Heart Rate and Cardio Exercise

Shirt Ripper

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MountainSage said:
I consider cycling to be the best choice because it can be done inside and outside. Cycling can be incorporated into your everyday life; ride to training hall,work, or get a trailer and go to the store. You can ride year-round, even up North if you have the right gear and mental strength. If you don't feel you aren't getting a good cardio workout then increase a couple of gears and ride uphill.

Mountainsage
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Excellent points. Limited, however, in the total calory "burnage" simply because your sitting down. And also your conditioning, as we all have to consider our martial arts while training, your legs and hip are doing practically everything. Throw in some bear crawls or some hand walking and you got a good set-up.
 
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Phoenix44

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Well, I'm not considering here a total body conditioning plan, which would presumably include strength training and flexibility. I'm just thinking about the cardio component, raising the heart rate. For cardio, I personally prefer cycling, because it's a lot easier on the knees than running. I also like cardio kickboxing, because of the variation in movement, so it's more interesting.
 

Shirt Ripper

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Okay, gotcha. This sparks an interesting thought of that I, unfortunately find myself knowing little to nothing about off-hand. It is obvious that certain activities will bode greater stress and thus gain cardiovacularly but which are more beneficial, all things being equal. Hmmm...I may have some research ahead of me.
 

7starmantis

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You must make a distinction between "cardio" to burn calories and fat or "cardio" to strengthen the heart. Only one is actually cardio work, but both get lumped together. If your goal is strengthening and health of the heart, a simple raising of the heart rate for a small section of time is not going to give you the best results. For burning calories and fat it will.

Think of this; if your goal is to strengthen and build your biceps, you wouldn't do 10 curls of light weight a day and look for results. You need to really break down that muscle and build it up....your heart is the same way, its just a bit more serious if you do it wrong.

7sm
 

Navarre

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7starmantis said:
You need to really break down that muscle and build it up....your heart is the same way, its just a bit more serious if you do it wrong.

How tactfully put. heh heh
 
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Phoenix44

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Yeah, but my issue is, what parameter are you measuring?

The heart rate achieved during exercise is not the "goal." The goal is cardiovascular health. I think most doctors would consider a heart rate in the 50s in a healthy person who exercises regularly to be a sign of cardiovascular health, whether or not the individual achieves that 220 - age x 85% heart rate during training.

That's different than strength training, where you may well want to lift more and more weight. I don't know anyone who says, "Hey, I'm going to shoot for a heart rate of 30!"
 

7starmantis

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True, but in that instance, heart rate alone is not used to determine cardiovascular health. I'm saying I dont agree with the equation (220- age x 85%). Because every person is different, and the resting heart reat is simply not enough on its own to show cardiovascualr health or lack of health. Also, we are talking about workouts here, and the resting heart rate has little to do with the type of workout needed to create a healthy heart.

7sm
 

Shirt Ripper

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'tis indeed possible to have common signs of strong health (fifty something RHR) and not truely be healthy.

Good points all around though, good talk.
 
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Phoenix44

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'tis indeed possible to have common signs of strong health (fifty something RHR) and not truely be healthy.

OMG! I'm going to have to update my will!!!
 

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