Cardiovascular exercise, commonly referred to as cardio, improves overall fitness by helping you to lose weight while improving cardiovascular health. Cardio boosts your metabolism while exercising, allowing you to lose weight without drastic reductions in calories consumed. The American Heart Association recommends 30 minutes of cardio daily for healthy adults. Cardio is any activity that gets your heart rate up enough for you to break a sweat. A wide variety of physical activities provide cardio to suit your physical level of fitness and interests.
Running
Running does not require any special training or equipment and can be done anywhere. The downside to running is that it can affect the joints, specifically the knees, and not everyone likes to run. For those who do enjoy running, it promotes cardiovascular fitness and burns around 986 calories per hour, based upon a 160-lb person, according to MayoClinic.com.
Dancing
Dancing is another type of cardio exercise that is low-impact and can be done to any style or tempo of music. Dancing is fun and increases your metabolism while burning calories. Different types of dancing provide different workout rates. Ballroom dancing burns around 219 calories per hour, based on a 160-lb. person.
Dancing is also linked to a reduced risk of dementia. A study by Joe Verghese, M.D., et al., published in the June 2003 issue of the "The New England Journal of Medicine" evaluated 488 subjects between the ages of 75 and 85 years old over a period of 21 years. They found that dancing was associated with a lower risk of dementia.
Step Aerobics
Step aerobics uses an elevated platform, or step, in a choreographed exercise routine. Step aerobics classes are group exercise formats with music where the participants combine floor routines using the raised platform. They start with warm-up exercises and light stretching and then progress to moderate or vigorous intensity exercise. Classes with different skill levels are provided at gyms and fitness clubs. Step aerobics videos are also available for home use.
The average amount of calories burned depends on the intensity level of the class. A ballpark figure for a 160-lb. adult for high-impact aerobics is 511 calories burned per hour. For low-impact aerobics, it's 365 calories.
