The Best Exercises For Your Fitness Goals

To help reach your fitness goals, here are three major exercise groups – aerobic exercise, strength training, stretching – which we’ll discuss to help you decide which to use in your fitness program.

Aerobic Exercise

Aerobic exercises are beneficial whether you’re young or old. It’s a type of fitness training involving the movement of your body’s large muscle groups. It increases your heart rate, breathing rate, blood circulation, thus maximizing the oxygen in your blood. It helps release endorphins, a chemical which give you a natural high.

• Examples of aerobic exercises include dancing, cycling, running, jogging, walking or any sport that includes moving major muscle groups that raise heart rate.

• Using aerobic exercises in your fitness plan coupled with a proper diet keeps flabs away. It increases stamina and strengthens the immune system, making you less prone to illnesses. It’s also proven to reduce risks associated with obesity, heart disease, and type-2 diabetes.
• Though aerobic activity is safe, you must first get an OK from your doctor especially if you have chronic injuries or medical condition before adding it to your fitness program. Starting aerobic exercises may be hard at first but you’ll surely gradually improve.

Weight/Resistance Training

If you aim to lose fat or improve your body, use weight training in your fitness program. Weight training is not about building massive muscles, but rather changing how your body looks and increasing core body strength. It raises your metabolism and builds muscle, which burns more calories. It strengthens bones, increases strength and endurance and helps you avoid injuries. Plus being fit and ripped makes you feel better about yourself.

• However, as a fitness program, weight training can be confusing, especially with the multitude of exercises, equipment, and methods available. To avoid this, try joining a gym or hire a personal trainer to guide you for the first few weeks.
• Alternatively, find a friend who does weights or purchase guidebooks and basic equipment. However, don’t exercise alone; make sure there’s someone with you in case of injuries.

Stretching

Stretching is essential to every fitness program. Some believe it is a form of exercise on its own, but most use stretching as a part of an Aerobic or weight training routine. Stretching is important as it increases flexibility and reduces chances of injury. Stretching is done when a muscle or muscle group is stretched and given tension slowly and cautiously and maintaining that posture for several seconds. Stretching helps to lengthen the muscles and tendons thus giving you greater range of movement and flexibility reducing your chance of injury.

Stretching should be done before and after exercising. You should warming up, stretch, exercise (aerobic or strength-training), cool down, and then stretch.

Now that you understand the basic principles of these exercises, you can choose which one suits your fitness plan best. It’s ideal to incorporate a little bit of everything from each. If you can’t, at the very least try aerobic exercise with stretching or strength training with stretching, and you’ll have yourself a complete fitness program. Click Here to take survey

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3. The First Step to Fitness: Defining Your Fitness Goals

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