If you exercise continuously so that your heart rate increases and stays elevated for several minutes, that is called aerobic exercise. MayoClinic.com says most people should get at least 150 minutes of aerobic exercise each week along with strength training twice a week. For example, you might walk, swim or ride a bike 30 minutes a day five days a week.
Body Response
When you exercise, your body responds to meet the additional demands you are placing on it. Your heart rate and breathing get faster to provide more oxygen to your muscles. Small blood vessels widen to permit greater blood flow and your brain releases endorphins. Your heart rate is an excellent measure of your exercise intensity. The American Heart Association recommends that most people aim for a target heart rate between 50 and 85 percent of their maximum heart rate. If you don't have a heart rate monitor, you can estimate your exercise intensity with the "talk test." If you can talk while continuing to exercise, you are not pushing yourself too hard.
Benefits
Moderate aerobic exercise helps you lose extra weight and keep it off. Your stamina increases and your body is better able to fight off viral infections. Regular exercise lowers your risk of heart disease, high blood pressure and type 2 diabetes as well as osteoporosis and some forms of cancer. You may live longer and you are likely to stay active and independent later in life.
Calculation
A good heart rate for moderately active people varies depending on their age and exercise goals. Your best heart rate is usually called your target heart rate. To find your target heart rate, you must estimate your maximum heart rate, or MHR. Men should subtract their age from 220 to estimate their MHR and women should use 226. To calculate your target heart rate, multiply your MHR by the percentage you want. For example, if you are a 40-year-old man and you want to warm up at 50 percent of your MHR, start by subtracting 40 from 220 for an MHR of 180. Multiply 180 by 50 percent for a target heart rate of 90.
Zones
In practice, it is far more useful to target a heart rate zone rather than a specific number of heart beats per minute. For instance, the Walking site suggests beginners target a range of 50 to 60 percent of MHR. This is also a good heart rate zone for warming up before your main workout. Gradually increase your target heart rate to 60 to 70 percent of MHR, which is a good zone for basic physical fitness and losing weight. If you want to improve your endurance, you might move up to a range of 70 to 80 percent of MHR. Once you push beyond 80 percent of MHR, you start to get into the anaerobic zone and your body uses oxygen faster than your lungs can replace it. Exercise at this level of intensity will improve athletic performance but can be sustained for only short periods.
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