Cardio workouts are the cornerstone of most fitness regimens. Cardio can be any activity that gets the large muscles of the body moving in rhythmic continuous motion.
So just how much cardio do you need to do? Here are the recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for adults 18 to 64 years old:
- 2 hours and 30 minutes (150 minutes) of moderate-intensity aerobic activity each week, OR
- 1 hour and 15 minutes (75 minutes) of vigorous-intensity aerobic activity each week, OR
- an equivalent mix of moderate- and vigorous-intensity aerobic activity each week
The above guidelines are the minimum needed for basic health; for even greater health benefits, you’ll want to increase your aerobic activity as follows:
- 5 hours (300 minutes) of moderate-intensity aerobic activity each week, OR
- 2 hours and 30 minutes (150 minutes) of vigorous-intensity aerobic activity each week, OR
- an equivalent mix of moderate- and vigorous-intensity aerobic activity each week
How will you know whether you’re doing moderate- or vigorous-intensity aerobic activity? Generally, moderate-intensity aerobic activity means you’re working hard enough to raise your heart rate and break a sweat. You can talk, but you’re not able to sing a song. With vigorous-intensity aerobic activity, your heart rate is even higher, and you’re breathing hard and rapidly. You can’t say more than a few words without taking a breath. Intensity levels are different for each person — what might be a moderate-intensity activity for one person might be a vigorous-intensity activity for someone else, and vice versa.
While the requirements above sound like a lot, the good news is that you can spread the time out into chunks as small as 10 minutes. So for example, you could take three 10-minute brisk walks in a day for a total of 30 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity. Do that five days a week, and you’ve got your 150 minutes for the week!
As for what types of activities you can do for your cardio workouts, walking, running, swimming, bicycling, and hiking are great, but they’re all done outdoors, and so weather, time of day, and other conditions may make these activities inconvenient or unavailable.
The solution? Do your workouts inside! Kickboxing, step aerobics, high- and low-impact aerobics, dancing — all of these are great cardio activities you can do indoors. If you own a treadmill or exercise bike, you can take your running, walking, and cycling inside, too.
For more on cardio, check out the links below:
- Benefits of aerobic exercise