Stairmaster Success

There are numerous reasons why to incorporate cardio into your training program.
Without getting too complicated, a few of the benefits associated with cardiovascular exercise is that it burns immediate calories, revs up our metabolism for about 45 minutes afterwards, conditions our leg muscles and keeps us “heart healthy”. Our heart is forced to pump rich, oxygenated blood to our cells, flushing out toxins within our body. Our body improves its ability to function properly to metabolize fat and improve our cardiovascular performance. Not to mention the fact that when performed intensely, it is mentally therapeutic because of the release of hormones that occurs, making us feel better when it’s finished.

When done properly, I believe that the Stairmaster is the best man made piece of cardio equipment; it’s my personal favorite and it is almost always my first choice. I always make sure I’m challenged and that I’m training my body and giving it exactly what it needs in regards to intensity.

There are definitely days when I have to “force” myself to get through a cardio session. I don’t really like to use the word “force” because really, I want to be there, I want to do it, and I know it’s good for me and I know I’ll feel so much better once I get started. None the less, I’m human and there are days that I would rather not, but I do it anyways because it needs to get done and integrating a healthy cardiovascular training program into your training is important.

When I’m training for a show, sometimes I have to do an hour of cardio at a time. An hour is not always recommended for everyone. But for me and my training goals for my competitions, it is important because in order to enhance the abundance of fat metabolism at a given time, cardiovascular exercise programs need to incorporate long duration and light intensity.

I can generally tolerate 30 minutes of cardio with no problem. Anything longer than that, and I have to start bribing myself. An hour long session of straight cardio is a long time and believe me… I get board! I don’t like splitting up cardio machines, because as I mentioned, I believe that the Stairmaster is the best and often times it is inconvenient for me to get off of on machine, rest and then get started on another; I’d rather just keep going without stopping.

What’s my bribe and what do I do get through it? Aside from a powerful mind and a commitment to myself that I am going to get it done, I am a serious gum chewer! I tell me self that I will give myself a fresh piece of gum every 15 minutes. That’s my trick and it works for me! When I think I can’t do any more or that I don’t want to do anymore, I just tell myself that I’ll get a fresh burst of flavor in a few short minutes! It’s like a treat and it mentally breaks up my cardio sessions every quarter. Seeing my cardio sessions in bouts of 15 minutes is whole lot more “mentally” attainable. It’s like setting 4 mini goals to achieve the bigger goal of finishing an entire hour.

Other tricks that motivate me are having my iPod loaded with good tunes, a good magazine and a buddy/friend to sweat with. 