Aerobic Activities List

It’s 21^st century and exercise is the order of the day! Inactivity is reaching dangerous levels. Your heart beats approximately 60-80 times per minute at rest, 100,000 times a day, more than 30 million times per year and about 2.5 billion times in a 70-year lifetime!And this gets better and smoother with physical exertion like aerobics. Aerobics was never out of trend and will never be because of the various advantages it provides. Some of them being; it is fun and exciting, it improves blood circulation, it helps you stretch, it tones your muscles and burns calories. Basically, the more aerobic (oxygen using) the exercise is, the greater effect it will have on your cardiovascular system and enzymes and metabolism. Ultimately, your body fat reduces! Aerobics begins with breathing, filling your lungs with oxygen from where it is transported to the heart. The heart has four chambers that pump blood to other parts of the body like the organs, muscles and tissues. To know some of the aerobics exercises that you can incorporate in your daily living, browse the next section!

Keeping it as simple as this – walking is the easiest and best way to get your heart pumping! Research done in Honolulu, on walkers and non-walkers found that walkers lived longer – almost twice as much – than those that led a sedentary life. But, it doesn’t take any statistics to tell you just how effective half an hour of walking can be. It could be walking to the grocery store, around the park, up the stairs, walking your dog or even within your building compound.

This aerobic activity is highly popular among those who are relatively fit and don’t have any medical complications. Beginners can start slow and increase speed gradually. Also, jogging outdoors is a better option than working out in a gym, where you end up breathing in everyone’s bad breath! Vigorous exercise can be attempted after a few days of training. Running/jogging helps in toning the leg muscles as well as draining out the fat from the body. It is not recommended for those with orthopedic problems but those with lung/heart/cholesterol/smoking issues must indulge in this. Jogging provides quick weight loss and is also called “power walking”.

This is a low impact activity which means that it slowly increases your metabolic rate and keeps you fit. Your calf muscles become stronger and the heart pumps as fast as your cycle. Indoor and outdoor cycling are both good for health. Outdoor is obviously preferred as fresh air can be inhaled. If you like to travel, then make it a more fun experience by involving yourself in mountain biking or cycle races! This can increase your excitement and intensity of workout.

This is the best way to get both aerobic and cardiovascular workouts. The only disadvantage is that you need snow all year long and you need to be skilled and experienced, especially for downside snow sports. But, the benefits outweigh the cons and help your entire body. Snow sports improve balance and coordination, build strength and endurance and are effective cardio exercises. It is said that a 105 pound person can burn around 600 – 900 calories per hour by cross country skiing. Others include: downhill skating, ice skating, snowboarding etc.

What can be more fun than dancing? Aerobic dance classes became popular in the 70’s and have stuck on ever since. The activity is accompanied with music and involves both low and high impact aerobics. It involves jumping, hopping and running. But be careful of potential injury while attempting any stunts!