Nowadays most people are confining. They go on foot from car park or bus stop to their establishment, from table to buffet or cafeteria. Even young people do not like physical loads. Lack of movement badly affects health and ability of people in all walks of life.

Medical studies show that physical exercise helps improving mental health, blood circulation and protect body from heart diseases. Physical activity - this is what people need for normal functioning, to improve health and well-being.

Aerobic exercises include such types of exercise, when you must have oxygen for a long time. They make requirements to body, forcing it to increase oxygen consumption. As a result, favorable changes in lungs, heart and vascular system take place. One might say that regular aerobics classes increase body’s ability to pass air through lungs, increasing overall blood flow, and blood efficiently implements one of its main functions - transport of oxygen.

Why we should engage in aerobics?

Now effectiveness of aerobics is acknowledged. Aerobics is a complex of exercises for endurance, which last rather long and are linked to achievement of balance between needs of body in oxygen and its delivery. A body’s responce on increased demand for oxygen is called a training effect, or positive physical changes. Here are some of the changes:

• total volume of blood is increased so much, that possibility of oxygen transport is improved, and therefore a person has a greater endurance during intense physical activity.
• Volume of lungs is increased, and some studies linked increasing volume of lungs with a higher life expectancy.
• heart muscle is strengthened, it is supplied by blood better.
• content of high density lipoproteins is increased, the ratio of total cholesterol to LVP decreases, which reduces the risk of atherosclerosis.
• bones system is strengthened
• aerobics helps to cope with physical and emotional stress.
• efficiency is increased.
• Aerobics - a real way to weight loss or weight maintenance in normal condition. It is this aspect that attracts young girls to engage in aerobics. But we have to say that physical exercise can only help slimming, but diet is the main factor.
• coordination of movements is improved.

How to maximize the effect of aerobic training

Doing aerobics, it is necessary to gradually reach high rate of movements. The intensity of aerobic loads is measured through frequency of heart rate during training. Ideally, while aerobics pulse rate should be between 65 to 85 percent of maximum frequency. To calculate maximum frequency of pulse you should not undergo any special studies. Just subtract your age from 220. Suppose, you are 30 years old. Then, your maximum heart rate is 190 beats per minute (220 - 30 = 190). A recommended frequency of heart rate during exercise should be between 124 (190 x 0.65 == 124) to 162 (190 x 0.85 = 162) beats per minute.

To determine frequency of heart rate during exercise, measure pulse of radiation (at wrist) or, simpler, in carotid artery. Radiation artery is located inside the wrist around the middle. Carotid artery passes across the neck, and the easiest way to find it is to the left or right at the throat.

This is done the following way. Place the index and middle fingers on the artery. Do not press strongly. If you push too hard, you can distort the results - pulse may be reduced. Calculate the number of strokes for 10 seconds and multiply obtained figure on 6 - and you will get the frequency of heart beats per minute.

There is a very simple way. Buy a sports heart-rate monitor. You will have to put a lower value of working interval of pulse. If you suddenly reduce rate, and pulse falls below this boundary, heart-rate monitor will begin to issue a warning beep. With help of heart-rate monitor you will be able to maintain desired intensity of aerobic loads.

Frequency of heart rate during rest can serve an excellent indicator of aerobic fitness. A person involved in aerobics for a long and intensively, this figure ranges from 30 to 40 beats per minute. An average person in normal physical condition - from 70 to 80, while those who are leading sedentary lives - from 80 to 100. It turns out that the faster heart beats during training, the calmer it behaves during rest. We recommend to check pulse in the morning, as soon as you got up from bed. The fewer strokes per minute your heart makes, the more blood it pumps with each of them. This means it works more efficiently.

What kind of aerobics you should choose

A few decades ago, a “father” of aerobics opened a wonderful preventive effect of jogging.

Regular, relatively slow pace, healed hearts at any age and successfully assisted to weight loss. Aerobic training was understood as jogging for a long time. Then, American actress Jane Fonda invented dance aerobics. People liked its emotionality and gradually forgot of boring running. Anyway, today the word aerobics immediately reminds us of deafening music and girls in aerobic “uniform”.

Years passed, aerobics was forgotten. And instead people invented something fresher and more comfortable. What exactly? Many trainers that simulate different types of aerobic load - cycling, jogging, walking, skating and skiing. Later, there were “riders” - special simulators that give you aerobic strain, but in addition, little power.

When it comes to such a diversity we have a question: what kind of aerobics is most effective? The answer is: the one that you like. And this is truth! Just imagine: any type of aerobics will require from you up to 4-5 trainings a week. You will be hard to do it, if you don’t like it! More than that, no matter what you are engaged in, the result depends on your enamored attitude. Agree? If so, choose only aerobics, which gives you real pleasure!

No matter what you choose, exercise should begin with a warm-up and finish with cooldown. A 50-minutes warm-up may include a jog or climb on a mechanical ladder, working on bike with low resistance and so on. Warm up reduces blood pressure, increases blood circulation to heart, “warms up” muscles and makes joints more flexible.

Why is this important? First, you need to smooth transition from calm heart rate to extreme. A sharp jump is harmful. And secondly, any aerobic is a great stress for joints. If they are cold, inflexible, the risk of injury is high.

Well, cooldown - a gradual reduction in rate at the end of training - normalizes heart palpitations, displays slags from muscles and prevents possible stagnation of blood in legs.

At last it is necessary to stay more. Some types of aerobics, especially those including many jumping movements, cause a strong tide of blood in the lower limbs. Blood pours off from head, and this may cause a sharp decrease in pressure and dizziness. A surplus of blood in legs leads to stagnation, and it is not useful. Especially for people with a hereditary risk of thrombophlebitis and varicose veins.

A few minutes of hand strokes, bends, etc. restore balance of blood flow in the end of training .

So, remember: do not neglect either warm or cooldown. They should become a mandatory part of your aerobic exercise!