For many years, heart health has been a top priority when it comes to maintaining overall wellness. Now, the Cardio Craze is taking this important cause to a whole new level. With active pursuits such as running, swimming, and biking, the Cardio Craze encourages individuals to focus on elevating their heart health through physical activity. Read on to learn more about how the Cardio Craze is helping people improve their cardiovascular health and fitness.
1. Exploring the New Cardio Craze
The latest exercise trend to take the fitness world by storm is the intense, full-body cardio workout craze. From high-intensity workouts to cardiovascular endurance activities, these exercises provide something for all levels of fitness.
When starting out, it’s important to build upon the basics. Mastering some of the foundation moves will help to ensure that you are doing each exercise with proper form and getting the most out of each move. Once you’ve got the basics down, you can branch out and focus on the more challenging exercises:
- Tabata: An interval-based workout that alternates between 20 seconds of intense effort followed by 10 seconds of rest.
- Jump Rope Challenge: A timed interval-focused workout that utilizes a jump rope to build aerobic and anaerobic conditioning.
- Circuit Training: Combining multiple exercises in one intense circuit for an amazing full-body workout.
It’s easy to get overwhelmed when looking at the plethora of amazing cardio workouts out there, so it’s important to remember that less is always more. Start with something simple, like jogging or walking, and as you build strength and endurance incorporate more advanced exercises into your routine. These new cardio workouts provide an excellent way to switch up your exercise routine and challenge yourself in the process!
2. Benefits of Elevating Heart Health through Physical Activity
Engaging in regular physical activity is one of the best things you can do for your heart health. It can lower your risk of chronic diseases, reduce stress and help manage your weight. Here are some of the specific benefits:
- Reduce your risk of heart diseases: Regular physical activity helps to reduce your “bad” LDL cholesterol, raise your “good” HDL cholesterol, reduce your blood pressure and keep your weight in check. All these factors help to significantly lower your risk of a heart attack, stroke or other heart-related illness.
- Keep your stress levels in check: When you exercise, your body releases chemicals called endorphins which help to reduce tension and anxiety and make you feel good overall. Regular exercise can help you manage your stress levels, and a healthy heart makes it easier for your body to cope with daily stress.
- Improve your overall cardiovascular fitness: Exercise is essential to maintaining a healthy heart and an efficient circulatory system. Regular exercise can help to improve your cardiovascular fitness, strengthening your heart so that it pumps more efficiently and sending oxygen to your muscles for maximal performance.
- Improve your mood and self-esteem: Regular physical activity can help to improve your mood, reducing the risk for depression and anxiety. In addition, it can help you to feel better about yourself, improve your self-esteem and feel more energized throughout the day.
Regular physical activity can help to promote heart health and prevent the onset of chronic heart conditions. It also has a range of other benefits, such as improved mood, reduced stress and a boost in self-esteem. So if you want to look after your heart, add more physical activity into your life.
3. Getting Started with Cardio: What You Need To Know
Whether you want to improve your cardiovascular endurance or just start exercising regularly, cardio is an essential part of physical activity. Different from strength training, cardio provides a unique and rewarding challenge that can push your body to new highs. Before you get started with cardio, here are a few key elements to keep in mind.
Gear
- Fitness tracker: if you’re looking to track your progress, make sure to get a fitness tracker that will record both your heart rate and your steps. This will allow you to see progress in real-time.
- Clothing: Invest in clothes that will allow you to stay lightly ventilated and free of movement restrictions.
- Shoes: Invest in quality shoes for running, walking, or whatever your cardio activity is. This will help ensure your body is being supported properly and allows you to feel more comfortable.
Nutrition
- Carbohydrates: Before any kind of exercise, it’s important to get a good supply of the complex carbohydrates. These will provide your body with the energy it needs to get through the workout. Allow yourself time to digest before intense activities.
- Protein: Protein is essential for rebuilding and recovery after any kind of physical activity. Eating protein after a workout can help repair the body and promote healing.
Scheduling
- Duration: Start slow and short, allocating a specific amount of time to your cardio each week and increasing it gradually. Don’t rush into hours long sessions without first allowing your body to get comfortable with the routine and activity.
- Frequency: Make sure to do cardio 3-4 times per week. Even if you can only find 15 minutes to spare for exercise, it still adds up and will make a big difference over time.
