Getting fit isn’t all about how long you can run without asking for a break or throwing up at the side of the road. It isn’t all about how much you can lift, either. You need a full body workout that provides flexibility, cardio and strength training. If all you do is run, you’re not doing yourself as much of a favor as you think. While any exercise is better than none, just focusing on endurance leaves you vulnerable to injury. Just pressing weights isn’t the answer either, if it’s all that you do.
Cardio is necessary for good health.
A cardio workout will strengthen your heart and your muscles, while burning extra calories. It can improve your mood and even help you think better by increasing circulation and burning off the hormones of stress. It produces endorphins that reduce pain and can aid in joint movement for arthritis patients. It’s also good for aiding in regulating blood sugar and blood pressure levels. It makes running to catch the bus easier and climbing a flight of stairs a breeze.
You need muscle strength to get daily tasks completed.
It may be obvious that strong muscles are required just to get around daily, but what isn’t as obvious is that they’re necessary for strong bones, too. Muscles pull on bones, which stimulates them to uptake calcium and prevents osteoporosis. It works as well as some medications and may even reverse bone loss. It’s one reason strength training is recommended for seniors, especially women. Strength training also burns calories, but it’s calories from fat tissue, unlike cardio that burns both lean muscle and fat. The more muscle you have, the higher your metabolism, since muscle requires more calories for maintenance than fat tissue does. You’ll boost your energy level, improve body mechanics and aid in pain control in diseases like arthritis.
Flexibility training can help reduce injuries.
If you’ve experienced injuries when you do cardio or strength training, you might consider increasing your range of motion. Flexibility training can help you do that. Not only are fewer injuries one of the benefits of this type of training, so is less pain and improved balance and posture. It can improve your mental attitude and your physical performance, too.
- You need all types of fitness, cardio, strength, flexibility and balance. Balance exercises help people, especially seniors, avoid falls, reduce the risk of injury and improve kinesthesia, the sense of body position and where you are in space based on your surroundings.
- Are you short on time? Make your strength training a high intensity interval training—-HIIT workout. Better yet, add a kettlebell and get a full body workout that provides flexibility, endurance and strength training.
- Working out regularly can be a fountain of youth, especially if you eat healthy. Not only will you walk with bounce in your step, have improved circulation, look fit and have better posture, it increases the length of the telomeres to keep you younger at a cellular level.
- By combining all types of training, including strength training and cardio, you’ll boost your cognitive abilities and burn off stress that can cause foggy thinking.
For more information, contact us today at Next Level Fitness!