Death To Cardio! page 2

[WarlordBlade]

I definitely don't even think about it as 'cardio' anymore - even though I go trail running a lot - more than is normally accepted on these boards. I do it because I like it and I feel like I'm getting better at running up hills!
Thanks for the continually great articles Al!

[Owly]

I recently started running with my partner, and it's definitely not as cardio--I'd like to do a Spartan Race sometime and the run training helps, but beyond that, just going out and running together is awesome for us as a couple because we can point out interesting stuff to each other, challenge the other to do a bit more, and then wrap it all up doing pullups and playing like big kids on the playground equipment in our local park. I haven't been able to afford my gym fees these last couple of months, so I've seen this as a chance to learn to run better and improve my bodyweight skills, and I've been having a lot of fun doing it.

[LastingOne]

Totally agree with all the sentiments here. My crazy cousins and friends keep trying to get me into running - more specifically, half marathons and crap like that. Really smart for someone who is working through some cortisol/adrenal dysfunction. Yet, they don't get it.

I'll bounce around when I'm hiking, but that's fun to me. Slogging my way through mile five on the sidewalk sounds like a fate worse than death.

[Al_Kavadlo]

The only "cardio" I do is definitely more practice than anything. I do high volume kettlebell swings, a la Bud Jeffries, and sprints. One day a week each.

That sounds pretty solid!

I definitely don't even think about it as 'cardio' anymore - even though I go trail running a lot - more than is normally accepted on these boards. I do it because I like it and I feel like I'm getting better at running up hills!
Thanks for the continually great articles Al!

Thanks! Of course you're getting better at running hills - you've been practicing!

I recently started running with my partner, and it's definitely not as cardio--I'd like to do a Spartan Race sometime and the run training helps, but beyond that, just going out and running together is awesome for us as a couple because we can point out interesting stuff to each other, challenge the other to do a bit more, and then wrap it all up doing pullups and playing like big kids on the playground equipment in our local park. I haven't been able to afford my gym fees these last couple of months, so I've seen this as a chance to learn to run better and improve my bodyweight skills, and I've been having a lot of fun doing it.

Glad you're having fun with the bodyweight training (I'm including running as bw). Maybe you won't even feel the need to rejoin the gym.

Totally agree with all the sentiments here. My crazy cousins and friends keep trying to get me into running - more specifically, half marathons and crap like that. Really smart for someone who is working through some cortisol/adrenal dysfunction. Yet, they don't get it.

I'll bounce around when I'm hiking, but that's fun to me. Slogging my way through mile five on the sidewalk sounds like a fate worse than death.

It's crazy to start with a half marathon if you're a non-runner - so many amateurs get injured training for these events. A 5k might be a better personal challenge.

[Owly]

Glad you're having fun with the bodyweight training (I'm including running as bw). Maybe you won't even feel the need to rejoin the gym.

Heh. Maybe if I lived somewhere with halfway bearable winters! Running is not so fun below -20C, and I can't picture trying to do pullups in my mittens in several feet of snow in the park. I'm just not that hardcore.

I belong to a Crossfit gym (a good one with coaches who actually have training beyond a level one cert and where programming is more than just throwing people into the main site WOD) and so I do a lot of playing with barbells, but we still do a fair bit of bodyweight stuff in our workouts. But I've always enjoyed bodyweight stuff--I used to do a lot of it when I was training TKD. I'm looking forward to being able to do handstand pushups again soon.

My ideal is to be able to do stuff like climb ropes--just finally learned that skill!--and other bodyweight fun, but also to be able to pick up really heavy stuff when I feel like it.

[EvRevFit]

I'm actually thinking about dabbling in trail running. I may also think about doing a Tough Mudder or a Spartan Race sometime in the near future...you know, just to practice

[Jerseyjim]

I'm actually thinking about dabbling in trail running. I may also think about doing a Tough Mudder or a Spartan Race sometime in the near future...you know, just to practice

I just did my fist Warrior Dash last weekend and it was a blast! 5k was a good distance to start with for me.

[Owly]

I just did my fist Warrior Dash last weekend and it was a blast! 5k was a good distance to start with for me.

I wanted to do one this August, but I have to postpone it. Finances mean I can't afford the race fee and associated travel costs and a planned hike the following weekend with friends to the Burgess Shale, and fossils won out. Seriously, a whole day hiking in the Rockies and seeing incredibly important fossil beds? It's like an outdoorsy nerd's dream trip. So it looks like my partner and I will be training together to do the race next year--more reasons to go climb on stuff at the park!

[zoebird]

so for sure on this one.

i love working on my yoga and my parkour, and eventually -- and I do mean eventually -- i'll be back on wheels (skates) on a regular basis. It's all so much fun, how cna anyone call it "cardio?" I ask you that!

both of those probably qualify more like LHT. and then there's that glorious all-the-time walking. At least 1 hr per day, yu know, just to get around. *love it*.

[primalrob]

I wanted to do one this August, but I have to postpone it. Finances mean I can't afford the race fee and associated travel costs and a planned hike the following weekend with friends to the Burgess Shale, and fossils won out. Seriously, a whole day hiking in the Rockies and seeing incredibly important fossil beds? It's like an outdoorsy nerd's dream trip. So it looks like my partner and I will be training together to do the race next year--more reasons to go climb on stuff at the park!

my only complaint with mud runs is the cost. warrior dash and spartan race are $50 for early registration, and it keeps going up the longer you wait, and i feel like those are the cheapest ones. but, you can usually get around the cost by volunteering for the event. you usually get to race for free.
if volunteering isn't your thing, you can still it for free...just without all the free stuff. so many people run them, and bibs and numbers fall or get rubbed off so soon, there's really no way for anyone to know whether you're registered or not. it's definitely not as good as paying, but mud runs could make for a free, fun, one-off workout where you just get filthy.