What type of cardio should I do? (Specific case)

karateguy36 · 01-08-2009, 10:10 AM

I've been through all the FAQ's and most of the links, but I haven't found a definitive answer on what the best method of improving my conditioning would be. I have a few ideas, but I would really appreciate one of the veteran's opinions.

I'm a former asthmatic, though I haven't had to take any medications for this in about 8-9 years. However, my cardio capacity has not grown a lot in that time period. My main physical activity in that time has been traditional martial arts. During my training I did quite a bit of bodyweight conditioning, but cardio was not emphasized. I recently made the transition to Muay Thai and found myself sorely lacking in the type of conditioning necessary to succeed. By the time we were finished the 'warmup' of 15 minutes of skipping and three rounds of light shadow boxing, I was already exhausted. Therefore, when we finally got to technique training, I could not put 100% effort into it. Frankly, I cannot do even 2 rounds of pad work at a decent speed without gassing. I can't do 20 speed kicks with both legs without gassing. These are really the basics of the basics in muay Thai and I'm feeling very frustrated. After about 6 months of this training I definitely saw an improvement, but not nearly enough of one to feel comfortable.

I'm forced to take a break from muay Thai right now, as my current work schedule conflicts with all available classes at my local club. While I get this sorted out over the next few months however, I would like to try and bring my conditioning up to a level where I might get the full benefits from the classes when I return.

My current program consists of a 5 minute warmup on a treadmill, then running intervals on the treadmill of the normal round increments (3 minute run, 1 minute walk). After 3 of those intervals I'm pretty burned out, so I cool down for 5 minutes, then go into weights. To emphasize my need for conditioning I've been doing circuit training, trying to keep my rest times low, while moving between 15 different exercises, one set of each, hitting all the major muscle groups. I've only been doing this for about 2 weeks, so I cannot say anything specific about results, but I was wondering if I should keep to this type of training, or do something different. Perhaps LSD would be better for me than intervals? I only chose interval training as it more closely matches up to the type of conditioning I would need for muay Thai.

Please, any help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

PS- I work at a high class gym, so I have access to most any training equipment.

Machete Juarez · 01-08-2009, 07:40 PM

long distance running is for long distance runners. do your intervals.

Jake Martin · 01-09-2009, 05:51 PM

What's your resting heart rate?

that'll give us a bit more info to go on, whether you're ready to focus on intervals yet or not..

loafyofbread · 01-10-2009, 12:54 PM

check out the "how to finally solve your conditioning........." thread in this forum by EZA.

karateguy36 · 01-11-2009, 03:37 PM

A little more info. I'm 23 years old, 5'8", 159 lbs. 24% body fat, resting heart rate of 78 bpm.

loafyofbread · 01-11-2009, 11:45 PM

i dont know about others, but for me...you have to get that resting heart rate down.

Jake Martin · 01-12-2009, 01:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by loafyofbread

i dont know about others, but for me...you have to get that resting heart rate down.

Yes. This should be priority #1, do some longer bouts of cardio at a heart rate of 120-150 (like 60-90 minutes I believe is the recommended time) a couple times a week.

I second reading EZA's thread, I'm still trying to comprehend all the info I gleaned out of that one.

JSN · 01-12-2009, 01:20 AM

if you're at 24% bodyfat, that right there is an easy thing to make sure you work on that will dramatically improve your capabilities. it's not horrible, but you do want to be in prolly about the 18% range maximum, with something like like 12% being a pretty common ideal. if you lose 10 pounds, which is a pretty damned doable goal, that would place you under 18%.

karateguy36 · 01-12-2009, 08:56 AM

Thanks for all the recommendations! I had a feeling my resting heart rate was part of the problem. I've never really done that kind of cardio for any length of time before, as I always found it too boring. I guess I will just have to suck it up and do it!

What's a reasonable goal for my resting heart rate? Do you think I could get it below 70 in, say, 3 months time? Not that I have anything particular planned for that time, but I always try to give myself time frames to work in. Helps to motivate me and quantify my progress.

DARTH SIMPSON 2 · 01-12-2009, 09:29 AM

When i trianed often, i would run 40 yrs, walk back the 40 yrs, and increase until i did 1 mile, its killer. Hard to do on a treadmill, at a local high school field.