Why is cardiovascular (“cardio”) exercise your best friend?
The short answer is cardio is your best friend because it can save your life. Not to be dramatic, but that’s the truth.
Heart disease is the number one health killer in the United States. Atherosclerosis is the most common cause of heart disease. Artherosclerosis is when your happy, healthy, stretchy blood vessel walls become unhappy, unhealthy, and stiff. Poor diet, lack of exercise, overweight/obesity, and smoking are causes of atherosclerosis.
What does cardiovascular exercise do to the body?
Your heart is the most important muscle in your body. Some people would argue that the brain is, but that’s not a muscle. It’s definitely the heart! Working your heart out keeps it strong and healthy just as if you were working your arms out. When the cardiovascular system is stronger, you can deliver more oxygen and nutrients to the rest of our body. Overall, this makes the body feel and work better.
How much cardio should you do?
American Hearth Association (AMA) Recommendations for Cardiovascular Exercise (1):
For Overall Cardiovascular Health:
At least 30 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity at least 5 days per week for a total of 150
OR
At least 25 minutes of vigorous aerobic activity at least 3 days per week for a total of 75 minutes; or a combination of moderate- and vigorous-intensity aerobic activity
AND
Moderate- to high-intensity muscle-strengthening activity at least 2 days per week for additional health benefits.
For Lowering Blood Pressure and Cholesterol:
An average 40 minutes of moderate- to vigorous-intensity aerobic activity 3 or 4 times per week
What about resistance training?
A lot of people like to debate “cardio” vs. “resistance training”, but there shouldn’t be a debate about which one is better. You need both. This write-up is not to ignore resistance training, but to emphasize the importance of adding more cardio to your routine. Resistance training refers to adding resistance to your body to gain muscle and bone strength. The cool thing is, you can work your cardiovascular system in different ways when you do resistance training, and you do add resistance when you do cardio. They play off of each other depending on what you are doing.
Examples of cardiovascular exercise.
Biking, walking, running, swimming, elliptical, stair climber, high-intensity interval training (H.I.I.T.), jumping rope, rowing, and more.
How hard should you push cardiovascular exercise?
Try to at least shoot for 50% of your maximum heart rate. Your maximum heart rate is 220 - your age. For example, you are 20 years old. 220-20 is a max heart rate of 200. 50% of that is 100. This is not “vigorous”, though.
Check in with your healthcare providers.
Always talk to a healthcare provider before you start a new exercise routine to make sure it’s right for you. Especially if you have a history of heart and/or lung problems. If you haven’t talked to a doctor about the status of your cardiovascular system, it might be nice to check in and ask how they think yours is. When doctor’s visits are sporadic, sometimes heart health can go by the wayside. Unfortunately, that’s when serious things like heart attacks sneak up on us.
Physical therapists are great resources to talk to regarding cardiovascular health. A lot of my clients struggle with finding out what type of exercise to do because they are unfortunately in pain. For example, they can’t do their regular walking because their foot hurts. Then they are walking less and gaining more weight or feeling “lazy,” and the cycle continues. Please feel free to reach out to us info@wholebodyhealthpt.com or to schedule an appointment at 503-223-1856 if you are interested in learning ways to keep up on your cardio while reducing your pain.
RESOURCES:
https://www.healthstatus.com/health_blog/wellness/cardio-exercise-definition-and-benefits/