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Aerobic Exercise
With the new understanding of the importance of physical
fitness throughout the life cycle and the aging of the general
population, working out has become a notable part of daily
life. These days, exercising is not just good sense; some
people use it as a status symbol. You often hear people
discussing their workouts; cycling, exercise classes, working
on the weight machines or treadmills. They work out before
work, at lunchtime, after work and on the weekends. They eat
special foods to maximize endurance and increase fat loss.
Yet, the obesity rate in this country is soaring: more people
are overweight than ever in our history, and serious diseases
related to weight (heat disease and diabetes, among others)
are taking their toll. People of all ages are asking, What is
happening to us, and how can we stop it?
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A wealthy country, an abundance and variety of food, work spent in front
of a computer and time off in front of the television (broken
sporadically by dinner out) have created a culture wherein it
is extremely difficult not to gain weight. Adding the impact
of high-fat, high-sugar and high-caloric foods, fast foods,
“snacks”, and prepared canned and frozen foods, the weight
gain and poor health afflicting thirty per cent of the
population starts to look much less a mystery. It may be a
miracle that even more people aren’t suffering.
So, what can
we do about it? The latest craze is low-carb dieting, which
controls the production of insulin in the body, and
consequently the increase of body fat. But even
diet books say
that diets work in concert with consistent exercise, which
burns off excess calories, replaces fat with muscle and
conditions the cardiovascular system. It’s what we’ve known
all along, but recent studies confirm that the single
healthiest thing you can do for yourself is to get regular
exercise. It sounds so simple, doesn’t it?
If you’re new
to exercising, and have been trying to find the smartest way
to work out, the amount of information available, the
contradictions and variety of choices may seem overwhelming.
In fact, there are basically two kinds of exercise, both of
which are good for you, and one which is necessary if you are
seeking health benefits such as increased cardiovascular
health and fat loss. Exercise can be broken into two types,
based on how they impact the body; anaerobic (or “without
air”) and aerobic (“with air”). Many exercises have both
anaerobic and aerobic qualities: anaerobic exercises tend to
focus more on muscle-building; aerobic exercises are known to
be especially good for fat loss.
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