Cardio Makes You Fat

Prolonged cardio (over 18 minutes) is counterproductive, often leading to weight gain, elevated cortisol, and joint injury, defying the "calories in - calories out" myth. The article argues against continuous, high-intensity endurance work, advocating instead for short, effective interval training or slow, easy activities like walking to support body composition and hormone health.

If you are doing more than 18 minutes, you're doing it wrong.

Yep, we said it! I know a lot of you are already hyperventilating and feel personally attacked; remain calm. Cardio, the way we have been conditioned to do it, makes you gain weight. Especially from mid-age and on.

It started in the 70’s with running; which if we’re being honest is jogging given the speed most people ‘run’. The 80’s brought on Jazzercise and Richard Simmons. We rolled into the new millennia very excited about spin class. We just can’t stop. And…we are doing it wrong.

How Did We Get Here

It actually started with food. In the late 70’s we were told you could work off all the calories that you eat (this concept actually dates back to the 1920’s). Remember the ever famous “calories in – calories out” mantra. I still have clients come in quoting that to me. It is a lie. Calories are not equal and your body does not process them the same (but that is another topic for another day).

As people became more and more overweight, the government, media/news, celebrities, and the fitness industry leaned into cardio. Cardio was the thing that would off-set everyone’s terrible diets. Clearly that did not go well for us as a population since we continue to become sicker and more overweight/obese.

So What Is Wrong With The Cardio I’m Doing

Doing cardio does not offset what you eat…ever. If you are over-doing cardio it will actually boost your appetite causing you to overeat (even after training is over) and then gain weight.
Cardio that is over 18 minutes and done in a mid-heart rate zone drives sex hormones down and cortisol up. This is especially true in women from peri-menopause and on but happens to some degree in all bodies regardless of age.
If you do a high-impact type of cardio (running, boot camps) for longer than 15-30 second bursts: you are putting unnecessary load on your joints.
Overload to the joints, tissue, and muscle will at some point result in an injury, and worst case scenario a torn tendon or joint replacement. Then you can not workout at all!

What Kind of Cardio Can I Do

Interval training. It is actually that simple, and takes far less time. And no, I’m not talking about the 45-60 minute ‘interval’ class on your Peloton app or at Orange Theory. Those are WAY too long.

You are going to have do intervals on your own. I’m sorry, life’s a bitch. You can use a bike (road or stationary), rowing machine, treadmill, or the road/track if we can’t convince you to stop running ;o). If you enjoy cardio for longer periods of time, great, but it must be s-l-o-w: walking, easy bike riding, easy hiking…keyword here: easy.

Stay with me, there’s good news! We would never tell you to give up your favorite activities all together, you just need to learn to balance them with correct training. The activities most of us consider ‘working out’ are not training, they are fun. Fun is important but must be balanced with correct training so you can continue to do it for the long haul.

Sam will lay that all out for you next time when he discusses how to do cardio correctly to change body composition and support hormones instead of fighting against them, and where these ‘fun’ activities fall in the programing. *Until then, if you hate doing long-distance cardio…you have our permission to stop 🙂

Live Long. Live Well.

:o) mcd