Cardio or aerobic training is a fitness activity aimed at strengthening the cardiovascular system, burning excess fat and tightening muscles without increasing their volume. The exercises used in the classes may be different, but they have one thing in common: a fast pace of execution. You can conduct training both in specialized sports and recreation centers, and at home or on the street.

If the goal is to lose weight, then cardio training should be combined with a balanced diet that takes into account the body's need for nutrients. There are many different methods, among which each person can choose the most effective for himself. But there are common features of classes that combine methods into groups. The most popular of them are the following:

• Long-term training aimed at burning fat.

Classes are characterized by medium intensity, they are held over a long period of time - from 40 to 60 minutes and longer. Training is usually carried out without a break for rest. They increase the stamina of the body and strengthen the heart well. Most often, this is long-distance running, cycling at a constant speed, cardio training.

• Interval fitness classes.

They are alternating periods of high and low intensity. They are more effective in terms of burning fat than the previous option, but classes require a healthy heart, since a multi-level load puts a lot of stress on it and makes the pulse fluctuate over a wide range. As exercises, choose interval running or training on simulators.

• Fartlek.

It is considered a variant of interval training, but its feature is the lack of consistency in changing the rhythm of the lesson. This style requires a certain preparation of the athlete, as often the load changes from intense to even higher, forcing the body to work to the limit.

• Super-scheme fitness training.

They are a combination of aerobic fitness programs and elements with weights. They are the most effective means in the fight against excess fat. This style of training provides not only a reduction in body fat, but also strengthening and increasing the strength of the muscles of the body. In particular, these are crossfit classes.

• Cross program.

It involves alternating medium-intensity workouts: for example, running and exercising on the orbit track. The convenience of this style lies in the variety of programs: the body does not have time to adapt to one load and burns fat more efficiently.

In aerobic exercises, the following exercises are used: running or training on a treadmill, skiing or cycling, cardio training, swimming, aerobics, boxing, tennis or badminton, yoga.

To make fitness classes extremely productive, you must adhere to a number of the following rules, common to all types of physical activity:

• Training is recommended to be carried out in the morning, when the body still has enough strength and does not feel tired. The exception is people with an owl biorhythm who do not feel well in the morning. But it is important to know that after sleep, glycogen stores in the body are small, which means that training will begin almost immediately with burning fat, without wasting time processing energy from carbohydrates.
• When combining strength and cardio exercises, some nuances should be taken into account. If the goal of training is weight loss, then it is carried out before strength training. If the priority is a set of muscles and the creation of a relief body, then cardio is put at the end of the program.
• For people who want to lose weight, it is important to remember the moderation of physical activity. Burning excess fat in a couple of sessions will not work, so you should not torture yourself with many hours of training. It is enough to practice from 35 to 60 minutes a day using a medium intensity program, and from 20 to 60 minutes with interval training (depending on the athlete's physical fitness).
• Number of classes - 3 per week. As the body adapts, you can increase them to 4-5.
• To lose weight, it is important to adhere to proper nutrition, creating a small deficit in the daily calorie requirement of the body. With aerobic exercise, it is absolutely impossible to starve - the body must receive all the nutrients necessary for life.
• For breakfast, it is recommended to make protein or complex carbohydrate meals. It can be eggs, cottage cheese, cereals, yogurts. For lunch, they eat meat or fish with vegetables and a side dish in the form of cereals. For dinner: protein with vegetables. As snacks use vegetables, fruits, nuts.
• Regardless of the choice of exercises, we must not forget about proper breathing. When running, most often a breath is taken with every third step. The breathing rhythm should be shallow and shallow for short interval sessions, and deep and infrequent for long distances.

For classes, you should choose comfortable equipment that will not cause discomfort. If you feel pain in the muscles or joints, you should immediately stop training and give the body time to recover.

