To lose weight you must expend more energy, or calories, than you need. This can be done by simply cutting your caloric intake. However, losing weight by incorporating a cardio workout plan alongside your calorie-cutting efforts enables you to reap the health benefits of exercise and burn calories. Cardio exercise cuts your risk of certain cancers and lowers your blood pressure. Try a walking, dancing, swimming or bicycling plan, and watch your body change as you lose weight.
Frequency
The American College of Sports Medicine recommends a minimum of 30 minutes of cardiovascular exercise three to five times a week. Use a calendar to plan your workout sessions and monitor your progress. If there are several exercises you enjoy doing, alternate them every other day. If you swim and bike, schedule swimming for Monday, Wednesday and Friday and bike on Tuesday and Sunday.
Walking to Running Plan
Walking intensely burns the same number calories in 50 minutes that running does in 20 minutes. If you want to lose weight, begin walking with the intent of training to run. Once you can walk quickly for 30 minutes at a time, begin alternating periods of walking and running. As you get stronger, you will be able to run for your entire exercise time. You can break up your runs into shorter time segments if finding uninterrupted time is challenging.
Dance Aerobics
Aerobic dance provides an intense cardiovascular exercise. You can workout in your own home with a DVD or join a class at a community center or gym in your area. Aerobic dance combines the step movements of traditional aerobics with more complex dance moves. According to The Health Care Center, "In addition to dance steps, the routine may eventually call for arm movements. These arm movements are added to the mix to increase the heart rate." The workouts are generally an hour in length, so plan on doing three sessions a week.
Swimming Plan
Swimming is a cardiovascular workout that offers benefits "similar to other aerobic activities such as running and cycling," according to the website How To Be Fit. You can burn between 350 and 450 calories per hour, depending on your weight. Begin a swimming workout plan by swimming for one lap, resting for a few seconds, and then swimming another lap. Concentrate on your form, and your speed and endurance will increase. If you enjoy the water, but not swimming laps, you can workout in the water by water jogging or joining a water aerobics class.
Bicycling Plan
Riding a bicycle is a skill you may have learned as a child. Bicycling, either on land or using a stationary bike, burns a lot of calories and helps you shed excess body fat and weight. Cycling three times a week for an hour burns between 300 to 500 calories each hour depending on your weight and speed. Whether you bike outdoors or inside, incorporate hill work to challenge yourself and get stronger. If you bicycle outdoors, make sure to wear a properly fitted helmet.
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