Introduction
Aerobic training is known as cardio, or cardio-respiratory exercise, which utilizes oxygen to satisfy the needs for energy during activity via aerobic metabolism. Archibald Hill, a British physiologist, introduced aerobic exercise. Dr. Kenneth H. Cooper coined the term "aerobic" in 1966, following Jane Fonda's workout video. Aerobic exercises are performed with light-to-moderate intensity to convert carbohydrates into energy via mitochondrial ATP (adenosine triphosphate) generation; this is called “solely aerobic." The intrinsic benefits of physical activity come from the increased cardiac output and improved muscles' natural capacity to take up and use oxygen from the blood.
What Is Aerobic Training?
Aerobic exercise uses an oxygen transport mechanism to convert carbohydrates, protein, and lipids into energy to enhance cardiac and respiratory muscle endurance. Primarily aerobic exercise maintains repeated or rhythmic physical activity and exclusively focuses on the leg muscles, abdomen, chest, and arms. The most commonly practiced aerobics are walking, cycling, swimming, jogging, dancing, hiking, and running.
What Are the Activities Involved in Aerobic Training?
Continuous and repetitive exercise movements generally increase the heart rate and breathing pattern. The high-intensity of aerobic training involves running, jogging, and rope jumping.
The most common activities compressed with aerobics are
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Swimming.
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Cycling.
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Walking.
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Rowing.
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Skating.
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Skiing.
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Stair-climbing.
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Biking.
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Hiking
The other activities similar to aerobic training are tennis, racquetball, squash, soccer, basketball, softball, gardening, light yard work, and martial arts because of their repetitive nature and their ability to uptake oxygen to burn fat and generate energy.
What Are the Effects of Aerobic Training?
The rate at which oxygen is transferred from the lungs to the bloodstream and utilized by the muscles rises during aerobic exercise. These activities increase energy and reduce muscular weakness, altering heartbeat and breathing patterns. The outcome of practice is based on individual fitness and capacity. To stimulate favorable development, increase exercise speed, resistance, and duration.
The 15 significant health benefits of aerobic exercise are
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It burns unwanted body fat and promotes the accumulation of good cholesterol.
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Maintaining a healthy body weight can help in preventing obesity.
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Athletes' body flexibility is promoted.
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Increases blood flow and nutrient absorption.
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Improves sports performance.
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Improves cardiac muscular endurance, thereby decreasing the chance of heart disease.
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Reduces blood pressure.
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Boost respiratory function (lung function).
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Decrease the risk of atherosclerosis.
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Maintain physical and emotional stability.
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Enhance bone density and prevents bone loss.
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Promote cardiac and respiratory muscle endurance.
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Decrease the risk of athlete's blood clots and strokes.
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Reduce your risk of type 2 diabetes by lowering the levels.
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Improves pain tolerance among athletes.
What Is the Duration of the Aerobic Training Exercise?
The positive effects of aerobic training are attained by a minimum of 30 minutes of cardiovascular exercise for five to seven days per week with an interval of 10 minutes to boost the energy level. The maximum period of time extends from 150 to 70 minutes with moderate or vigorous exercise. The practice gradually increased by about 10 percent of workouts in the later weeks. The American College of Sports Medicine advised taking a minimum of three daily sessions for about 30 minutes with a moderate-to-vigorous pattern (high intensity) of exercise to improve fitness. Even short periods of time can be spent on aerobic exercise.
What Are the Things to Do Before Practicing the Aerobic Training Program?
The pre-participation health screening is recommended for all athletes willing to participate in an aerobic training program to assess the abnormal function of the body and to design an individualized exercise prescription. Initially, graded exercises (treadmill and cycling) were used to evaluate an athlete's ability, cardiovascular fitness, and exercise capacity. Then, the maximal oxygen uptake (VO2max) and peak metabolic equivalents are used to determine cardiovascular fitness and exercise capacity.
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Maximal Oxygen Uptake: A guide for measuring an individual's oxygen uptake during exercise in relation to the physical demand for energy
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Peak Metabolic Equivalents: The metabolic equivalent (MET) is the standardized terminology expressing the intensity level of various physical activities. MET differs from person to person based on age, sex, exercise habits, genetics, and cardiac fitness. The grading ranges from mild to moderately intense activity; 3 METs is for light physical activity, 3-6 METs for moderate exercise, and 6 METs for intense training.
What Are the Things to Do While Practicing the Aerobic Training Program?
It is advised to follow the safety guidelines and to discontinue the program if experiencing breathlessness, chest discomfort, dizziness, confusion, or chest or shoulder pain. It is necessary to determine the intensity of the exercise and heart rate. Additionally, a "warming up" and "cooling down" strategy should be maintained throughout the program.
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Intensity: The intensity of the exercise varies depending on the goal and capability of the individual. The intensity is measured by the rate of perceived exertion, with a scale of one to ten indicating minimum to maximum exercise intensity. A moderate level of exercise will range from three to five.
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Heart Rate Assessment: The level of heart rate varies from one person to another based on fitness, genetics, environment, and tolerance capacity.
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Warming Up and Cooling Down: It is strictly recommended to follow warming up and cooling down techniques in all physical activities. The five to ten minutes of warm-up increase blood flow within muscles and decrease muscle or joint injury risk.
What Are the Side Effects of Aerobic Training?
There are no significant drawbacks to aerobic training; however, some may present with overuse injuries due to repetitive and vigorous exercise like long-distance running or jogging. Unfortunately, they are less efficient than other exercise and strength training programs because significant weight loss is always achieved with dieting and aerobic training.
Conclusion
Exercise prevents cardiovascular morbidity and death, which is unquestionably true given the high frequency of cardiovascular illness globally. Furthermore, both aerobic and anaerobic activities, both individually and collectively, positively correlate with enhanced cardiovascular health. However, despite all the studies, more research is still necessary to look further into the effects of both aerobic and anaerobic exercise on human physiology and to establish if one kind of exercise is preferable to the other.
