Cardio is hard, and most people dread it. But cardiovascular health is key to a healthy life. The U.S Health Department suggests adults and elderly people move moderately 30 minutes, 5 days a week. How do you incorporate cardio into a busy life? There are ways to incorporate cardio throughout your day without having to run 3 miles on the treadmill. Some examples are:
- Taking your dog for a walk
- Taking the stairs
- Parking your car further away from the entrance of the building
- Doing laundry or chores around your house (anything that includes movement)
When starting a fitness routine, don't just skip resistance training and add more cardio into your training because you want to “lose fat". This isn’t the answer. The answer is to simply move your body more and lift weights.
Long hours on a treadmill will not get you the results you want! Let's be real, long hours of cardio is:
1. Miserable
2. Unnecessary
3. Wasting your time
4. Unsustainable long term
5. Boring
Here are a few aerobic exercises to incorporate with your resistance training:
- Walking
- Hiking
- Running
- Rowing
- Biking
The key is to find what you enjoy so you can sustain it for the long run! Not just a season, but for all phases of your life. If you enjoy walking your dog, great! This is a great supplement to your lifting routine. I personally love running and incorporate it into my routine because I ENJOY it. I dislike the stairmaster so I don’t do it... it's that simple. This approach is realistic for ME as a person and I’ll be able to carry these habits long term because I ENJOY doing it.
Remember, cardio is important for general health, but shouldn’t be abused or feel like a chore. Too much cardio will burn away muscle. When you burn away muscle your metabolic rate decreases. Your body then will burn less calories throughout your day, meaning you cannot consume as much food to maintain your weight. So if your diet isn’t in sync with what your doing: stop, reflect, reevaluate & maybe ask for help!
So, my overall tips here:
- Find an approach for long term sustainability
- Find what cardio activity YOU like to do
- Just MOVE more
- Set small goals and write them down
- Try everything
- Make sure you have a good playlist that will keep you motivated
- Put your phone on "do not disturb" to avoid distractions
- Focus on your diet
- Drink more water
- Grab a BUDDY who can push you
- Make it a lifestyle!
I hope this helped! You got this!
Love , Trainer Kelly
P.S. looking for more tips? Follow me on Instagram!
