An Introduction to Cardiovascular Exercise

Cardiovascular exercise/activity is often referred to as cardio.  It’s the key to any workout.  Whether you’re trying to lose weight or build muscle, cardio will lower your body fat and help increase your metabolism.  Cardio comes in all shapes and forms, it’s basically anything that elevates your heart rate.  Remember to pick an exercise you won’t get easily bored with.

Here’s a list of common exercises:

1. Walking
2. Basketball
3. Jogging
4. Running
5. Dancing
6. Martial Arts

But why choose cardiovascular activity?  Here’s five benefits that will directly impact you.

1. Improved Heart Health – The first one is an improved heart condition.  Your heart is a muscle just like any other and in order for it to become strong, it must be worked.  If you neglect to work it, it will weaken over time and can affect your health negatively.
2. Increased Metabolism – Aside from speeding up your heart rate, cardio also increases the rate of various other processes in your body, otherwise known as your metabolism.
3. Improved Hormonal Profile – Performing cardiovascular activities help your body release “feel good” hormones which will ease feelings of depression and decrease your appetite.
4. Improved Recovery Ability – Certain types of cardio can lower your recovery time after weight lifting.
5. Diabetes Management – For those who have diabetes, cardiovascular exercises can help your muscle’s ability to utilize glucose.  Those who exercise regularly have better control over their blood sugar levels and can help lessen blood sugar swings.

Busy lives often restrict daily exercise.  If you work Monday through Friday from nine to five, try to make some time for yourself during the night or take advantage of your free days, Saturday and Sunday.  Cardio should be completed at least three times a week for 30 minutes per session.

For beginners, try to find an activity that gets you moving and gets your heart rate up. For more advanced practitioners, you might be interested in High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT), tempo training, and interval training.  Cardio is not something you want to overdo in the beginning because similar to any other exercise spending hours after hours on the exercise at a moderate pace will not give you greater benefits than doing the same exercise at a higher rate.  Still, remember to pace yourself when doing any type of exercise, you don’t want to expand all your energy in one burst and quit on yourself after a few minutes.