Exercise! - would you consider lunges and squats cardio?

My trainer used to say anything that gets your heart rate up is cardio...

i started doing this routine that Harvey Pasternak designed for Lady Gaga which is super hard...he has her do 6 sets of 20 of reverse lunges, curtsey squats, bicycle for abs etc..

would you say these things count as cardio??

it seems like all the stars do lots of lunges, squats in addition to machines like the treadmill...but would you count it as cardio too?

i mean it's not using weights...it's using your body...so is it strength training using your body weight or are lunges cardio (like running would be)

confused and need opinions..thanks!

I think I would consider them cardio if you were doing them in a circuit - like if you did 3 sets of lunges followed by 5 minutes on a cardio machine then squats then cardio and so on. I think as long as you keep your heart rate up the whole time - at least that's how i do it.

Weight training can be cardio if it gets your heart rate up to a certain point and sustains it. When i do weight training, my heart rate goes up but it also goes down during rest periods. Do you have a heart rate monitor? That'd be the best indicator of how your heart rate is doing.

Cardio exercise uses large muscle movement over a sustained period of time keeping your heart rate to at least 50% of its maximum level. Workouts should cause moderate sweating. If you can’t finish a sentence while doing your workout you are going at it too hard. If you are having no trouble talking step it up. You need a minimum of 20 minutes of continued elevated pulse to get the best results at least 3 times a week.

I would say what you are doing is cardio. It sounds very similar to the exercises I do at home 5 nights a week. Combining that with a change in what I eat, I've lost 21 lbs in 11 weeks.

Good luck with it!