next time you step on a treadmill or an elliptical, try working out your arms. If you are on an elliptical, actually grab the handles.

The act of your arms being pulled forward and then back works out muscles in your arms and burns extra calories.

Replace walking with lunges

When people slow down during their workout, they tend to start walking so that they aren’t remaining completely stationary.

This is true whether they are running on trails or using a treadmill. While walking is good, there is an alternative that is even better for burning calories. Instead of walking to regain energy, try doing lunges.

Lunges are slow, so you can still regain your breath and get some energy back.

At the same time, lunges also burn more calories and work out more muscle groups than walking; it also keeps your heart rate up.