Cardio is one of the quickest and most efficient ways to burn calories.  It’s also one of the reasons most people don’t like to work out.  It can be uncomfortable, boring and even painful.  However, cardio improves cardiovascular health and is essential for losing unwanted belly fat.  You can’t spot reduce but there is no denying that cardio helps slim the midsection.  Beginners often lack a good starting and lose motivation quickly because they don’t see the results that make cardio seem worth it.  If you are new to cardiovascular exercise, I promise it is worth it and with small steps you will be on your way to heart health and weight management in no time.

Rate of Perceived Effort and Heart Rate

Many cardio programs follow a simple 1-10 scale of rate of perceived effort (RPE).  This scale helps you determine your level of aerobic intensity.  A warm up will usually ask for a 3-4 RPE, an all out effort of 8-9 but usually most of your workout will lie somewhere in-between.  Level 1 is sitting on your couch and a 10 is your maximum heart rate (HR).  A simple method to finding your maximum heart rate is to subtract your age from 220.  If you are 35 years old, your maximum HR is 185.

To reap health benefits of cardiovascular activity, beginners should aim to maintain a heart rate between 57% and 94% of your maximum HR during your exercise.

To determine this range a 35-year-old women would then take 185 x .57 to find the low end of her target HR range, and 185 x .94 for the high end of her HR range.  This comes out to a range of 105 – 173 beats per minute (bpm).

For beginners, a good starting off point is to aim for 3-5 times per week for 20-90 continuous minutes or 10-minute intermittent bouts done throughout the day, according to the American College of Sports Medicine.

It’s Not How Long It Takes You To Get There, But How Far You Go

So you hate to run?  Not a problem.  From a calorie stand point, you will burn the same amount of calories running a mile as you would walking – it just takes you a little longer.  For example, running 3 miles in 30 minutes will burn the same amount of calories as walking 3 miles in 60 minutes.  If walking on a treadmill, aim to walk between 3.5-4 mph to get your heart rate pumping.  If you are outside, aim to walk to the beat of Staying Alive by the Bee Gees (103 bpm).  You can download free podcasts on iTunes that will have beat per minute guides as well.

Where To Start?

Intervals are a great way to increase the amount of fat and calories you burn during your workouts.  It also combats boredom and helps improve cardiovascular performance.  Whether your goal is to run a 5K, lose weight, or improve health, try this interval program outside or inside on your favorite piece of cardio equipment.  Do this once a week, mixed in with at least 2 more days of steady-state cardio reaching your target heart rate zone for the recommended amount of time outlined above.  If you are walking, perform Go Hard intervals at 4 mph with an incline of 8-10 percent.  Recover with 4 mph at a 4 percent incline.  If you want to build endurance for running, perform Go Hard intervals at 7 mph, and recover with a 5 mph jog or 4 mph brisk walk with an incline of 4 percent.

Duration         Intensity

5 minutes         RPE 3-4 (Warm Up)

30 seconds      RPE 7 (Go Hard)

3 minutes         RPE 5-6 (Recover)

30 seconds      RPE 7 (Go Hard)

3 minutes         RPE 5-6 (Recover)

30 seconds      RPE 8 (Go Hard)

3 minutes         RPE 5-6 (Recover)

30 seconds      RPE 8 (Go Hard)

3 minutes         RPE 5-6 (Recover)

5 minutes         RPE 4 (Cool Down)

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