1. Consult Your Doctor
Before any exercise regimen, especially when you're considering weight loss and calorie-burning, consult with your doctor. The younger we are, the more flexible and adaptable our bodies can be. We may not be aware that age brings many challenges in the realm of exercise and physical conditioning. Once out of your teens and early twenties, your body needs more continuous care and handling to train to perform.
2. Check Your Pulse
Take your pulse for 10 seconds, preferably in the morning just as you get up, and multiply the number of beats by 6 to get your resting heart rate in 1 minute. You can check your pulse at your radial artery (on your wrist) or at the carotid artery on either side of your neck. Check with your index and middle fingers, not with your thumb. This heart rate, combined with your age, helps you determine where you need to be, as far as your exercising pulse rate is concerned. Stay aware of your minimum heart rate and, especially, of your maximum heart rate. You don't want to overload your heart as you work to burn calories. Just as in other aspects of life, too little can be ineffective and too much can cause damage.
3. Check for Your Target Heart Rate
Check a grid for what your target heart rate should be. This is a calculation based on your age and general fitness level. This is the range of beats per minute (bpm) in which you want to maintain 15 to 20 minutes of cardio exercise to burn maximum fat calories and to strengthen your heart. If you exceed it, you end up burning muscle; if you don't reach it, you're not working as effectively or as efficiently as you could be.
4. Work Your Way Into Your Workout
Be patient with yourself. Contrary to what we see on movies like Rocky, where a week-long workout process is condensed into the space of a few minutes, you have to do your cardio and aerobic workouts day by day, hour by hour, minute by minute. It takes a daily effort and decision to work up to your target heart rate in each cardiovascular exercise that you do.
5. Pace Yourself
Within each individual exercise, be sure to pace yourself carefully. The target heart rate is your guideline. During your first few weeks, work to the lower range of your target heart rate. Keep track of your pulse every several minutes while you exercise, and slow down your pace when you reach the lower limit of your range. As you become more physically fit and you feel more comfortable, then you can work into the higher range.
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