Long, slow cardio

I read a post today written by someone that is sick of HIIT cardio, and has decided to do longer, slower cardio. He says that he HATES HIIT.

Ummm....yeah. I hate it too. In fact, about 75-80% of the time, I'm not all that big a fan of exercising in general. By that I mean exercising for the sake of exercising. If I was riding a bike or rowing a boat or playing a sport for enjoyment, I wouldn't consider it exercising. HIIT is particularly heinous. It is designed to bring you right to the edge of your body's capability. Our minds and our bodies don't like that. But when we force ourselves, our bodies adapt to protect themselves. That's how we get better.

Why do I do it? Why do I look forward to doing some of the more challenging Crossfit workouts? Because it works. Period. You can run for ten miles every day, and if you try one these CF workouts will fry your ass....and make you better in the process.

I guess it really depends upon your goals. If you want to really build some muscle mass, you aren't going to get it done doing a ton of long slow cardio. If you love it, then go ahead. Just don't have expectations that you're going to add a ton of lean muscle AND run ten miles a day, cause it ain't gonna happen. Sorry to burst your bubble on that.

Anyway, if you have any questions, you can find me on the beach playing with my kids. I've got time to do that, because I only did two four minute Tabata interval sprints. I was finished in ten minutes. I'll see you in a couple of hours after you're finished wearing out your sneakers!