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I know this is elementary to the pros but folks who simply see working out as a means to lose weight may not be aware of the overall benefits of aerobics.
Alot of people devote time to exercising to lose/maintain weight, and often a side effect is that they get into better over all shape. I say if your going to spend the time working out, have the aim to strengthen your heart and lungs, and let weight loss be the side effect. If you walk you get better at walking, if you lift weights you get better at lifting, but if your focus is cardio then when your heart and lungs become more efficient you get better at -everything-. It's simple and your probably already doing it.
Your heart is a muscle too, exercise it!
Everyone knows keeping your heart rate up for over 20 minutes is a good goal to have but here are some more tips:
Your workout should be intense enough so that holding a normal conversation while doing it would be difficult, but doable.
Transition from one exercise to the next smoothly with less than a 1 minute interval.
The goal is to stay at the edge of your breath, if you have to stop because your arms, legs, or any other muscles are sore, then lower your intensity and up your duration for a week or so until they catch up. You don't want sore appendages, you want burning lungs!
Start by doing what you can for 20 minutes every day, increase duration weekly, not intensity, until your at 45 minutes, then increase the pace!
The good thing about cardio is all that you need to do it is the ability to breath.
Hurt your elbow playing tennis?
Jogging/treadmill!
Leg sore?
Shadowboxing/Heavy Bag work!
Traveling?
Take a jump rope!
You will ultimately burn more calories with cardio conditioning than any other method, because everything else that you do you will be able to do it harder faster and longer.
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