• Home
  • Categories
    • Life
    • Skin Care
    • Fitness
    • Shopping
    • Recipes
    • Oakley
    • Travel
    • Bowmar Brands
    • Gift Guides
  • About
  • Contact
Life
Skin Care
Fitness
Shopping
Recipes
The Kids
Travel
Gift Guides
Bowmar Brands
Media

by Sarah Bowmar | Oct 10, 2017 | Fitness

How Much Cardio Should I Be Doing?

×

Hey guys, Sarah Bowmar here to answer the age-old question. The thing I get asked more than anything on the planet: how much cardio should I be doing to lose weight?

Before I answer this, here are a couple of things to know:

  1. Cardio is not magical
  2. Cardio should not be abused and should not act as a form of punishment if you overeat or binge

Let’s start at the beginning … 

You burn calories 24/7. Even when you are sleeping. You burn calories while you eat. You burn calories petting your cat (not a lot, but you ARE ALWAYS BURNING CALORIES).

Here are two magical numbers to know when determining how much cardio you should be doing: Your BMR (basal metabolic rate) and TDEE (total daily energy expenditure).

We are all different and so are our BMR and TDEE. Someone who is 5’3, 135lbs, and 15% body fat has a MUCH different BMR than someone who is 5’3, 135lbs, and 35% body fat. The same goes for TDEE because the more muscle you have, the more calories you will burn throughout the day.

There is a multitude of ways to determine these numbers. There are many free online calculators but those are sometimes hit or miss as everyone uses different calculations. At Bowmar Fitness, we also offer some great ways to know and understand your numbers. I’m not saying you have to buy a meal plan from us, but we are certified nutrition professionals, and our meal plans have helped over 12,000 customers. IF you are interested, they are available at https://bowmarfitness.com/nutrition-plans/.

Back to cardio

Your TDEE encompasses your sleeping, eating, moving, breathing, petting of the cats, showering, lifting, and cardio, etc. Every movement. Everything you burn throughout the day. Your BMR is what your body burns at rest, aka laying in bed all day long.

Obviously, these are 2 different numbers. If you’re using our method of calculating your TDEE, you will be asked to determine how many hours of activity you perform throughout the week. If you are a nurse on your feet for hours on end and lift weights, your TDEE activity level number will be vastly different from someone with a desk job who maybe does some walking at lunch.

The amount of cardio you do should be calculated into your TDEE. If you are determining your numbers and you aren’t doing cardio, you might be at 12 active hours per week. So your caloric intake will be based on 12 hours. If you want to start adding in cardio, let’s say four 30 minute sessions a week, your active hours just went from 12 to 14 and your calories will GO UP because you are MOVING MORE.

I try to do cardio 3-4 times a week. The duration depends on my current goal. How much cardio you do is up to you but you need to be logging in and factoring in all of the cardio you are doing. 

I personally do 3–4 40 minute sessions a week if I am wanting to cut (I like to eat a lot so I am willing to do more cardio). I do 2–3 15 minute sessions a week if I am wanting to maintain or bulk (to keep my heart and lungs healthy). I would NEVER recommend doing more than 45 minutes of cardio per session. If you do more than 50 minutes, you will put your body in a catabolic state (aka consuming your own muscle for energy). I personally do steady-state cardio because it is easier on my joints. I do incorporate HIIT from time to time in the form of Crossfit. 

Please don’t do what I do if you are not eating enough to do what I do.

MOVING MORE = MORE CALORIES BURNED =  MORE FAT BURNED

Ok, let’s take a breath.
Ok, back to it.

I ALWAYS RECOMMEND that anyone trying to lose weight should also be weight lifting because the more muscle you have, the more calories you will burn, as it takes more energy to move muscle. The more muscle you have, the higher your BMR will become because it takes more energy to move a 200lb person that is solid muscle compared to a 200lb person that is solid fat (obviously no one is 100% anything).

If you want to lose weight: eat less than you burn aka TDEE.
If you want to maintain weight, eat what you burn aka TDEE.
If you want to “bulk”, eat more than you burn aka TDEE.
A good rule of thumb is to never eat below your BMR.

Specific macros, calories, etc. should not be set in stone either. Adjust. Make changes. Track what your body is doing. We always recommend our clients update their stats every 2 weeks to ensure the most accurate macro and caloric totals for their current bodies.

I hope this helped. Please provide feedback on my Sarah Bowmar Instagram page if it did!

Sarah Bowmar
To get the latest from Sarah Bowmar, check out the Sarah Bowmar homepage to subscribe.

Related posts:

Sarah Bowmar Answers: Lifting or Cardio for Weight Loss?
What Supplements Do I Need
My Supplement Schedule / Routine

11 Comments

  1. ThatJessie on October 10, 2017 at 2:35 am

    I think you simplified it perfectly!

    Reply
  2. Unknown on November 3, 2017 at 3:12 pm

    Loved this! Really helps and gives me a better basis to explain this for others! Thank you!

    Reply
  3. Kelly Larkin on December 5, 2017 at 4:07 am

    Couldn’t you provide more information on the benefit of different types of cardio? Low/moderate intensity vs. high intensity and intervals? Additionally, I w heard mixed things on the best time to do cardio (before or after lifting). What do you think?

    Reply
  4. Kelly Larkin on December 5, 2017 at 4:07 am

    **could you provide

    Reply
  5. Beningber on December 6, 2017 at 1:52 am

    THANK YOU!!!! I needed this. As a recent gastric bypass patient I am looking to obviously maximize my weight loss so this helps big time

    Reply
  6. Erinp26 on January 3, 2019 at 4:27 am

    Thanks for directing me here!

    Reply
  7. Unknown on January 31, 2019 at 1:50 pm

    I ageee. I am interested too!

    Reply
  8. Amanda on December 20, 2020 at 5:25 pm

    What are ur recommendations for post Bariatric surgery cases that want to build muscle. Due to smaller stomach I have limited caloric intake

    Reply
  9. Mary on December 20, 2020 at 11:10 pm

    This information was so helpful! I just love how you know exactly what your body needs!

    Reply
  10. Naz on January 28, 2021 at 6:03 am

    Thanks for the blogs didn’t even know u had these … very informative.

    Reply
  11. Mia on April 14, 2021 at 1:10 pm

    I really loved how simple this was to understand! Thank you!!!

    Reply

Trackbacks/Pingbacks

  1. Fat Burning Heart Rate Zone - Sarah Bowmar - […] How Much Cardio Should I Be Doing? […]
  2. How To Get Fit in College - Sarah Bowmar - […] However, depending on your goals you may not want to add any cardio (check out Sarah’s blog “How much…
  3. Do I Need Cardio To Lose Weight? - Sarah Bowmar - […] How Much Cardio Should I Be Doing […]
  4. Refeed Days - Sarah Bowmar - […] would be somewhere in the 20-30% over your current cutting calories. As a reminder from my most popular post…

Submit a Comment Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

explore
About Sarah
Contact Me
Pregnancy Guide

Join My Newsletter

       
blog
Blog categories
Bowmar podcast
Bowmar Nutrition
Sarah Bowmar © 2023