To choose the most suitable fitness classes, it is important to know their main pros and cons. The benefits of cardio include:

• training helps to quickly and effectively burn fat;
• due to increased blood circulation, the external manifestations of cellulite are reduced;
• the organs of the respiratory system are strengthened, the volume of the lungs increases;
• improved performance of the heart and blood vessels;
• decrease in heart rate readings at rest;
• muscles are strengthened, their strength and endurance increase;
• metabolic processes of the body are stimulated;
• there is an improvement of the body, the risk of heart disease, diabetes, increase or decrease in blood pressure is reduced;
• the psycho-emotional state improves, the level of stress decreases.

The disadvantages of aerobic fitness classes include:

• a strong load on the heart and joints in certain types of training;
• burning fat only at the time of training;
• the need for long workouts (more than 40 minutes) with their average intensity.

To make classes productive and successful, you need to try different types of training and change programs regularly. But the greatest effect in improving the figure can be achieved by combining aerobic and strength training.

Last Updated on Sep 8, 2014

Fitness is a complex to improve and improve the body and spirit. To get the most out of your fitness routine, it can be helpful to become familiar with the science behind fitness training.
As you know, the basis of fitness and physical well-being is a healthy lifestyle, the formation of athletic and motor properties. These properties, which provide a more complete definition of fitness, when combined meaningfully, are few. Given:

Unified aerobic endurance is the ability to perform central power work for a long time and resist fatigue. The formation of this property ensures that the movement has the ability to be performed for a long time with simultaneous rapid resumption after the load. Your aerobic system will use oxygen to turn carbohydrates into energy sources. With long-term exercise, fats and, in part, proteins are triggered in this process, among other things, which makes aerobic training almost perfect for fat loss.

High-speed endurance - the ability to resist fatigue in the maximum speed loads.

Strength endurance is the ability to withstand fatigue during fairly long loads of a strength nature. Strength endurance shows how the muscles have every chance to create repeated efforts and for how long to maintain this activity. Strength endurance is relevant no matter what type of vigorous fitness activity it is, from anaerobic repetitive weight lifting to enhanced aerobic activity while running.

Speed-strength endurance is the ability to perform fairly long-term procedures of a power nature with the greatest speed.
Elasticity - the ability of a person to perform movements with a large amplitude using the flexibility of muscles, tendons and ligaments. Increased elasticity reduces the risk of injury during procedures.

Speed ​​- the ability to most sharply alternate muscle contraction and relaxation.

Dynamic muscle power is the ability for the most quick (explosive) manifestation of efforts with the greatest burden or with your own body weight. With all this, there is a temporary release of energy that does not require air, like this one. An increase in muscle strength is often associated with an increase in muscle volume and density. In addition to aesthetic value, increased muscles are less susceptible to damage and contribute to weight control, because muscle tissue requires more calories than fat, including during the rest period.

Dexterity is the ability to scrupulously perform coordination-complex motor actions.

Body composition (composition) - matching fat, bone and muscle tissues of your body. This correspondence, in part, indicates the state of your health and fitness based on your weight and age. Excess fat content increases the risk of heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, etc.

Moderately and timely
person does not exercise
needs no treatment.
Abu Ali Ibn Sina (Avicenna)

Every sport and fitness area is constantly struggling to grow its following. New trendy sports appear, new fitness classes are offered, but problems with the health and fitness level of the world's population remain. How not to get lost in this endless stream of information about the science of movement and recovery? How to compose fitness program training to achieve your desired goals?

Before compiling a fitness program, it is necessary to determine four main points:

1. Mode or type of training.
2. The frequency of classes.
3. The duration of each session.
4. The intensity of each session.

Mode or type of training:

There are a huge number of types of physical activity, as well as sports. Each of them finds many of their fans. Therefore, when choosing a type of physical activity, the main thing is what you should pay attention to first of all, so that you enjoy doing them, and so that you can do these workouts throughout your life. This must be taken into account, since an important role in training motivation plays.

In addition, the type of training you choose should exactly match your current needs. It will not be rational to change the form muscles body with the help of aerobic exercise and vice versa to improve the functioning of the cardiovascular system with the help of power. Although there will be small positive changes in both cases, it will be better if the type of physical activity you choose matches your goals exactly.

