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What is cardio training and why do
we need it?
Cardio exercises are a specific type of physical activity (also called aerobic
endurance or activity), which get your large muscles moving, raise your heart
rate, and train your breathing, leading to the improvement of your
cardiovascular and breathing systems’ functional abilities. Their main purpose
is to improve endurance, which is the main human health resource: the ability
to prevent fatigue.

Cardiorespiratory fitness exercises (read cardio exercises) aren’t limited to

walking, running, swimming, rope jumping, stair climbing, etc. Dancing, sets of
compound bodyweight exercises, aerobic classes, or even intense housework
and circuit training with moderate weights also count: everything aimed at
increasing cardiovascular and breathing function for some period of time
causes the cardio training effect.

Modern methods of cardio training

Nowadays, the two most common methods of cardio training are steady
state cardio and high intensity cardio.
Features of steady-state training (SST)
● Performing an exercise for a
prolonged period of time with the
same level of effort.
● Exercising within low-to-moderate
intensity (50-60% max) and
moderate-to-vigorous intensity
(60-85% max)
● Involves slow twitch muscle fibers,
improving mitochondrial density in
them.
● Training below ventilatory
threshold - aerobic energy
production.

● After 20 mins of SST the body uses fat as the main fuel source (it's
important that the training duration be at least 30 minutes), enhancing
aerobic capacity.
● Increases mitochondrial density in type I (slow-twitch) muscle fibers,
which improves aerobic metabolism.

Pros and cons of steady state cardio

Pros Cons
- Improves cardiac efficiency by - Takes more time to burn the
increasing stroke volume. desired amount of calories
- Improves endurance and prepares when the goal is weight loss.
the cardiovascular system for - Can seem difficult and boring
heavier workloads. to people who don't like
- Aids muscle recovery. monotonous routines.
 Pros Cons
- Causes less cellular damage than high - The exercises
intensity training. require more time to
- Perfect for people who haven’t been complete and may
physically active for a long time; can be not be suitable for
performed by people experiencing someone with a busy
deconditioning (physician lifestyle.
recommendations needed).
- Prevents the development of type 2
diabetes, high blood pressure, or high
cholesterol.
- Clears your mind and improves your mood.
- If your goal is an endurance race or
something similar, you need to train doing
the prolonged activities that you are going
to perform at this event.

Features of interval training (IT)

● High-intensity interval training (HIIT), which is short periods of

maximum-effort exercise with less intense recovery periods or passive
recovery. (The most common form of IT)
● There are no universally accepted durations for the maximum-effort
period, recovery period, or ratio of the two. Commonly 1:2, 1:1, 2:1, etc.,
ratios of high intensity and recovery periods are used; it depends on the
individual’s fitness level and goal of the training.
● The higher-intensity exercise periods usually correspond to zones of
85-100 % of maximal intensity.
● The person performs over their anaerobic threshold and it involves high
twitch muscle fiber, resulting in greater metabolic efficiency.
● The main metabolic pathway is anaerobic glycolysis. This requires
glycogen as the main fuel.
Choosing the method of cardio
training you feel most comfortable
doing and enjoy the most is the key
to reaching your personal goals and
converting training into a habit.

Pros and cons of HIIT

Pros Cons
- The most time-efficient method for - Vigorous-intensity activity
improving aerobic capacity and/or may be uncomfortable
calorie burning. Just 30 minutes or less. and harmful for some,
- Boosts both aerobic and anaerobic especially deconditioned
powers. individuals.

- Has an afterburn effect because of EPOC - High mechanical stress

(excess post-exercise oxygen levels can increase the
consumption), the body burns fat while risk of muscle strain.
resting after the session. - HIIT without sufficient
- Effective strategy for individuals who are recovery and proper diet
easily distracted during exercise can lead to the use of
sessions. protein to restore
- The best training option for busy people. glycogen resources,
- Activates a larger amount of muscle which damages muscle
fibers with vigorous effort, results in tissues causing muscle
higher metabolic and hormonal shifts, mass loss.
which can stimulate the muscle building. - High training intensity
- Effective for getting and sustaining lean overloads the
muscle - saves muscle mass and burns cardiovascular system,
fat. which can be dangerous
- If stuck on a plateau, HIIT is considered for people with chronic
to be “new stress” to the body and it cardiac diseases and
results in positive shifts and you’ll see deconditioning.
the results you want.
Cardio training & muscle gain.
The main focus of a successful muscle gain program is strength training,
recovery, and creating a caloric surplus. So, you may think you don’t need
cardio at all to gain muscles. However, there are some reasons to include
some cardiovascular training in your program:

● Cardio helps prevent an increase in body fat when you have a caloric
surplus.
● Cardio is needed to maintain your level of endurance and
cardiovascular health.
However, exceeding volumes of cardio can “burn” your muscles, and you
can avoid this by simply limiting it to a minimum and doing it in a way
that you enjoy.

