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What is stamina/endurance?
Endurance/stamina is ability of a person performing low- to medium-intensity exercise for long periods of time. E.g., jogging or running several miles to hundreds of miles; cycling dozens of miles to thousands of miles; swimming hundreds of yards or meters to dozens of miles/km.It depends on ability of a person to take in ,deliver and utilize(by muscles) oxygen. The degree of improvement that may be expected in cardio respiratory fitness is directly related to the frequency, intensity, duration and mode.
What is the appropriate recommended endurance exercise program?
Cardio respiratory exercise program is based on FITT, Frequency, intensity, type, time. The ACSM (American College of sports medicine recommendations) are;
- Frequency of exercise -Do moderately intense cardio 30 minutes a day, five days a week Or Do vigorously intense cardio 20 minutes a day, 3 days a week. Moderate-intensity physical activity means working hard enough to raise your heart rate and break a sweat, yet still being able to carry on a conversation. It should be noted that to lose weight or maintain weight loss, 60 to 90 minutes of physical activity may be necessary. The 30-minute recommendation is for the average healthy adult to maintain health and reduce the risk for chronic disease.
- Intensity of exercise - The recommended intensity range is 55 to 90 % of maximum heart rate or between 40 to 85 % of heart rate reserve. Maximum heart rate is calculated by a maximal functional capacity test, using a bicycle or treadmill ergometer, or by age predicted (220-age) maximal heart rate tables. Heart rate reserve is HR (maximum) - HR (resting heart rate).
- Type of exercise - walking, jogging, running, stair climbing, aerobic dance (aerobics), swimming, cross country skiing, Cycling and dance exercises.
- Time/duration of exercise - Do moderately intense cardio 30 minutes a day or Do vigorously intense cardio 20 minutes a day.Deconditioned individuals may benefit from multiple and short duration sessions.
How to monitor cardio exercise intensity?
There are various methods to monitor exercise intensity.
- Talk test- talk test is subjective, but it is quite useful in determining a "comfort zone" of aerobic intensity. Exerciser should be able to breathe comfortably and rhythmically through out all phases of a work out to ensure a safe and comfortable level of exercise. Exerciser should able to carry on a comfortable conversation without having to take a breath between each word. In other words, exerciser has to slow down or rest for a movement when a pace of aerobic exercise makes it impossible for them to put more than two words together without taking a breath.
- Borg's scale - Aerobic exercise intensity can also be monitored by assigning a numerical value to subjective feelings of exercise exertion. The popular method is the rating of perceived exertion (RPE).RPE is designed by Dr.Gunnar borg.RPE response also co-relates with very well with cardio respiratory and metabolic factors such as heart rate, breathing rate and oxygen consumptions. The revised RPE/Borg's scale is an ordinal scale with values from 1 to 10.1 is equal to nothing at all(feelings) and 10(feelings) is equal to strong maximum. Individual should exercise between an RPE of 3 to 5. When using the RPE scale is sure to have your client's rate the general feelings caused by the exercise rather than exercise itself.
- Percentage maximum heart rate - This method of monitoring exercise intensity of exercise calculates the exercise heart as percentage of maximum heart rate. This maximum heart rate can be calculated by a maximum functional test, using a bicycle or treadmill ergometer or by age -predicted maximal heart rate (220-age).
Training heart arte = 220- age x 60 to 90 %(desired percentage of maximal heart rate). |