Choosing a place to practice

Club, house, street and the presence of equipment in it will also affect the final look of your fitness programs. Seemed almost identical in appearance simulators different manufacturers in training give different sensations. Some of them, due to the structural features of the skeleton or diseases of the musculoskeletal system (back or knee pain), can cause discomfort during training. In such cases, it is better to replace the exercise with a similar one.

Many try to engage in all kinds of fashion sports. Modern fitness clubs offer a wide range of fitness services, not for everyone to do all types of fitness, but so that you can choose the most suitable one for you. Your friends and family members may not share your passion for the gym, but they can find the type of activity that works best for them, and then you can go to the same club together. Bringing fitness lovers from different directions together in one place is the main task of large fitness centers.

Regardless of what sport you are involved in, for each person it is important to develop the basic physical qualities: strength, endurance and flexibility. These three areas of physical activity should be given at least a minimum of attention.

Class frequency

The frequency of classes is determined by various factors, but the main thing is that it cannot be considered without taking into account the chosen training regimen, the duration and intensity of classes. In addition, the primary factors for determining the frequency of classes are: the availability of temporary resources (free time) or your work schedule, the presence of a motor skill, the level and timing of the goal, as well as your level of physical fitness.

Different types of training have different optimal frequency of training. Usually, the more stress is required in the chosen type of fitness training or sport, the less often they should be carried out. Training of experienced "siloviks" (weightlifters, powerlifters or bodybuilders may take place less than once a week). Please note that this applies specifically to experienced athletes with more than ten years of experience. Workouts with complex motor coordination, but with much less stress, such as tennis, can be done up to twice a day every day.

The duration and intensity of training, which determine the frequency of training, depend on your seniority and experience gained. Beginners cannot develop a high intensity and duration of training, so they can physically train quite often, but under the condition of low intensity and duration of training. It happens that a beginner's training with a weak initial level of training can last no more than 5 minutes. Frequent, but with minimal loads, training is required for optimal (best) adaptation (adaptation) to physical work and faster formation of a motor skill, without which it is impossible to increase the intensity of training. Over time, the load can be increased, and the frequency of classes can be reduced. It turns out that the lower the level of physical fitness, the higher the frequency of training. For very poorly trained people, you can start a fitness program with a daily five-minute exercise or walks around the house.

The results of the studies have shown that the most optimal frequency for beginners is to conduct 3-5 sessions per week. This, however, does not mean that doing 6 or 7 sessions per week will not have a positive additional effect, just 3-5 sessions per week provide optimal results. You should start with 3 sessions per week and work up to 5 if the muscle activity is enjoyable and well tolerated. It happens that a person actively starts training, training, every day for several weeks, which, in the end, leads to significant fatigue. However, in the conditions of modern life, a person rarely manages to reach the level of three classes a week, due to his heavy workload at work. More often there are cases when people can train two or even only once a week. According to observations, minimal positive changes can be found if you manage to practice at least once every nine days.

Thus, determining the frequency of classes, taking into account the needs to achieve goals and opportunities to exercise often enough, is one of the key issues in compiling your fitness program. If you're not reaching the 3 class per week level, try to put in the effort and find free time to reach that level.

Lesson duration

If you have already chosen the areas of fitness in which you would like to work and develop, have decided on the frequency of classes, set immediate goals and set aside time for weekly training (because you need to train, if not daily, then at least not monthly, but weekly), then it’s time to time to determine the duration of the lessons.

The duration of the classes usually varies depending on the change in intensity. They are inversely proportional. If the intensity of training increases, then the duration decreases. After increasing the intensity, they begin to increase the duration to a certain limit, set depending on the factors listed above, then the intensity is increased again, and the training time is reduced. A simple example. For your aerobic workouts, you have chosen to walk on a treadmill at 0% incline and at a speed of 5km/h. On the first workout, you walked for 10 minutes, after which your heart rate rose above the border of the target zone, so you stopped training. Every week you added 5 minutes. After 10 weeks, your workout has become 1 hour long. Unfortunately, your lifestyle does not allow you to spend more than 1.5 hours in a fitness club, for example, but you still need to develop strength and flexibility. Therefore, having given the development of strength 40 minutes, flexibility 15 minutes, you have no more than 45 minutes left for aerobics. This means it's time to increase the intensity by 10%, which will be 5.5 km/h and reduce the time of training to 30 minutes, gradually increasing it to 45 minutes and again increase the intensity level.

