The following is a short description, the targeted body muscles/areas, and suggested ways to Incorporate Running and Jogging in your Fitness Plan. Keep in mind that the more times you do these Cardio Exercises in a week, the higher your health benefits will be:

Running and Jogging
If you don’t like a lot of rules and regulations and technical equipment, and if you’re not prone to joint injuries, then Running or Jogging is the Cardio Exercise for you. These are very natural activities – one that the body was built to do.

Running is a high-intensity, high-impact exercise. To ensure that you will get the most from a run, good technique is important. With a good technique, you don’t only get a good aerobic workout; you also won’t suffer any unnecessary injuries.

These classic Cardio Exercises are probably the first thing that comes to your mind when you think of getting in shape. Running and Jogging can be done on a treadmill, on the road, on a track, through the woods. All you need is a pair of shoes (and some common sense of course). Plus, you can run by yourself, with a partner, or a group of people depending on your mood.

Targeted Fitness Goals: involves the lower body (the ankles, knees, and hips); specifically, running works the hip flexors, the quadriceps, the hamstrings, and the gastrocnemius and soleus muscles

Incorporate Running and Jogging in your Fitness Plan: Run or jog for 20-35 minutes, 3-4 times a week. Aim for 10-12 miles per week.

Keep in mind that the more times you do this Cardio Exercise in a week, the higher your health benefits will be.

The following is a short description, the targeted body muscles/areas, and suggested ways to Incorporate Bicycling in your Fitness Plan. Keep in mind that the more times you do this Cardio Exercise in a week, the higher your health benefits will be:

Bicycling

Bicycling is not only one of the Best, Easiest, and Most Popular Forms of Exercise, it also is a lot of fun! Cycling is great for people who like speed and a variety of pace. Unlike jogging or aerobics, you don’t need to worry about joint impacts. Also, pedaling in the fresh air is invigorating and refreshing. One of the most popular type of these Cardio Exercises is Mountaing Biking.

An excellent aerobic conditioning, cycling strengthens the legs, especially the quadriceps and tones your muscles superbly. Don’t forget, this Cardio Exercise is also one of the least expensive because quality bicycle equipment lasts a long time.

Targeted Fitness Goals: excellent aerobic conditioning; strengthens your legs, especially the quadriceps

Incorporate Bicycling in your Fitness Plan: Do this exercise 3 to 4 times a week, for a period of at least 20 minutes.

Keep in mind that the more times you do this Cardio Exercise in a week, the higher your health benefits will be.

Proper Weight Training can make you strong. But if you want to be truly fit, add Cardiovascular or Aerobic Exercises to your program. Cardiovascular Exercise is any activity that elevates your heart rate over a sustained period of time.

While it may seem odd, aerobic exercise “is” a basic complement to Weight Training. Aerobic Exercise helps you decrease your level of body fat, but weight training is what tones and firms your muscles. It is important to include both aerobics and weight training in your routine – it’s a package deal for you to achieve a balanced body.

The American College of Sports Medicine recommends that aerobic exercise should be performed for a minimum of 20 minutes. The exercise should be done at least 3 times a week at 60% of your Maximum Heart Rate (see Heart Rate to know your Maximum Heart Rate or go to Fitness Calculators). If you exercise less than the recommended duration, your health benefits will be minimized. Still, exercising 4 or more times a week will increase your health benefits.

There are a lot of Cardiovascular Exercises to choose from. A few of which are Swimming, In-line Skating, Hiking, Running, Cycling, and Walking. With a wide range of Aerobic Activities to choose from, you can be assured that you will find something you’ll enjoy doing. However, before plunging into any of those exercises, it is important to take note of your heart rate. Monitoring your heart rate will allow you to check your body’s response to various levels of exercises and even help you maximize the effectiveness of your workout.

Training with Weights (resistance training) can help you achieve many different effects: from building muscle size and strength to creating definition and tone. By performing simple, often repetitive movements you are able to focus work on a particular muscle or group of muscles. When you Work with Weights, the movement is harder and it will require more physical strength. Although resistance work initially damages the muscles, they actually become stronger as they repair themselves.

To understand Resistance Training (weight training) and to help you use your Fitness Programs effectively, familiarize yourself with the following Basics of Resistance Training:

• • Overloading 
    This is the technical term for making a muscle work beyond its comfortable point of exertion. When you overload your muscles, they are forced to become stronger so as to cope with the increased load. Whenever you work out, it is important to achieve overload. By doing so, your muscles will be working harder than on the previous occasion which will result into constant progress. Consequently, your muscles will grow in size and strength.

• • Spot reducing 
    This occurs when you try to eliminate weight or fat from a specific part of your body and concentrates working only on that part. In effect, you tend to build muscle in that area when, generally, you just need to lose fat from that part. Consequently, although you lose fat, because you gain muscle in the area you focused on, it can have the same visual effect as before. Or worse, it can even make that part more prominent. In general, always work with the body as a whole; do not tackle a specific area of your body that bothers you.

• • The plateau effect 
    When people stop seeing results, they tend to give up on their exercise routines. At this point, you have just reached a plateau. The Plateau Effect occurs when you may be working out but do not see improvements in your Fitness Level because your body is no longer being overloaded. Hence, it is important to vary your workout routines so that your body will be pushed and forced to improve itself.

• Reversibility 
  Your fitness level could deteriorate even though you’re working out. This is the stage after the plateau – the reversibility. This happens when you have been in the plateau stage for a long period and your body has not experienced challenging workouts and overload for some time. Reversibility usually occurs when you don’t increase your weights during exercises or when you don’t vary your exercise routine.

Weight rooms, with the complicated-looking Fitness Equipment and Fitness Jargons, can be quite enigmatic but intimidating, especially to a beginner. The two words which you will constantly hear in a weight room are “rep” and “set”. These terms are applied to exercises that use both Free Weights and weight machines. Being familiar with them will help do you a world of wonders for your Fitness Program:

• “Rep” is short for repetition and refers to one completed movement.
• “Set” on the other hand refers to the number of reps performed steadily and continuously without a break. An example is “three sets of 15 reps” equals to 45 exercise movements.

Another Common Fitness Jargon is “circuit”. Circuit or “circuit training” refers to the sequential use of all the machines in a weight room. Since many gyms arrange machines roughly in a circle and you go from one station to the next with just little rest in between, it was called “circuit”.

After grasping the Basics of Resistance Training and having a Crash Course on some Fitness Terms, starting your Weight Training now will be relatively easy.