Fat Burning Zone Vs. Cardio Training Zone
September 14th, 2010 | Fat Loss Articles | No Comments »
So often I have seen gym members spend countless hours on the treadmill walking along waiting for the fat to melt their bodies.
The belief is if you are in the "fat burning zone" you fat loss is optimal. To provide a clear understanding of whether this belief is true or false, we have to define the "fat burning zone" and the "cardio training zone".
The fat burning zone is a low intensity Cardio 'where your heartrate is between 60-70% of your maximum heart rate. This heart rate range is achieved by standing, walking fast or jogging. Will you burn fat yes, but only 50% of the total calories you eat come from fat. If you maintain that intensity level after 20 min 70-80% of calories come from fat and only 20-30% of carbohydrates. But this is the time when most of the people like anyways.
The heart training zone is High Intensity Cardio and heart rate is between 70-85% of your maximum heart rate.
Maximum heart rate can be estimated by the following formula:
(220 – age) = maximum heart rate
Example: (220-28) = 192b.pm (beats per minute) is the maximum heart rate.
fat burning zone – low intensity zone 192 x 60% – 70% = 115 – 134b.pm
cardio training zone – high intensity zone 192 x 70% – 85% = 134 – 163b.pm
So the "fat burning zone" is the best way to lose> Fat?
You better sit down for this one … the answer is no.
The "fat-burning zone" using a higher percentage of fat for fuel, you should look at the bigger picture that calories are burned. Here is a chart that compares the two training zones.
Low intensity training burns 50% fat for fuel ex: 100 calories x 50% = 50 calories from fat
High intensity training burns 40% fat for fuel ex: 160 calories x 40% = 64 calories fat
Say, for instance, you burn 100 calories in 20 minutes of low intensity exercise compared with 160 calories in 10 minutes of high intensity exercise, you still burn more total fat doing high intensity exercise.
The bottom line:
For individuals new to exercise, it is recommended to start in the low intensity zone (60-70% of maximum heart rate). There will be an advantage in the first 2-3 weeks, initially they may even have a weight of experience> Loss.
But after the first phase, we gradually the intensity of our routine to increase. Remember, it increases in line with a 70 – 85% of maximum Heart Rate. Maintaining a high intensity exercise for a long time could be sometimes very chalanging. In these cases what is called interval training represents a powerful tool. This means we can increase the intensity level for a short period of time (30sec. – 2 min) return after each interval of a basic intensitylevel. For example, an initial intensity corresponding to 60% of MHR. First break for an increase of 80% of MHR, maintaining this level for one minute, return to a 60% MHR for 2-3 minutes. and starting a new cycle