Usually, the change in the intensity and duration of the lesson ranges from 5-10%, depending on the state of health and the availability of the necessary equipment. Example: it often happens that the difference between the weight of dumbbells exceeds 10% (10-15 kg - a difference of 33%).

Intensity of classes

The intensity of training is the most important factor in compiling a fitness program. Properly chosen intensity can arouse interest in continuing fitness activities, which will be one hundred percent guarantee that you will achieve the desired results. Mistake in the choice of intensity is the main reason for stopping training. If the intensity is too low, then training is usually stopped due to lack of results. Who would want to spend their time and money resources without receiving any compensation for this in the form of an increase in the level of physical fitness and improvement in health. When the intensity is too high and the body does not have time to adapt to the rate of increase in load, the biological law of adaptation "approach - rejection" is activated. If the body feels the harm caused by too much load, if the level of load exceeds the adaptive capacity of the body, then it turns on subconscious mechanisms. Understanding intellectually the need for physical exercise, a person subconsciously looks for a meeting, sudden unplanned negotiations, a traffic jam or a slight malaise in order not to go to training, although under all these conditions he can go to a less intense party with the consumption of "doctors recommended" alcohol. Therefore, the intensity of the training should be chosen in such a way that at the end of the training you feel overwhelmed with joy from the perfect physical work and from the duty done to your body, satisfying its "animal needs" in movement.

In different types of physical activity, the intensity is determined by different parameters. For example, in aerobic training, the main indicators of intensity can be the speed and angle of the treadmill, and during training in the gym, the amount of weight and the number of lifts.

Intensity is measured as a percentage of your maximum capacity. Usually, for a healing effect, it is enough to work with an intensity of 50-70%. But this is not a dogma. The intensity may vary depending on the state of health and the period of training. In addition, the main reason for the change in intensity during long workouts is the change in goals. Desire is 2/3 of a reflex. It never ends. Perhaps after a while you will work like an experienced athlete, because the health-improving intensity level called by the inhabitants will be too small for your body, thirsting for physical work.

P.S. These are just general principles for building a fitness program. It will be difficult for a beginner to immediately put them into practice, because the amount of knowledge required to create an individual training program that is best suited for you, far exceeds the knowledge that can be conveyed in one article. But the information that you received after reading this material will help you in your search for truth and direct your thoughts in the right direction. By learning this basic material, it will be easier for you to communicate with people who are more advanced in fitness, as well as to distinguish a fitness specialist from a person with a superficial knowledge compiled from fitness magazine article headlines.

You can read more about how to make your back beautiful and strong by clicking.

Compiled by: Lev Goncharov

Every sport and fitness direction is constantly struggling to increase the number of its supporters. New fashionable sports appear, new fitness classes are offered, but problems with the health and fitness level of the world's population remain. How not to get lost in this endless stream of information about the science of movement and recovery?

How to create a fitness training program to achieve your desired goals?

Before compiling a fitness program, it is necessary to determine four main points:

1. mode or type of training;
2. frequency of classes;
3. duration of each session;
4. the intensity of each session.

Mode or type of training

There are a huge number of types of physical activity, as well as sports. Each of them has many fans.

Therefore, when choosing a type of physical activity, the main thing that you should pay attention to in the first place is that you like to do them, and that you can do these workouts throughout your life. This must be taken into account, since motivation plays an important role in training. In addition, the type of training you choose should exactly match your current needs. It would not be rational to change the shape of the muscles of the body with the help of aerobic exercise and vice versa to improve the functioning of the cardiovascular system with the help of power. Although there will be small positive changes in both cases, it will be better if the type of physical activity you choose matches your goals exactly. The choice of a place for classes (club, house or street) and the availability of equipment in it will also affect the final look of your fitness program. It seemed that exercise machines of different manufacturers, almost identical in appearance, give different sensations during training. Some of them, due to the structural features of the skeleton or diseases of the musculoskeletal system (back or knee pain), can cause discomfort during training. In such cases, it is better to replace the exercise with a similar one.

