Top Things to Know About Cardiovascular Fitness
Fitness is an important factor in living a long and healthy life and cardiovascular fitness is an important aspect to overall general health. Cardiovascular fitness is achieved through aerobic activities and when done properly, can stretch and strengthen all aspects of your cardiovascular system. Starting out right and keeping on track are keys in integrating a cardiovascular fitness routine into your life.
Aerobic versus Anaerobic
- Aerobic exercise - is defined as requiring air and, in the case of aerobic exercise, air is defined as oxygen. When related to fitness, aerobic activity is typically exercises that are done with low intensity and of a long duration. Aerobic also is used to describe how the body utilizes oxygen through the metabolic process, also known as the energy-generating process. Aerobic exercises are used to achieve weight-loss and cardiovascular fitness.
- Anaerobic exercise - is the opposite of aerobic and literally means without oxygen. Anaerobic exercises are used to increase strength, power and speed. These exercises are normally intense in nature and of shorter duration. Body building and weight lifting are two forms of anaerobic exercise.
How Often and How Long
How often and how long you perform cardiovascular exercises differs with each person and is dependent on fitness level, weight and goals. Generally the more days per week you can incorporate cardio exercises into your fitness regimen, the better. It is worth a visit to the doctor to seek out assistance in determining how often and how long you should be working out. The goal should be to achieve 70 – 80 % of your maximum heart rate and sustain that for 30 minutes.
Types of Cardiovascular Fitness Exercises
Basically any exercise that raises your heart rate and sustains it for a period of time can achieve cardiovascular fitness. These exercises include:
- Walking
- Running
- Treadmills
- Stationary or regular bicycles
- Stair steppers
- Rowing machines
- Ski machines
- Swimming
- Dancing