MYTH: There are so many people telling you that cardio can result in muscle loss, but nobody really tells you why it happens. There is no direct connection between cardio and muscle loss. It only happens if your body has the lack of protein. So, keep your protein intake in check and you are good to go. Please let me know if you want a detailed post on the same in the comments.
The first thing you need to consider while you start with cardio is to monitor your intensity. Later on, you can modify the workouts according to the fitness level then you can add and reduce the workout time as per your need.
If you found trouble while walking, started to feel dizzy or feel any sharp pain then you should stop the workout. If you are still not feeling well after taking rest then you need to call the doctor for a checkup.
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GETTING STARTED WITH CARDIO:
First and foremost, choose an activity that you enjoy the most. This is the simplest and important thing to do since there is no one who wants to spend his time being miserable.
The best exercise for you is the one you actually want to, not the one you think you should do in order to get fit. Walking is an excellent activity to start since it doesn’t require anything special and you can do it anywhere without bothering to buy equipment.
If you are not comfortable with walking, then you can anything as long as it involves some kind of continuous movement like cycling, swimming, running, stair climbing (which is my personal favorite), dancing and so on.
SET UP A SIMPLE SCHEDULE YOU CAN FOLLOW:
If you have just started exercising then you may not know how much exercise the body can handle. If you’re a beginner then your first step should be 3 days of exercise with a day of rest in between these days.
This will allow you enough time to know how your body is responding to exercise and how it feels to stick to a single workout schedule. After that, you should take out some time for yourself as your body needs time to adjust after the intense workout along with your mind.
TIME TO INCREASE THE PACE AND INTENSITY:
Next step is to increase the pace and intensity to slightly harder than comfortable and continuing doing that as long as you comfortably can. You should begin your workout where your body stands, not where you want to be.
At first, you may only be able to exercise for a few minutes in a day, but it will change quickly if you’re consistent with your workout.
TIME TO INCREASE THE CARDIO:
Each week you should increase your workout time by a few minutes until you can work continuously for half an hour a session.
Even if you are only able to add one minute per workout then it is more than enough because it is better to do something gradual than to start something too hard and then quit later.
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I hope this article “A Guide to Cardio Workouts For Beginners?” has been helpful. Please keep yourself updated and subscribe for all the updates.
Until then, stay fit and stay happy!
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