Even novices to the world of diet, fitness, and exercise realize that strength training and cardiovascular fitness routines will lead to fat loss. But, while most people have a solid general idea about this, they may not have a clear idea on the specifics. In other words, they may have questions about the time they need to spend in the gym or how long it will take to achieve certain fitness goals or what specific exercises to perform. Here is a brief look at the basics of strength and cardio training. Hopefully, it will help start you on the right track towards your fitness goals.

First, it is important to understand you need to gradually work your way into complex fitness routines. You need to build up your strength and stamina with low intensity workouts with the intention of moving on to more complex workouts once initial fitness levels have improved. Trying to work out for two hours a day the first week of your new fitness routine will not deliver results. Instead, it will lead to burnout. That is why it is important to stick with the basics at first and then move forward.

Strength Training

The most basic of strength training workouts should include a mix of compound and isolation exercises with 75% being compound exercises. These compound exercises involve the use of several muscle groups to perform the exercise. A bench press would be an example of this since it involves all the muscles in the chest, arms, and shoulders to perform. An isolation exercise targets a single muscle group. Supine chest flyes would be an example of this as they only target the middle area of the chest.

When it comes to the amount of time you need to invest in the gym for your strength training workouts, it is best to stick with short, concentrated workouts. Specifically, 45 minutes to one hour would be enough time. Also, avoid hitting the gym more than 4 days a week since you will need your body to rest and recover from its muscle building workouts. Working out too frequently and for durations that are too long will undermine any and all progress you make in the gym since such practices can lead to the atrophy of the muscles. Obviously, that would be a situation best avoided!

Cardio Workouts

In terms of cardio workouts, these are the best workouts bar none for reducing body fat. The higher the intensity of the cardio workout, the more fat you will burn. But, do not dismiss the value of low intensity cardio workouts because they can deliver great reductions in calories as well. Simply adjust your cardio workouts to your fitness level. For example, you can select among walking, jogging, or running depending upon your current abilities. Actually, you could mix and match high, low, and mid-intensity workouts in the same session. This could form the basis of a great workout program that delivers excellent results without requiring excess and strenuous effort.

Tags: Cardio Workouts, Cardiovascular Fitness, Diet Fitness, Fitness Routines, Gym Workouts, Intensity Workouts, Muscle Building, Muscle Workouts, Strength Training Workouts