Back in the gym...too much cardio?

[ShawnQ]

Last Friday I got back into the gym for the first time in over a year. I have added a few pounds of fat, but haven't really lost much strength (just tone and stamina).

Anyways, my goal for the first 6 months or so is just to trim my fat down and tone. I am one of the guys who can add muscle/weight quickly if I weight train...so I figured I'd take care of the hard part first; the weight loss.

With that said, I've been going to the gym daily riding 8-10 miles on the stand up bike. My knees are a little tender for jogging, so I opt to ride the bike for less impact. Once my legs gets accustomed to working out again, I intend to start jogging/running again.

My question is this: Is it bad for me to ride the bike every day? I generally do not feel much soreness at all in my legs from riding....just get a good cardio workout. If I'm not sore from riding, then am I risking anything from riding daily instead of 3-4 times/week?

I am doing minor weight training also...but trying to focus on losing fat. So, I'm not concerned with losing a little bit of the muscle/bulk I have due to excessive cardio exercise.

Thanks in advance.

SQ

[poopnut2]

Can you get "too much cardio?" I really don't know. I would say unless you get dehydrated and your body locks up on you you're not doing too much.

[ShawnQ]

My main concern is a lack of 'rest' and 'rebuild' time in between cardio workouts.

Does the cardio-system require a rebuild period, just like any other muscle group...or can I run it hard every day because it doesn't need time to recoop?


SQ

[poopnut2]

My main concern is a lack of 'rest' and 'rebuild' time in between cardio workouts.

Does the cardio-system require a rebuild period, just like any other muscle group...or can I run it hard every day because it doesn't need time to recoop?


SQ

If you're not sore you should be ok. I do 45 minutes of lifting and 15 minutes of cardio 5 days a week. On the weekend I work out my liver and lungs. :D

[Hollywood]

Yes, you can over do it. I would put at least 2 days off in there otherwise, you do not give your body time to recoup. Weaker immune system, metabolism could go haywire on you, etc To top it off, you are going to have to change it up well before 6 months anyway as you'll plateau about 3-5 weeks into that routine.

[Sami]

I would do a variety of cardio workouts instead of riding the bike all the time. Rowing, (water) aerobics etc. to work out different parts of your body.

[exlude]

It's difficult to over do it on cardio. I would be more worried about side effects of your exercises (impacts from running, blood flow in the legs from biking, etc.). I row 6 days a week (have to, Texas Crew) and run 3 days and do stairs 1 day on top of that. Only problem I have had is a strained knee from twisting it out on the boat :p

[The Raven]

If you are dong cardio to burn fat your biggest concern would be burning too many calories. Getting into the fat-burning zone doesn't require quite as intense a oace as what you would do for stamina/endurance traning, so it doesn't have that high an impact on your muscles. Having a day off of both cardio and weights is a good idea, but depending on your intensity with the weight training, it's not imperative.

[Z06killinSBF]

Im in the Navy and we run a 3-5k 4 times a week and weight train/basketball/wallyball the other day. I've been doing that for the past 6 months!! We also stop throughout the run for push-ups/sit-ups/body builders, etc...