Aerobic Exercise or Cardiovascular Training raises your heart rate,
strengthening your heart and lungs while you burn calories.
Cardiovascular exercises include cycling, swimming, power walking
or running, and aerobic classes. To be effective, you must reach
and stay within your “target heart rate,” defined as 50-70% of your
maximum heart rate.
To calculate your maximum heart rate, subtract your age from 220.
To determine your target heart rate, multiply your maximum heart
rate by 50-70%. If you raise your heart rate above your target
range, you will still get an aerobic benefit, but you will not burn fat.
Examples:
Age
Maximum Heart Rate
Target Heart Rate
2 5
220-25 = 195
97.5-l 36. 5
3 0
220-30 = 190
95.0-133.0
3 5
220-35 = 185
92.5-129.5
4 0
220-40 = 180
90.0-l 26.0
4 5
220-45 = 175
87.5-l 22.5
The American Heart Association recommends 30-60 minutes of
aerobic exercise three to four times a week to promote cardio-
vascular fitness.
Resistance or Strength Training firms the body and tones the mus-
cles. While these exercises, which include weight lifting, sit-ups,
and toning, do not directly burn fat, they do build muscle. The more
lean muscle you have, the more easily your body can burn calories
and reduce body fat.
Fitness professionals recommend at least 30 minutes of strength
training two to three days a week.
Helpful Exercise Tips:
l
Setgoals. Write down what you want to achieve in the short
and long term.
l
Make exercise a habit. Choose a time every day - even
30 minutes - and stick to it.
l
Vary your workout. Mix up your activities to avoid burn out.
l
Recruit a friend! Working out as a team keeps you both
motivated.
l
Keep a success journal. Write down your activity, weight and
body fat percentage.
Through regular exercise you can lose weight by burning fat. With diet
alone, you lose weight by losing beneficial muscle and bone tissue.
