Don't be a cardio slave!

Shake Up Your Cardio!

By Raphael Calzadilla, B.A., CPT, ACE
eDiets Chief Fitness Pro
Do you spend long hours doing the same cardio routine only to reach the end of the week with no results? Don't be a cardio slave! Learn to master your program. To get the most benefit from your workouts, train at various intensities to challenge your body -- and avoid boredom.

Aerobic exercise is a foundation of any fitness program. It helps to improve the physique and lower blood pressure, stress, and even the risk for some types of cancer. It is the primary way to improve cardiorespiratory fitness because it makes the heart and lungs stronger.

If you are doing the same workout time after time, your system adapts quite easily. The cardiovascular system is like any other muscle that works with the overload principle. The key is to ask it to do just a little bit more than it is accustomed to -- in effect, imposing new demands.

To keep from adapting to one routine, add variety by performing the following workouts, each one designed for a specific goal. Begin each of these sessions with a 5-minute warm-up; end with a 5-minute cool-down and follow the workout with stretching.

Combine your cardio workouts with resistance training and a sound nutrition plan and you'll push through plateaus, beat boredom and blast fat!

Ease Up or Step It Up! If the suggested intensity feels like you're working too hard, slow down and use the lower end of the target heart zones. If the intensity seems too easy, kick up the speed or pump the arms to kick it up a notch to the higher ends of the target heart zones.

To find your Target Heart Rate, use this formula:

First, find you Maximum Heart Rate (220 - your age = MHR). Multiply MHR by the Target Heart Rate percentage you're trying to achieve (MHR x .65% to .85% = Target Heart Rate Range). Use this simple formula to calculate your Target Heart Rate for the following cardio routines!

Always consult your medical professional before you begin an exercise program or if you have any questions about your health.

Cardio Shake-Up Workouts

1. Endurance Workout
GOAL: Increase endurance and burn fat

WHY IT WORKS: This workout is good for weight loss and aids in recovery from more intense workouts. By elevating the heart rate with a slightly harder pace than usual, these workouts can be maintained for a longer duration -- which aids in burning more calories. Maintaining a steady pace builds a great foundation for your cardio program and trains your heart to work more efficiently over the long haul.

HOW TO DO IT: Endurance workouts are low-to-moderate intensity. Perform 20-50 minutes, maintaining 60-70 percent in the THZ. If you cannot do 20 minutes, do as many minutes as you can and try to increase one or two minutes per week.

2. Get Fit Intervals
GOAL: Increase metabolism; burn fat and calories

WHY IT WORKS: This workout effectively challenges the cardiovascular system by alternating moderate-to-high intensity with lower intensity periods.

HOW TO DO IT: The beauty of interval training is you don't have to work out for a long time. Unless you're training for a competitive event, anything more than 30 minutes is unnecessary, and that includes a 5-minute warm up and 5-minute cool down! Interval training is best described as performing bouts of higher effort with low-to-moderate recovery. Aim to keep your heart rate around 60 percent to 70 percent for two minutes (lower intensity) and around 70 percent to 85 percent for two minutes (higher intensity).

3. Fitness Training
GOAL: Improve cardiovascular fitness

WHY IT WORKS: You will burn maximum calories in a shorter period of time. Higher intensity workouts also help to improve cardiovascular performance, so that in the future you can exercise at higher and longer intensities.

HOW TO DO IT: Keep the heart rate between 70 percent and 85 percent for 20 minutes. It's not necessary to go any longer than 20 minutes when working at a high intensity. Extremely long workouts can lead to injury, fatigue or overtraining.

A drug-free competitive bodybuilder and 2005 winner of the prestigious WNBF (World Natural Bodybuilding Federation) Pro Card, Raphael Calzadilla is a veteran of the health-and-fitness industry. He specializes in a holistic approach to body transformation, nutrition programs and personal training. He earned his B.A. in communications from Southern Connecticut State University and is certified as a personal trainer with ACE and APEX. In addition, he successfully completed the RTS1 program based on biomechanics