Which is better.....

[IronCutie]

Cardio 20min, 5-6 times per week?
Cardio 30min, 3-4 times per week?

I'm not a fan of HIIT. I personally believe longer, less intense cardio is better for fat burn, but that's just meh. My goals are to lose 3lbs by X-mas..(not much I know lol). I'm 15 y/o, female. 5'6", 123lbs. I'm just wondering what a good, balanced cardio system would be. This is my current plan:

Cardio, 20min; 4xper week + 1hour ice skating every saturday

Every week I increase my cardio by 5min. When I reach 30min, i knock it back down to 20min, but I add another day of cardio to my week. And so on and so on.

I'm just wondering if I'd be better off just doing cardio 20min, 4-6 times per week and my 1hour of ice skating......

What do you guys think would be better based on my age, gender, stats, and goals?

[EP87]

You said:

"Every week I increase my cardio by 5min. When I reach 30min, i knock it back down to 20min, but I add another day of cardio to my week. And so on and so on."

So you're just continually adding cardio, all the time? How long before you're doing it every day of the week? This doesn't make a lot of sense to me...

Anyways, to answer your question. You're looking to cut down, but there's a couple factors you haven't mentioned. The effects of cardiopulmonary exercise is not solely dependent on time. Intensity is a large factor. I know you said you work out on a low intensity basis, but I'm unaware of how low. There are formulas for vo2 max and HR, but I hate using them because of large variations in accuracy. Generally work at a level that's "kind of hard", something you'd rate as about a 5 on a 1-10 scale.. Another aspect that was undescribed in the post, probably the most important aspect of weight loss is diet. Also, support your routine with weight training. Anaerobic ATP systems will be used, which don't directly utilize many fatty acids/oxygen for generation, (Type IIa fibers are fast oxidative, and they do use an amount, but it's relatively little compared to type I fibers) but once depleted, the systems are restored using the aerobic method.

[ComfortEagle]

Three pounds? lol

I believe rest is important, so from the choices you've given, I'd go with 3x a week, 30 mins. Unless you're really sloppy with your diet, I think you'll be there by the end of October.

[IronCutie]

My plan was to keep increasing until I reached 30min, 6xper week....then after that I'll bring it back down. But I dunno...

I do weight train. My current split is

MON: Quads/Chest
TUES: Calves/Abs + cardio
WED: Hams/Back
THURS: Biceps +cardio
FRI: OFF
SAT: Triceps + cardio
SUN: Shoulders + cardio

My diet is pretty clean, it's kinda hard w/my schedule though...but considering my restrictions I think I do pretty well

BREAKFAST: 3 egg whites, oats
MIDMORNING: Dannon Light-n-fit smoothie (only have time for a drink now)
LUNCH: Tuna Salad
PREW/O: Power Bar
DINNER: 6oz catfish or salmon, steamed veggies
EVENING: yogurt

[rick martel]

3lbs?...do 45 minutes X 4 a week. moderate intensity.
on a calorie deficit (-400 from maintence)