Heart-Healthy Exercise Habits

Heart-Healthy Exercise Habits
 
People always talk about how they're going to the gym to do some "cardio." 
What's that really mean? Whether they're running on a treadmill, riding the 
recumbent bicycle or 
using an elliptical machine, they're talking about doing aerobic exercise 
- otherwise known as 
cardio because of its profound cardiovascular benefits.
Plain and simple, when you're doing aerobic exercise, you're using oxygen 
to replenish energy stores,
 which means the heart and lungs are working harder and getting stronger in the process.
 By comparison, 
anaerobic exercise (for example, weight training), requires your body to create energy 
without using 
oxygen. 
Here are some of the other benefits of aerobic exercise:
* Increases blood supply to muscles and ability to utilize oxygen.
* Increases amount of blood pumped (per beat and per minute).
* Increases HDL ("good") cholesterol and lowers triglycerides.
* Increases blood supply to muscles.
* Reduces resting heart rate.
* Reduces resting systolic/diastolic blood pressure.
* Reduces high cholesterol and risk of developing high cholesterol.
To achieve the maximum cardiovascular benefit during aerobic activities, you should exercise for at 
least 20-30 minutes at a time and build to your "target heart rate" - this is a range of beats per 
minutethat represents approximately 60-85 percent of your maximum heart rate. The more time spent 
exercising within this safe range, the more you stand to gain, cardiovascularly speaking. 
Remember to always talk to your doctor before beginning any exercise program,particularly if you have 
any pre-existing heart condition.
 

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