Cardio Help-Treadmill or No Treadmill

Due to a busy work schedule and lots of travel I have not been able to work out except for my belly for the past 6 months. Now that I have a set schedule with no travel and my mom telling me I’m getting fat and starting to get a beer belly, I am turning to Magnum forum members for help once again.

I just started to get back on routine last week and started doing 200+ push ups, and 200+ sit ups everyday to get my body going before i hit the gym this week.

Now my question is on cardio…
Before, my routine was running on the treadmill at the gym for 3 miles running at 8mph. I’ve read that running constantly at the same speed messes with muscle growth.

But, after reading bunch of forums, many have suggested sprinting. So last week i started to sprint outside my place and boy is it a hard workout. I would sprint about 230 meters and then walk/jog (mostly walk) for 300 meters. I would repeat that for four times. My first sprint would take me low 30 seconds, but my third and forth will take me from mid to high 40 seconds. So all in all, I would sprint about 0.6 miles and walk/jog about 0.9 miles for a total of 1.5 miles. I believe i read that sprinting makes you lose fat faster?

My goal is to get back in shape and go back to the gym 3-4 (i only lift weights only at the gym) times a week. I know if i keep on doing any cardio method, I would reach my goal of getting back in shape. But, my question is, which method do you guys recommend for a regular joe (I am 5’10", 170 pounds) to get back in shape?

If you pick sprinting, is sprinting 0.6 miles enough?

Thanks for your help everyone! Really appreciate it.

The problem with the internet, is that there is too much info out there and everybody wants to know the perfect thing to do before they start.

Just start doing something, do it for a while and then worry about the nitty gritty. By the way, at 170bs and 5’10’'you can’t be all that fat. Worry about your weightlifting first.

Whats you weight program?

Also it depends what you idea of “shape” is.

My idea of “shape” is a sub-17:30 5000m row.
Your idea of “shape” might be “ABZ000R”

Try 10x1 minute intervals with 1 minute rest, otherwise known as HIT.

Effort / 10

Minute Effort
1 3
2 6
3 3
4 6
5 3
6 7
7 4
8 7
9 4
10 7
11 4
12 8
13 4
14 8
15 4
16 7
17 3
18 6
19 3
20 6

[quote]Rattler wrote:
The problem with the internet, is that there is too much info out there and everybody wants to know the perfect thing to do before they start.

Just start doing something, do it for a while and then worry about the nitty gritty. By the way, at 170bs and 5’10’'you can’t be all that fat. Worry about your weightlifting first.[/quote]

Agreed. I fell victim to the analysis paralysis. You make no progress because you’re too busy trying the newest crap out instead of eating and lifting progressively heavier shit.

OP, weightlifting should be your first priority. Get fit to run, don’t run to get fit. If you’re overweight, I doubt that running feels good for you. Try getting on a solid 3x/week total body routine. Go for a 30-60 minute walk each day. And remember that what’s going to get rid of the body fat is not in the gym. Be just as hardcore in the kitchen.

EDIT: walking is better outside, by the way.

I think so, too.

See if you can find a track at a local school or community center. The fact that most tracks are about 400m or a quarter mile (yes, I know they are not exactly the same measurement) allows you to gauge progress; you can count the number of laps you jog/run and try to best that each successive session.

I like to walk/jog the first lap as a warmup, then jog the next few laps, then walk one more lap as a cool down.

If you want to do HIIT style cardio, you can jog the shorter legs of the track and sprint the long ends. These are wicked.