Modern fitness clubs offer a wide range of fitness services, not for everyone to do all kinds of fitness, but so that you can choose the most convenient for you. Your friends and family members may not share a passion for the gym, but they can find the type of exercise that suits them best, and then you can go to the same club together.

Bringing together fitness enthusiasts from different directions in one place is the main task of large fitness centers. Regardless of what sport you do, it is important for every person to develop the basic physical qualities: strength, endurance and flexibility. These three areas of physical activity should be given at least a minimum of attention.

Class frequency

The frequency of classes is determined by various factors, but the main thing is that it cannot be considered without taking into account the chosen training regimen, the duration and intensity of classes. In addition, the primary factors for determining the frequency of classes are: the availability of time resources (free time) or your work schedule, the presence of motor skills, the level and timing of the goal, the level of physical fitness. Different types of training have different optimal frequency of training. Generally, the more stress is required in the chosen type of fitness training or sport, the less often they should occur. Training of experienced “siloviks” (weightlifters, powerlifters or bodybuilders may take place less than once a week). Please note that this applies specifically to experienced athletes with more than ten years of experience. Workouts with complex motor coordination, but with much less stress, such as tennis, can be done once or twice a day every day. The length and intensity of your workouts, which determine how often you exercise, depends on your experience.

Beginners cannot develop high intensity and duration of training, so physically they can train often, but under the condition of low intensity and duration of training. It happens that a beginner's training with a weak initial level of training can last no more than 5 minutes. Frequent, but with minimal loads, training is required for optimal (best) getting used to (adaptation) to physical work and faster formation of motor skills, without which it is impossible to increase the intensity of training. Over time, the load can be increased, and the frequency of classes can be reduced.

It turns out that the lower the level of physical fitness, the higher the frequency of training. For very poorly trained people, you can start a fitness program with a daily five-minute exercise or walks around the house. The results of the studies have shown that the most optimal frequency for beginners is to conduct 3-5 sessions per week. This, however, does not mean that doing 6 or 7 sessions per week will not have a positive additional effect, just 3-5 sessions per week provide optimal results. You should start with 3 sessions per week and work up to 5 if the muscle activity is enjoyable and well tolerated. It happens that a person actively starts training, exercising daily for several weeks, which ultimately leads to significant fatigue. However, in the conditions of modern life, a person rarely manages to reach the level of three classes a week due to his heavy workload at work. Most often there are cases when people can train two or even only once a week. According to observations, minimal positive changes can be found if you manage to practice at least once every nine days.

Thus, determining the frequency of classes, taking into account the needs to achieve goals and the ability to exercise often enough, is one of the key issues in compiling your fitness program. If you're not getting to the 3-a-week level, try to put in the effort and find free time to reach that level.

Lesson duration

If you have already chosen the areas of fitness in which you would like to work and develop, have decided on the frequency of classes, set immediate goals and set aside time for weekly training (because you need to train, if not daily, then at least weekly), then you should determine the duration of classes. The duration of the classes usually varies depending on the change in intensity.

If the intensity of training increases, then the duration decreases. After increasing the intensity, they begin to increase the duration to a certain limit, set depending on the factors listed above, then the intensity is increased again, and the training time is reduced. A simple example. For your aerobic workouts, you have chosen to walk on a treadmill at a speed of 5 km/h.

On the first training session, you covered the distance in 10 minutes, after which your heart rate rose above the border of the target zone, so you stopped training. Every week you added 5 minutes. After 10 weeks, your workout will last 1 hour. Unfortunately, your lifestyle does not allow you to spend more than 1.5 hours in a fitness club, for example, but you still need to develop strength and flexibility.

