|
Fitness and Exercise
(Part II)
Every exercise workout
design should include all of the integral elements of fitness; muscular
endurance, cardio respiratory endurance, strength and flexibility. However, the
importance of these elements in your lifestyle can be adjusted to your specific
needs. For example, people with arthritis or a predisposition to back or joint
pain may want to devise a regimen that have some aerobic, endurance and
strength exercises but focuses mainly on flexibility movements. A person who
participates in a work or hobby activity that requires muscular strength or has
lost some muscular activity due to accident, may minimize the flexibility aspect
and concentrate the majority of his or her exercise time on strength training.
Bear in mind when designing a workout schedule, the frequency, difficulty and
duration of the session are all up to you. Examine your goals and your current
state of fitness, together with your time schedule, and formulate a do-able, not
idealized, regiment. The more often you can exercise for a longer period of
time, the faster your results will come. But even a half hour session several
times a week will pay off. Your workouts should be regularly spaced throughout
the week and you should not plan successive days of rigorous workouts on the
same muscle groups but alternate with another less taxing activity. In
designing a workout routine that addresses each of the basic elements, it is
important to begin and end each session with a series of warm up and cool down
exercises that prepare the muscles to work and then to relax. This is to
prevent possible muscle injury and to rev up the cardiovascular system. Some
performance cars can go zero to 60 mph in seconds but your body shouldn't have
to. Warm up and cool down exercises are gentle stretching exercises that
improve flexibility, so should never be thought of as a prelude to the 'real
exercises" as they address and help one to achieve the primary goal of
flexibility. Ideally, a warm-up should last between 5 to 10 minutes and consist
of gentle stretching, and movements such as arm circles, trunk rotations and
basic yoga positions. The actual workout schedule should be tailored by yourself
with the aide of a fitness trainer, doctor or knowledgeable friend and should
include aerobic elements that will give a good cardiovascular workout, elements
to improve your endurance, such as prolonged swimming or walking, and some
muscle strength training.
Two twenty minute
strength training elements per week should be included in your workout plan. Resistance or strength training is the best way to
strengthen muscles, but it also works to maintain bone density and prevent
osteoporosis, which is especially of interest to women. Lifting weights or using
a weight training apparatus at the gym are the is the most efficient ways to
increase strength, but do get professional advice regarding the proper way too
use weights or an apparatus. Get help in designing a safe workout that works
muscles in a balanced way. You should work a similar number of exercises and
sets on each muscle group. For muscular endurance, plan three thirty minute
segments weekly and include exercises such as callisthenics and strength
training. Three twenty minute sessions of continuous aerobic exercise weekly,
such as jogging, brisk walking swimming, cross county skiing or bicycling are
necessary to improve and maintain cardio respiratory endurance. The flexibility
element of your workout regimen is one that needs daily attention of about ten
minutes of slowly performed
stretching
exercises. These can be incorporated into the warm-up and cool down segments of
a session. These elements can be spread out over the week so that you do some
workout each day or combined to have three or four longer sessions per week,
just remember that flexibility is best done daily and will significantly improve
your muscles and posture
NEXT
---->
|
.gif){kind=small}