How To Get In Shape And Why It's Important To Measure Your Heart Rate.

Being less fit or overweight has a direct adverse impact on your self-confidence and the way you deal with people. It's also very stressful for your body and has a negative effect on your long term health.

In the modern world of science, where plenty of human body secrets have been revealed, getting in shape isn’t difficult. It's all about hard work though.

Exercise: The Only Resort

Exercise has immense benefits on the human body including stress reduction, weight loss, improved heart health, and increased muscular strength and tone. But before we jump onto the ideal exercises here are the golden rules of exercise that you must follow to get optimal results.

Golden Principles Of Exercise

1. Be Patient

The human body is a complex machine that follows the laws of nature. No magical wand shall be effective on it. Those looking for fast results get disheartened and bequeath exercise. Weight variations should come ingradually so you can sustain it and feel good about yourself.

2. Be Honest To Yourself

Don’t ever think of going for a jog with the rising sun if you are not a morning person. The best way to work on the body is by carrying out an honest analysis of your body and routine and working out accordingly.

3. Draw Your Limits

It is better to set realistic goals and stay within your limits. Instead of jumping directly onto extreme levels of exercise start with the simpler and easier ones. Hard exercise, in the beginning, can be daunting.

4. Find A Motivation

It is better to find an external motivation source. Getting ready to be a charming groom or a promise of weight loss to your daughter, all these can act as motivating stimuli. Things become easier if you have a workout buddy who motivates you.

5. Eat Healthily

Exercise alone can not be beneficial if you ignore the right eating habits. Avoid consuming junk foods and sodas. Keep away from the misleading fad diets and body cleansing teas. On the other hand, fad diets and body-cleansing drinks/teas are other abysses. Do not rely on them. All you have to do is to take substantial amounts of macronutrients recommended by a healthy diet and watch your

calorie intake.

Most Effective Workouts: Cardio Exercises

We often get to hear about cardio exercises and how effective they are in helping you improve your muscle strength and shape. But, what is a cardio exercise?

Well! According to the experts any exercise that raises your heart rate and makes you breathe heavily. The umbrella of cardio exercise includes a number of various exercises.

The best and most effective ones are discussed below:

1. 100-meter sprints

Sprint running makes you sweat and your heart thumps. The maneuver has immense health benefits as found by a study. One of these benefits is the shaping of the muscles. Those looking for weight and waist loss should definitely take this up. The exercise also improves your overall fitness.

2. Jogging (30 minutes)

A 30-minute jog might sound scary but the catch point here is the speed. It is unimportant to exert everything to gain speed. You can jog as slow as you want. Move all your limbs as you jog. According to research, jogging has immense cardiovascular benefits.

3. Lunges

Lunges are an extremely effective exercise to build muscle in your legs. You can get rid of bulky or frail legs by adopting this cardio exercise. It effectively increases your heart rate and improves strength. According to research, lunges help in improving muscle architecture too.

4. Jumping Jacks

This exercise from the past (elementary PE) is effective in bringing core strength to your calf muscles and other leg muscles. This is why the exercise was a part of our PE routine.

5. Run Stairs

It is a myth that cardio exercises are only performed outdoors while one of the most potent strength training exercises is running stairs. The stairs on your apartment building can be the ultimate helper to muscle strength. According to a 2018 study, running stairs is considered an effective strength training exercise. The more the

stairs, the better your chances of getting in shape quickly.

6. Skipping Rope

Skipping rope is a magical exercise. It seems like a simple exercise but in reality, it involves almost every muscle in your body. Thus, it is an ideal endurance exercise. All you need is a skipping rope and some motivation.

7. Swimming

Swimming is one of the most effective exercises for muscle toning. It is considered an efficacious maneuver in losing weight. According to an analysis, swimming is beneficial in body weight and fat distribution throughout the body. Swimming also improves insulin levels in the body and helps you in maintaining weight. Therefore, it is safe to say that swimming can help you get back in shape.

8. Kettlebells

Kettlebells are my favorite. You can really get a good cardio workout in a very short amount of time. It's also great because you can do it easily from home. Another reason I'm a big fan of kettlebell workouts is because it's a strength workout at the same time. I'm a brazilian jiu jitsu athlete myself and find that this is the best way to get my strength and conditioning in.

Why Is It Important To Measure Your Heart Rate During

Exercise?

As mentioned cardio exercises are the ideal steps, calculation of heart rate is pivotal. Measuring the heart rate during exercise helps you get an idea of the fat-burning efficacy. The normal heart beats 60-100 times/minute. When you work out the heart rate increases. With the increase in the rate, you eventually reach a fat-burning heart rate zone. At this heart rate, your body starts to burn and take energy from the fat stores instead of the available carbohydrates.

There are 4 heart rate zones:

1. Resting heart rate

2. Moderate heart rate

3. Target heart rate

4. Maximum heart rate

The fat-burning heart-rate zone is 70 percent of your maximum heart rate. So, if you reach this heart rate (that is the aim of cardio exercise), you start to lose weight and reach that ideal body physique.

Conclusion

Geting better cardio is an uphill task and requires you to put in serious effort. There are

more obese people than underweight therefore cardio exercises are more famous. Cardio exercise is the best way for those who want to lose weight because they help you reach the fat-burning heart-rate zone. At this rate, the body utilizes stored fats for energy and helps you get rid of the bulk. Measuring your heart rate is really important because it can make your workout a lot more effective.