Cardio is a great way to get yourself moving and start improving your overall health and fitness. Make sure you have the right gear and nutrition for the job, set realistic goals and scheduling for yourself, and soon you’ll be taking your workouts to the next level.
4. Making Cardio Fun and Interesting For Everyone
- Mixing it up: Cardio doesn’t have to be solely about jogging, running, or walking. Why not mix it up? Switch things up and have fun doing activities that don’t normally involve a heavy cardio component, like jumping rope, playing tennis, or challenging yourself with a circuit workout. You can also incorporate your favorite music or podcasts into your routine to make your cardio session fly by.
- Take to the outdoors: There’s something really special about the natural environment when you’re out for a cardio session. You can briskly walk around your neighborhood or take your bike out for a spin. your local parks offer some great trails and even staircases that you can use for a challenging circuit-style workout.
- Compete with friends: Working out with friends provides lots of motivation and makes cardio more enjoyable. Together you can compete against each other or join a competitive running club or take part in group exercise classes.
For the tech-savvy, many smartphone apps have fun challenges and competitions. Join a virtual race and see how you can fare against people all across the country, or run to reach a certain distance or calorie goal.
No matter what kind of cardio you decide to do, the important thing is to add variety and switch things up. This will make the activity more interesting and enjoyable, and it also links into other benefits like increased body strength and better motor control. Cardio might not be the most exciting thing in the world, but there are lots of ways to make it interesting, so get creative and find what works for you!
5. Making Cardio Count: Measuring Progress
It’s time to talk about progress – crucial to stay motivated and keep going on our fitness journey. Measuring our progress helps maintain our incentive and track our progress over time. Here are some things to think about when making cardio count:
- How often? Factor in how regularly you do cardio into your tracking process. Maybe, you keep a log of how many times every week you go for a run, or how long you ride your stationary bike each time.
- How fast? You can measure not only how many reps you do but also how fast you do each one. For example, you can measure how many calories you burn in a 30 minute running session or your average running speed.
- How hard? Tracking intensity is also important to measure your progress. This could mean recording your heart rate or noting how much weight you’re lifting. You want to make sure you’re gradually stepping up the intensity so that you’re progressing, not plateauing.
It’s also important to differentiate between progress and performance. Progress suggests a long-term commitment, subtle success that may not be visible yet. You may not be seeing much result from all your cardio work yet, but relax — small changes are happening, and that’s progress. On the other hand, performance is about short-term results – lifting more weight, running faster, or engaging in more powerful activities. Performance is about now, and progress is about the long haul. Both will help you achieve your desired goals, so make sure to track both.
6. Staying Motivated and Committed to Cardio Fitness Goals
Apart from good nutrition and relevant core and strength building exercises, staying motivated and committed to reach cardio fitness goals takes time, a game plan, and the will to get there. Here are some tips to make it happen:
- Include a Variety of Activities: Mixing up your cardio routine not only keeps you more engaged but also offers different muscle groups an opportunity to become stronger. Choose activities based on your goals and skills such as running, cycling, swimming, or cross-training.
- Set Goals: Decide on achievable goals, both short-term and long-term, with the time and resources you have available, such as running a 5K in less than 40 minutes in 6 weeks, or running a marathon in 12 months.
- Track Progress: Keep track of all progress you are making, as this helps to motivate and inspire yourself to do even better. Every step counts and every result that is achieved regardless of the size, should be celebrated.
- Switch Up Your Plate: Eating the right foods in the right amounts are the engines to getting your heart rate up as they provide fuel and necessary nutrients. Fill your plate with plenty of fruits and vegetables, whole grains, lean proteins, and some healthy fats to keep your energy levels up.
Lastly, find a supportive partner or join a group to help you stay on track. Nothing says accountability more than being held responsible for hitting your goal or for being there when you may not want to be.
Good health habits start with a commitment. But it all starts with making the commitment to yourself and being mindful of that commitment whenever you are in doubt or feeling down. With patience and dedication, you will see and feel the results, and that is what will keep you motivated and wanting more.
Ready to exercise your way to improved heart health? Get up and give it a go—all you need is a bit of cardio to experience the great benefits of this craze. Your heart will thank you for making it a priority!
