January 2004January 2004
Announcing the debut of Randomosity Fitness Newsletter!
The goal of these articles is to help everyone think about and aim toward a healthier and happier lifestyle. Whether you're actively pursuing a fitness routine or not, the informative guidelines and tips will be useful tools as you strive toward improvement of your well being, physically and beyond.
It is a commitment to oneself that every human being needs to make. You're never too old or too young to make improvements in your quality of life. FITNESS and EXERCISE education, hints, and tips to improve well being, health, and physical ability.
This is not intended as medical advice which should be obtained directly from your doctor.
"Workout" is not the best way to describe exercising. If exercise is all work and no play, then very few people will like it or even want to try. One aspect of exercising that most non-exercisers don't know is that the mind, spirit, and body are stimulated to new levels. It's physical, and psychological, and often social, or whatever else you make it.
My philosophy of exercise is that everybody who seeks wellness can find types of exercise to enjoy. Whatever you do, whether it's walking, yard work, sports, martial arts, or non-competitive fitness classes, you better do something cause wellness is a use-it-or-lose-it aspect of life. It's progressive: you either improve or decline. And most of the time, it's your choice. These Tips are relevant to all types of exercise, in that body structure and safety are applied. To understandmore about the basics of bio-mechanics (how the body works) check out the Muscles section on the General Fitness info page.
This is not intended as medical advice which should be obtained directly from your doctor.
What Does Cardio-Aerobic Exercise Energy takes longer to make available aerobically, so one indicator your body is using energy aerobically is that you've been moving continuously at least 10 minutes (with light perspiration and heavier breathing). Here is a checklist of signs to indicate when the body is in, "Aerobic Mode." We check during every class to determine whether we are really working in the right range to burn fat. Without the help of math, science, or machines we can guess when the body is using energy aerobically based on the physical response in our bodies. One sign is heavy breathing, usually not so hard you can't talk, but heavy. Another sign is light perspiration (although this could also be a sign of humidity or nervousness so it's best to use the breathing as a guide). Dripping with sweat is a sign your body is not cooling well, it's not an indicator of how hard you're working. It can lead to dehydration and heat exhaustion, so if you are dripping sweat you need to slow down or cool down and drink water. Other physical responses to aerobic exercise include elevated body temperature and increased rate of heart beats (although again, could be for many reasons such as illness, too much coffee, or flashing red lights in your rear view mirror). Most people also have the warm glow of youth in their skin during aerobic exercise. The heart is beating faster, the body is warmer, more oxygen is circulating, so of course people glow with life. This is not intended as medical advice which should be obtained directly from your doctor. |
CARDIO TRAINING BENEFITS So what does aerobic training do for you in the long term? It increases your lung capacity. It strengthens the heart muscle, and increases metabolic rate (energy use and delivery). These benefits add up to
Some other benefits include:
This is not intended as medical advice which should be obtained directly from your doctor. |
Aerobic training is best understood when compared to its opposite - anaerobic training. Aerobic means “with oxygen, Anaerobic means “without oxygen”. Anaerobic training is high intensity, short duration activity. Examples include sprinting and weight lifting. The muscles need a limited burst of energy, and enough energy is usually stored within the muscles. Aerobic training is at a lower intensity, but longer time. Examples include: biking, jogging, swimming, walking, yard work. More energy is needed for the longer duration because there isn't enough stored in the muscles. The body uses other sources of energy (mainly fat stores and fuel in the blood) in addition to the stores of energy in the muscles. These others fuel sources are not as readily available as the energy stored in the muscle. The body requires oxygen to make fat stores available as energy. Working too intensely during aerobic training can be over-demanding on your cardio vascular system and push your body out of aerobic mode into anaerobic mode. Working too hard to too long can cause dangerous fatigue. Aerobic exercise is activity that uses oxygen to burn fuel, (uses oxygen, therefore places demands on cardiovascular system). This is achieved by continuous movement of large muscle groups. This is not intended as medical advice which should be obtained directly from your doctor. |
Use it or lose it! If you do nothing, then your ability to do anything declines. One step at a time, day by day. Countless small actions and daily decisions add up in the long term to your health or lack of health. In physical health, the cardiovascular system is an important subject. It is the system that delivers oxygen to every cell in your body. This is not intended as medical advice which should be obtained directly from your doctor. |