Question of the day: what kind of cardio workouts are there?

In the new for our section column “Question of the Day” experts, celebrity guests and professional athletes continue to answer simple and topical questions of our readers. Today, together with our guest Anton Shapochka, an expert of the federal network of fitness clubs X-Fit, we will talk about cardio training, an equivalent replacement for a treadmill and the benefits of aerobic and anaerobic training.

You can watch the video on the official X-fit YouTube channel.

Anton Shapochka, expert of the federal network of fitness clubs X-Fit: “Remember that cardio is not only running. If you don’t like running, use walking uphill, for example. Cardio workouts include running, cycling, swimming, skiing, cycling in the gym, treadmills, steppers, rowing machines. Despite this, the effects of cardio training can also be achieved through functional training in the gym.”

What is cardio training?

“Cardio training is training that develops the cardio-respiratory system. Developing this system is very important because everything we do in life requires high efficiency of the heart (to pump blood) and lungs (to enrich the blood with oxygen).”

Tip: Before a workout, about an hour before, it’s best to eat something light, protein-carbohydrate. After the workout, you can eat. It is better to eat protein food.

Who needs cardio training?

“Everyone! Bodybuilders, slimmers, teenagers and pregnant pensioners. Because without the effective work of these systems, our body will be very difficult.”

What is cardio training for?

“Cardio training helps to:

– strengthen the cardiovascular system;

– “normalize the heart rate;

– “train the respiratory system;

– improve endurance.”

Advice from the trainer: cardio training is quite a long way, if your goal is to lose weight, in this case, strength training and nutrition correction will give visible effect much faster.

What kind of cardio workouts are there?

You can divide training by zones:

– aerobic (with oxygen). Aerobic are very many types of physical exercise. For example, long-distance running at a medium pace is a typical example of aerobic exercise;

– anaerobic (without oxygen, when the intensity of exercise is such that the heart and lungs do not have time to cope with the demand for O2). Characteristic examples of anaerobic motor activity are strength training and sprinting. The differences between the two types of motor activity come from the different duration and intensity of muscle contractions. This determines the way in which energy is produced within the muscles.

“In addition to this, cardio training can be categorized into steady-state and interval training. To effectively develop the cardio-respiratory system, the best way is the interval method (where we alternate between aerobic/anaerobic zone work) and the even aerobic method (where we stay in the same heart rate zone for a long time).”

Can cardio be used as a warm-up or warm-down in the gym?

“It’s best to set aside separate days of uniform aerobic cardio and interval cardio. If we’re talking about a warm-up, it’s better to do a series of dynamic stretching. After the workout, a series of static stretching can be a good alternative.”