Cardio Weight Loss Program

A cardio weight loss program is an exercise program made up of aerobic exercises. The cardio programs are ideal for weight management and weight loss as fat is the primary source of energy used. The definition of a cardio exercise is an exercise that elevates your heart rate to a submaximal level, and keeps it raised for an extended period of time.

There has been a lot of research done into what type and frequency of exercise works best for weight loss. The type of exercise should be submaximal in intensity. That basically means your pulse rate should be at 70% of your max during the exercise. This can be worked out with a simple calculation.

 To work out your maximal heart rate subtract your age from 220., then take 70% of this number to find your ideal heart rate for fat burning. For example, for a 50-year-old, the maximal heart rate is 220-50 which is 170. 70% of 170 is 119. So for a 50 year old the ideal heart rate for weight loss 119 beats per minute.

Depending on your fitness levels, walking or jogging will be the best type of exercise for weight loss. If you are unfit, walking may be enough to get your pulse to the fat burning zone. You may need to jog to raise your heart rate to the desired levels of you are fitter. Other examples of cardio exercises include cycling and swimming.

Research has shown that you should exercise for a minimum of 30 minutes, at least 4 days a week for the program to be effective. Anything more than this will only give faster bigger improvements. Anything less and you will not get the full weight loss benefits. You should get to your optimal pulse rate by the first 5 minutes, maintain it for 20 minutes, then spend 5 minutes cooling down and stretching. Cooling down and stretching is important to help prevent muscle soreness and injuries.

So lets put all this together to design you cardio program. You should pick an exercise you enjoy from the examples above. Next find what your optimal heart rate for fat burning is. If possible buy a heart rate monitor so you know exactly how intense you should be exercising. The final step is to set up a timetable and plan out what days you will exercise and set aside 30 mins for each day. You have just designed a simple yet extremely effective cardio weight loss program!

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