Hey everyone—it’s spring time! The sunny days are almost upon us. Time to get up and running (pun intended)!
With the warmer temperatures approaching, now is the time to dust off your running shoes and put them to good use. However, before you get going, let’s go over a few important things you need to keep in mind.
Aerobic Programs
If you read a lot about fitness and heart health, you’ve most definitely come across the term “aerobic program” or “aerobics”. Simply speaking, aerobic exercises are the ones that use the large muscles of your hips and knees to perform. By that definition, any walking, swimming, jogging, or running program is an example of aerobic exercise.
Some of the benefits of aerobic program include:
-
Improvement in heart health by improving the endurance of your heart
-
Better flexibility and endurance in your muscles
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Improvement in the delivery of oxygen to the tissues
-
Lower your chances of osteoporosis (weakening/thinning of the bone)
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Reduction in LDL (bad cholesterol) and increasing HDL (good cholesterol)
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Improve overall wellbeing
And much more…
How Much Should I Walk?
According to American College of Sports Medicine, a healthy person needs to get in 150 minutes of exercises (at moderate intensity) per week.
To simplify that, you need to get 30 to 60 minutes of aerobic exercises, at moderate intensity, 3 to 5 days a week.
What Intensity Should I Walk At?
The intensity of the exercises truly depends on what you perceive as exertion. In general terms, if you can sing while you are walking, you are probably going too easy, and if you are huffing and puffing your way, that intensity is probably too high for you. You should be able to carry a conversation with a little bit of difficulty while walking – that is of moderate intensity for you!
Am I Ready to Run?
Before you get out and about, make sure you have been cleared by your doctor/physiotherapist. If you have a history of cardiac conditions, diabetes, breathing disorder, or have never exercised before, a good idea would be to pop by your physician or physiotherapist’s office to make sure you are all set for exercises.
The other most crucial thing that you need to do before any exercises is
warm up
.
Warmup exercises are a set of exercises done at a lower intensity to prepare your muscles for the work that is to come. These are important to prevent any injuries/training errors from all the exercising. Following the warmup and main exercises, it is important that you end your routine with quick
cool down
exercises to bring the muscles back to rest after all that work.
Wear comfortable, breathable clothes and make sure you have good, well-supported shoes to avoid any injuries to your foot!
Happy Walking!
Don’t forget to see your physiotherapist
to discuss a focused aerobic program for you and learn the right the warm up and cool down exercises you need to do!
Footprint Health and Wellness Centre is a multi-disciplinary clinic located in South Barrie, offering chiropody, physiotherapy, and massage therapy services.
Book your appointment now!
