exercise – aerobics:
“In order for fats to burn completely
during a physical exercise, it needs oxygen.”
Fitness Through Aerobics
If you have accepted the fact that exercise is an important part of
any weight loss program, not only to help lose weight but also to become fitter and healthier, then you need to consider aerobics.
Practicing aerobics will build up your fitness levels slowly before going onto more strenuous exercises or workouts if you so choose. There’s no financial outlay and you can do them at your leisure, both indoors and out.
What Exactly Is Aerobics?
The best way I can describe aerobics is that it is any type of physical exercise performed at moderate levels of intensity for a period of time. and that it is effective in improving one’s overall fitness and an excellent way to help you lose weight.
The moderation required in an aerobic exercise enables the muscle cells to be continuously supplied with enough oxygen.
There are two types of exercises: aerobic (which means “with oxygen”) and anaerobic (which means “without oxygen”). Aerobic exercises use mainly arm and leg muscles giving a continuous workout to your heart and lungs. Anaerobic exercises are used mainly to build and tone muscles and do not have the same stimuli on the heart and lungs as aerobics.
Aerobic exercises, used regularly, help your cardiovascular system, (heart,
lungs and blood vessels), respond to physical activity. This increases the oxygen supply to the body’s working muscles increasing their efficiency. (Remember, your heart is also a muscle).
Regular aerobic activity will gradually improve your fitness. Your heart will become stronger and, as a result, begin to work better, with the result that the heart can pump more blood, thereby increasing oxygen supplies all round your body.
Build Up Your Fitness Slowly
There are many levels of aerobic exercises but the ones we are mainly concerned with at the moment are low impact aerobics and high impact aerobics, both of which will help you improve your fitness levels safely.
- Low Impact Aerobics
As the name implies, low-impact exercises don’t include activities which could harm the bones and joints like jumping and bouncing. Exercises performed have lower intensity, thus reducing the risks of injuries and overuse. of the legs. In this exercise, one or both feet should always be in contact with the ground.
With low-impact routine, you do not start with a high note. An individual could start performing the exercises on a slower rate and gradually increase its intensity. Low-impact aerobics is ideal for seniors, obese and overweight individuals and, of course, pregnant women.
- High Impact Aerobics
High impact aerobic exercises use different movements. It could include jumping, turning, shuffling, doubling, etc. This kind of workout intends to develop the abdominal area, calf, and also the cardiovascular system. If an individual is agile and active prior to working out, then high-impact aerobics may be the best option.
However, for beginners, slower and low-impact exercises is recommended first. When the individual is already comfortable with this low-impact level, then it would be safe to proceed with the second level.
- Step Aerobics
Step aerobics uses step benches for working out. Unless you live in an apartment or bungalow you can use the bottom stair in your house as a step bench. This kind of aerobics is actually low in impact.
There are studies showing that step aerobics can help a person reduce weight, given the fact that its impact is only half of the impact used when riding a bike at home. Overall, this process or workout is dedicated for the development of the lower body.
- Aerobic Kickboxing
It is also called cardio boxing. This is one of the most effective workouts for losing weight. Although, aerobic kickboxing is tiring, its effects on the body are great. It could definitely help in building more energy and longer stamina. It is also called cardio boxing and can burn about 800 calories in an hour.
- Water Aerobics
Another low-impact exercise but delivers huge results, whether it is for weight loss or improving over-all health. Water aerobics, according to experts, burns calories faster compared with land-exercises because of the water’s resistance.
If you are just starting on an exercises program your fitness level is probably low, so it is important to start out slowly and gradually increase the amount and intensity of the exercises as your fitness levels improve during the following weeks.
There’s a saying that is especially applicable to aerobics: “Don’t try to run before you can walk!” Most fitness experts recommend walking as the first step in improving fitness levels, particularly for those who haven’t done any exercise for a considerable period of time.
When you first start on your fitness program it is important you don’t over extend yourself. For example, 30 minutes of walking, jogging or a combination of both may be enough to leave you out of breath and feeling tired.
Remember, you have to get back to your starting out point. Much better to walk/jog for 15 minutes, rest until you feel refreshed then walk/jog back for 15 minutes.
I can assure you, apart from helping with weight loss, you’ll find this far more enjoyable and exhilarating than staggering back completely exhausted having spent over an hour on a 30 minute workout!
As your aerobic fitness increases, you can work out longer with greater intensity and recover quicker at the end of the session. When this point is reached you may like to try incorporating other aerobic exercises into your daily exercise routine.
For example, at the end of, say, a jogging session you still feel comfortable, you could try some step-ups, push-ups or other aerobic exercises you feel happy with.
The important thing is to get some kind of aerobic activity, and to make it something that you enjoy enough to keep you interested.
Also important is the warm-up and warm-down before and after any exercise, which helps to avoid muscle strain or injuries. For example, before jogging, spend five minutes doing some light stretching exercises to loosen up your muscles.
If you decide to jog for thirty minutes, spend the last five minutes reducing the pace gradually to walking pace rather than jog all the way to your front door and flop down in the nearest easy chair!
Not sure if aerobics is for you? Then why not join a gym for a month. Some gyms offer a month’s trial at a concessionary rate to encourage you to become a regular member.
This will allow you try out not only lots of different aerobic exercises to find out which ones you like but also many other forms of exercises which, depending on your fitness levels, may suit you better.
As always, I strongly advise you to consult your doctor before starting on any weight loss or fitness program, as some gyms require medical evidence of physical fitness levels to help them assess the most suitable exercises for you before allowing you to use their facilities.