Author Jim Karas describes his controversial approach towards fitness and weight loss in the Cardio Free Diet.
Cardio exercise has always been treated as important in burning calories, but Karas claims that cardio exercises burn fewer calories and increase the appetite. The result of this is that it causes weight gain and forces us to increase food intake. Karas also states that our body adapts to cardio exercise, and it is important to keep doing more and more to get the same calorie burning effects.
Karas claims that cardio may be very bad for long term health by impairing immunity, increasing inflammation in the body and can increase the risk of cancer and heart disease in later life.
Cardio Free Diet Basics
Karas says it is possible that dieters can eat anything on his program, but he actually recommends severely limiting or removing refined carbohydrates, sodas, juices, etc. from your diet.
Karas suggests eating three meals per day along with three small snacks. He also suggests eating breakfast daily. A 100-calorie snack is recommended both before and after workouts. This is done to boost metabolism and provide fuel for the muscles.
In the beginning the calorie intake for women is 1200 per day, and for men is 1500 per day. Once the target weight is achieved he recommends increasing the calorie intake to 1500 calories per day for women, and 1800 calories per day for men.
Recommended Foods
The dieters are advised to take calcium supplements daily and eat dairy foods because studies have shown a relationship between weight loss and calcium. (The validity of this has recently been brought into question).
High fiber carbohydrates are recommended which helps in controlling blood sugar balance and prevent cravings.
One glass of wine is allowed daily.
The book contains the following recipes:
1. Apple Balsamic Chicken
2. Feta Vegetable Omelets
3. Dijon Turkey
4. Grilled Tomato Tuna
Exercise Recommendations
Karas suggests that we all ditch the cardio, and instead perform weight training and resistance exercises for 20 minutes, 3 times a week, while following a calorie controlled diet.
Pros
- Just speak to those who have been doing a lot of cardio exercises without seeing any results.
- Weight training can be helpful to build lean muscle, which helps in boosting metabolism and improves body shape.
Cons
- Requires calorie counting.
- Recommended calories are very low and it is difficult to meet all nutritional needs.
- Good results might not be obtained with 20 minutes of exercise, 3 times a week, especially in intermediate or advanced exercisers.
Conclusions
Although Karas does provide some information about research on the effects of cardio, it seems that his conclusions are based on his own personal experience. His prime focus is on weight training to boost metabolism. However, his diet program is low in calories, which can decrease the metabolic rate over the longer term.
Studies have shown that cardio reduces the risk of heart disease, diabetes and cancer. The Cardio Free Diet may be helpful to dieters who have been spending hours on the treadmill but not getting the desired results.
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