Cardiovascular training has a host of healthy benefits. According to Jonathan Myers, PhD, of the American Heart Association, cardiovascular training has the ability to keep your body weight down, reduce your blood pressure and bad cholesterol, increase your good cholesterol, and increase your insulin sensitivity. With a diligent cardiovascular regimen and modifications to your diet that keep you away from high fat foods, your cholesterol will begin to go down as your fitness level starts to go up.
Step 1
Figure out your maximum heart rate to assess what your aerobic zone is. Your maximum heart rate can be calculated by subtracting your age from 220. The resulting number can then be multiplied by .60. This number is the beginning of your aerobic zone, which is the level at which you will need to keep your heart rate.
Step 2
According to World Fitness News, start doing exercises that increase and keep your heart rate elevated in your aerobic zone for a period of at least 30 minutes. Try running, swimming, jump roping or any activity that keeps you constantly in motion. Your heart rate should be above 60 percent of your maximum heart rate for the entire cardiovascular session.
Step 3
Be consistent. Do your cardiovascular training everyday if possible to get the compounded benefits of increased exercise tolerance, which will allow you to do more cardiovascular exercise at a greater intensity. The more you exercise, the better shape you will be in to do more exercises and you will notice less fatigue during your daily activities as well.
Tips and Warnings
- Try increasing the intensity of your cardiovascular exercise once your fitness level goes up. You will notice you are able to do more work at the same heart rate as you get into better shape.
- Always stretch and warm up before doing any exercise to prevent pulling or tearing a muscle.
