Types of Aerobic Exercise and How to Get Started
Before beginning any exercise program, especially if you have heart or other health issues, talk to your doctor.
If you’re not currently doing much aerobic exercise, start small. This can include walking around the block or incorporating a few jumping jacks into your routine throughout the day. As you gain aerobic fitness, you can increase your exercise intensity.
As the names would imply, the difference between moderate-intensity exercise and high-intensity exercise is the intensity of the workout, or the degree to which you’re pushing yourself.
How to Do Moderate-Intensity Aerobic Exercise
You’re exercising at a moderate intensity if you can keep up a conversation during the activity. To determine if you’re there, you should be able to get out three or four sentences in a row without gasping for air. It’s a sign that you’re maintaining an intensity that is truly aerobic, meaning aerobic metabolism is supplying the vast majority of your body’s energy, Jonesco says.
Your heart rate should be roughly 60 percent of your maximum heart rate. To find your max heart rate, subtract your age from 220. Multiply that number by 0.6 to get your target heart rate for moderate-intensity aerobic exercise, Jonesco says.
How to Do High-Intensity Aerobic Exercise
If you’re active and healthy, and have already built up a base level of aerobic fitness, you can shoot for a higher target heart rate, up to 80 or even 90 percent of your maximum heart rate, Jonesco says.
At this intensity, you will likely be able to say a couple of words before becoming out of breath and needing to gasp for air. You may not be able to talk at all. Keep in mind, however, that intensity predicts duration, so you won’t be able to keep up this intensity for as long as when you’re exercising at lower intensities.
High-intensity interval training — alternating between bouts of all-out effort and low-intensity recovery — is a great way to improve cardiovascular fitness when you’re short on time, Jonesco adds.
Examples of Aerobic Exercises
You have lots of options when it comes to getting your aerobic exercise in, so set a goal to try activities that you enjoy. Depending on your preferences and abilities, aerobics, walking (outside or on a treadmill), bicycling, hiking, aerobic dancing, rowing, and gardening are all quality forms of aerobic exercise that you can easily integrate into your day and can yield big benefits even if you’re doing them in small spurts. Even five minutes counts.
Read the full article here
