CARDIO BENEFITS: WHAT IT DOES FOR YOU

Cardio does many things for you. If you are serious about losing weight, you will need to incorporate cardio into your training program. The most recognizable thing that cardio does is that it gives you the majority of your calorie burn.

In your respiratory system you will enhance oxygen exchange in the lungs, improve blood flow through the lungs, require fewer breaths per minute, and distribute air more efficiently through the lungs.

In the cardiovascular system your heart will get stronger and pump blood more efficiently, increase red blood cell count, increase oxygen-carrying myoglobin, enhance blood flow to muscles, lower your resting heart rate and exercise heart rate, improve thermoregulation and improve your lactate threshold and lactate removal.

In your musculoskeletal system your body will be able to turn sugar into energy more efficiently, increase your energy stores and be able to extract more oxygen from your blood.

Out of all of these, the most important is that it will change the way you feel.  You will also become more motivated as you start to increase speeds and distances.

About this Author

After graduating from the National Personal Training Institute (NPTI) in Richmond Heights Ohio, Mat sat for and passed the test to earn his CSCS (certified strength and conditioning specialist). After spending over one and a half years of training in a gym setting, and becoming and instructor at NPTI, Matt started MK Fitness as a one-on-one or small group personal training company.