I feel like this question of how much cardio you should do plagues the fitness industry. Some suggest several hours of working out and running and "working up a sweat" and others suggest just short interval bursts of cardio lasting only a few minutes.
In reality, everyone's body is different and will respond to different intensities, durations, and intervals of cardio.
To find out what works for you, I recommend going through a systematic, planned approach to a few different types of cardio.
The first approach that I think is a great place to start is a regular LISS (Low-Intensity, Steady State) cardio.
The gist of LISS is in the name - you get on a cardio machine or go outside or wherever you plan to do this cardio and you pick a low-intensity, steady pace of running, jogging, walking, biking, swimming, etc.
LISS is a great way to get started, especially for people who are out of shape but also for people who are already in pretty good shape.
LISS is a lot easier on the joints and it won't make you walk away feeling like you just ran a marathon at high intensity. It allows you to have more frequent sessions and still function in your daily routines - if your someone who's not used to working out at high intensities.
I personally use LISS on a regular basis - about 2-3 times per week as a sort of recovery training. I find it to be a great break from my intense weight training and conditioning activities and thus, it's a great way to allow my body some recovery while working through the lactic buildup. My typical session of LISS involves about 30-45 minutes at a 12 on the stairmaster.
After LISS I would try some HIIT cardio. HIIT is High Intensity Interval Training and is a fantastic way to get your heart rate super high and then have a short recovery period (usually less than 2 minute recovery between intervals of about 30s-2 minute bursts of training.
My typical HIIT session will be about 10-15 minutes in total and will consist of either stairmaster (at a high pace - 18 or so) or some type of conditioning (tire flips, for example).
I use HIIT regularly (about 2-3 times a week) as my main source of cardio training. On the days that I'm feeling really exhausted physically, I'll do LISS instead to allow my body some recovery.
HIIT can be extremely exhausting... In fact, it should be extremely exhausting. It should also be really short which is the main thing I like about it. You have 1 mission, you go in there, execute and then you walk away. That's my favorite.
What's your favorite kind of cardio?