Hate Cardio..any tips

so i weight train 3 times a week and plan to do cardio the other 3 days. 

I usually do classes (body jam mostly), but lately will time conflicts, i've been forced to do cardio on my own. 

so today at the gym i got on the bike, put on tbs (friends was on) and started on my 60 mins of cardio.  by 10 mins i was really struggling and by 15mins i was done. 

I have the same issue with the elliptical and the treamill (unless i'm walking).

I've been going to the gym consistantly for 2 months and this is not getting better.  any other forms of cardio i can try...or tips to stay on the machines???

Are you "done" as in bored silly?  Too tired to go on?  Your breathing is too labored?  Your muscles are too sore?

If you're too tired, your breathing is labored, or your muscles are too sore, try easing up on the speed/intensity until you can do the full hour (or start out at 15 minutes, and work up in small increments until you get there).

If you're bored silly, sorry, can't help you there because I have the same problem! :)  The only thing that helps is to "zone out" - either watch TV, put on an iPod, or stare into space and don't look at the displays - they'll drive you batty.

As for other cardio - try doing something outside the gym!  I love to run outside, or bike; or join a team (soccer, basketball, etc.) or a dance class (ballet, jazz, even ballroom).  Walk the stairs at work during lunch (boring, but effective); walk (fast) around the mall; get a dog and run/walk with them daily.  Anything that gets your heart beating faster can potentially be a good cardio workout, and it doesn't have to be boring.  Save the gym for those days you can't seem to do anything else.

**Including post from duplicate thread - UTR**

missreporter
Nov 28 2007 19:18

when you tire of one machine, go to the next.

i used to do 15 mins on the treadmill, 15 on the bike, and 15 on the elliptical. maybe with 5 thrown in on the rower for a whopping 50 mins. i could never do that on one machine. but it went by much quicker splitting it up. 

Hi there lilreenz.  I have read that more than 45 minutes of cardio at once, starts to take away your muscle.  Not sure how acurate that is but perhaps somone can confirm?  If so you might want to just go for 45 minutes

Try jumping from machine to machine instead of one or 2 machines  try 3 or 4.  If your goal is 60 minutes perhaps try 15 on the stationary bike, 15 on the elliptical, 15 on the stairmaster and 15 on the treadmill.  (for 45 minutes do about 11 minutes on each)  This will keep your mind challenged and since if it is something different than your regular routine your body will most likely start toning up.  If you have been doing the same routine, your body just gets used to it.  If you want your body to change, do something different.  Besides your cardio, I would also change up your weight routine.  Try doing an extra set and or change the excersize as well as the weight.

A trainer once told me a good time limit for a routine is between 6-8 weeks, then change up. 

Good luck!

Ps if you have a new machine called the "cardio wave" at the gym jump on it, it is great and burns like 1000 calories in 45 minutes if you put it on the "25" level.  Great for your core muscles lower body, it feels like you are roller skating, lol oooops i think i just dated myself, i meant to say roller blading :+)

i love roller skating!!!!

Thank you all!  i'm def going to try the different machines.  I just googled the cardio wave...that looks like so much fun!  unfortunately we dont have that. 

 zarelha...done as in too tired to go on. I may try going when i know a good movie is on tv so I can watch it and "zone out".  As sad as this sounds..I feel guilty if i work outdoors and not at the gym as i'm paying for my membership...i know i know wrong way to think about it. 

Thanks guys!

HIIT

really. I hate 60 mins of cardio too, its so boring. You only have to do HIIT for 20 mins and its so difficult you dont have time to get bored. All you have time to do is grunt, sweat, pant, and try your damndest to get through it. I do it on the bike machine, I like it most.

ok...just wanna see if i understand this correctly...

 HIIT - High intensity interval training?

so basically if I'm on the bike, i would split my intensity/levels every 30 secs?

I do mine every minute. I start at a regular pace until 1:00, then crank it up to level 5 and go 100 RPM until 2:00, then after than back down to level zero at a slower steady rate for another min, then so forth.

People split theirs differently, but I like every other minute. If you need more rest time, you can give yourself an extra 30 seconds when you need it.

just a side note, and i could be wrong too... but i was once told that walking and running the same distance will burn the same amount of calories, however you burn more at a faster: more running than walking (duh). maybe a more intense 30 minute cardio workout would suffice?! this wont necessarily help with the whole being too tired thing. but maybe you can tell yourself just 30 minutes and be able to push a little longer!

 who knows i just know i hate cardio, but i tend to do ok when i just push for a shorter period of time rather than taking my time forever!

 good luck! 

jumprope...its fun too. 10 minutes skipping is like 30 minutes jogging..check it out....oh, and its cheaper than a gym

If you're trying to lose weight, you really shouldn't be doing 60 minutes of cardio anyway. Do HIIT for 20-30 minutes, and you'll burn far more calories, which means you'll burn more fat. I like the jump rope idea - it's a calorie incinerator. If you like walking on a treadmill, crank up the incline and walk as fast as you can for 1 minute, then slow down, lower the incline and recover for a minute. Do 20-30 minutes of this and you're done.

If you really hate doing it on your own, try some exercise videos you can do at home. There are some really good ones that will kick your butt, and it will be more like the class setting that you seemed to like.

thanks for all the replies! 

I love the jumprope idea...def going to give that a try. 

Also the HIIT. 

I totally know what you mean. After about three minutes on the elliptical, I was done. So the next time, I decided I would not leave the gym until I had five minutes. Then seven, then ten, etc. I remember the first time I did twelve minutes and I was SO proud. Now I do about 30 minutes three times a week. It's hard, but worth the effort. Hang in there! When it gets really hard, I count paces. I say "I won't quit until I've gone another 100 paces" and it's an effective distraction. Sometimes. :P

Hey everyone.  thank you for all of your replys.  just wanted to let you know that i did HIIT for the first time today....and loved it.  I was totally dying...but loved it!!