Therefore, having given the development of strength 40 minutes, flexibility 15 minutes, you have no more than 45 minutes left for aerobics. This means it's time to increase the intensity by 10%, which will be 5.5 km / h and reduce the training time to 30 minutes, gradually increase it to 45 minutes and raise the intensity level again. Usually, the change in the intensity and duration of the lesson ranges from 5-10%, depending on the state of health and the availability of the necessary equipment. Example: it often happens that the difference between the weight of dumbbells exceeds 10% (10-15 kg - a difference of 33%). The recommended total duration of a class for beginners in fitness clubs is 60 minutes.

Intensity of classes

The intensity of training is the most important factor in compiling a fitness program. Choosing the right intensity can increase interest in continuing fitness activities, which will be one hundred percent guarantee that you will achieve the desired results. Mistake in the choice of intensity is the main reason for stopping training. If the intensity is too low, then training is usually stopped due to lack of results. Who wants to spend their resources of time and money without getting any compensation in the form of improved fitness levels and improved health? When the intensity is too high and the body does not have time to adapt to the rate of increase in load, the biological law of adaptation "approach - rejection" is activated. If the body feels harm caused by too much load, if the level of load exceeds the body's adaptive abilities, then it turns on subconscious mechanisms. In different types of physical activity, the intensity is determined by different parameters.

Why do you need fitness? What is the benefit of fitness? Do we really need physical activity?

Be healthy!

We have to come to terms: every year the metabolic rate in our body decreases, muscles weaken, fats are no longer completely burned. Thus, if you want to stay in good physical shape and not gain weight, you will have to increase the activity and limit the number of calories consumed. It will be appropriate to recall that every 450 g of fat contains approximately 3500 kilocalories. This means that if you are overweight, you need to seriously think about your lifestyle and make significant adjustments to your daily diet, as well as increase physical activity.

How to tighten your stomach and make it less flabby

After childbirth, the abdominal muscles often become lethargic and flabby, they are no longer able to cope with their duties. When you cough, laugh or run, they immediately make themselves felt. There are two ways to tighten the abdominal muscles. The simplest is physical exercises (pull in your stomach and tighten your abs). You can also take advantage of the latest achievement of modern technology - the device "Pelvic Toner".

Let's use our brains

Moderate physical activity helps to slow down the aging process, as they increase blood flow to the brain (at the same time, the risk of cardiovascular diseases decreases). In addition, physical education stimulates cognitive processes in the brain and inhibits the degeneration of the nervous system. Exercise should not be viewed as some kind of punishment or burden that you must impose on yourself. Let physical education become an integral part of your life - in just two or three weeks you will not be able to do it any other way. Good habits formed at a relatively young age will stay with you forever and help you stay healthy.

Magic Hormones

Moderate physical activity stimulates the synthesis of many hormones that maintain energy balance, control metabolism, as well as other vital processes in the body. Growth hormone (hGH) is produced primarily through exercise. Some scientists believe that testosterone and endorphins increase a person's life expectancy and help slow down the aging process.

Big pluses, little minuses

Dropping just a few pounds, you will bring huge benefits to your health. If you lose 5-10% of your weight, you will lower your blood pressure, cholesterol levels, risk of diabetes and cardiovascular disease. According to some scientists, people who are not overweight have a longer life expectancy. Among other things, exercise helps to get rid of body fat and build muscle mass. Elastic muscles make the figure graceful and slender, correct posture, provide the body with energy reserves.

Be healthy!

The American Journal of Sports Medicine published the latest research in human physiology. Scientists have come to the following conclusion: the biggest threat to health is not the aging process as such, but a lack of physical activity. It has long been known that moderate exercise can slow down the aging process (even if you joined physical education already in adulthood). Now it has been proven that just 30 minutes of exercise a day (but every day!) Helps to increase a person's life expectancy. Scientists have identified the following pattern: those who regularly perform a set of physical exercises have a 30% reduced risk of such a dangerous disease as colon cancer.

Until the seventh sweat

Physical activity should be calculated so that your heart rate increases. At the same time, blood circulation is enhanced, metabolic processes are accelerated. If you sweat, it means that the exercises have benefited - the body intensively produces sebum (this substance is a kind of natural moisturizer).