1. Include high-intensity sessions of 20 minutes or up to 30 minutes of

moderate-intensity sessions 2 - 3 times a week (as seperate
sessions, or as your warm up before strength training).
2. Do an enjoyable form of cardio as a 10 - 15-minute warm-up before
your strength session to help prepare your mind and body for the
upcoming workout.
3. Optionally, you can do low-intensity cardio 50 - 60% of maximum
heart rate for 10 -15 minutes as recovery after strength sessions
(it helps to faster utilize metabolic substrates in muscle caused by
strength training).
Cardio training & Weight Loss

Weight loss programs are usually targeted at exceeding calorie

expenditure or/and restricting calorie consumption. No matter what kind
of physical activity you chose as the main one in your program, cardio or
strength, both will increase your calorie expenditure.

More effective weight loss occurs when you do the following:

● strength training at least twice a week (to maintain lean and toned
muscle and boost the basal metabolic rate)
● any type of cardio 3-5 times a week for at least 30 minutes (20 for
beginners), you can do this as separate sessions or with your
strength training, which will greatly enhance your calorie expenditure.

How to determine the intensity

that is right for you?
The main parameters of cardio
training that must be taken into
account for building a successful
program according to your fitness
level and goals:

● Volume (how much),

● Frequency (how often),
● Intensity (how hard).
According to Essentials of Exercise Physiology by William de McAndre,
the last one can have the most dramatic influence on your fitness
conditioning.

1. Volume

The physical activity guidelines for Americans (2018) recommend the

following:

● For the most health benefits for healthy adults - 150 minutes a week
of moderate-intensity cardio or 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity
activity, or a combination of both.
● For substantial health benefits, do at least 150 to 300 minutes a
week of moderate-intensity cardio, or 75 to 150 minutes a week of
vigorous-intensity activity, or an equivalent combination of both.

2. Frequency

Cardio activity should be spread throughout the week. The basic

recommendations on frequency of cardio sessions according to
American College of Sport Medicine (ACSM) are as follows:

● 30-60 min of moderate-intensity (60-80% of max heart rate) - 5 days

per week;
● 20-60 min of vigorous-intensity aerobic exercise (>= 80% max heart
rate) - 3 days per week;
● One continuous session or multiple shorter sessions (of at least 10
minutes for moderate intensity) are both acceptable for
accumulating the desired amount of daily physical activity;
● Cardio activity of more than 60 minutes per session is not
recommended (unless you’re an experienced athlete and have a
specific goal of training for an endurance event).
Individual approach to determine intensity

To make sure you keep your effort at the right target level of intensity, do
a relative intensity evaluation. It’s based on how physical activity affects
your heart rate and breathing. The higher the intensity is, the more
metabolic changes will occur, including calorie burn, and the more
results you’ll achieve. These are the easiest ways to control your exercise
intensity:

● Rating of perceived exertion (RPE), also known as Borg Scale.

Individual intensity estimated on a scale of 6 to 19, where 6 stands for no
effort at all and 17-19 is the highest possible level of effort. If you
exercise at moderate intensity you can talk, but not sing, and when
training at vigorous intensity you won’t be able to say more than a few
words without pausing for a breath.

● Estimating the level of intensity by determining your maximum heart

rate (%HRmax). A traditional formula is typically used to predict the
maximum heart rate of an individual (HRmax) :

HRmax = 220 - age

In modern studies (Nes BM, 2013), this traditional formula significantly

overestimates the real values of HRmax among adults 30+ years old and
seniors. So, there is another formula for older adults:

HRmax = 211 - (0.64 * age)

To determine the target level of intensity, use this formula:

HRmax X target intensity of exercise (%) = target

heart rate (BPM)
All these formulas should be considered a rule of thumb, and they should
not be used to determine a specific person’s maximum heart rate. You
should take into account both the target BPM and RPE to ensure that
you’re sticking to the target intensity.

There are several training zones and you should use the corresponding
RPE and %HRmax to achieve the specific goal of your cardio training
session.

Cardio training zones % HRmax RPE scale

10
Very light
● Recovery training zone - low effort, you can maintain it for
hours and communicate easily.
● Aerobic metabolism is the main way of energy production.
● Used for cooldown, preparing the cardiovascular system for
further harder work. 50-60 11 Fairly light
12
Light
Low to moderate activity - this effort can be maintained for
hours, breathing is heavier, you will be able talk: a sentence or
two with some effort.
● Aerobic metabolic pathway (mostly by aerobic glycolysis),
performed just below aerobic threshold, after which
anaerobic glycolysis will partly be present
● Used as a “base” for improvement in aerobic productivity of 13 Somewhat
slow twitch muscle fibers 60-75 hard

Moderate
14
● Moderate to vigorous effort, more challenging aerobic pace,
you can still say full sentences.
● Performed exactly below or at anaerobic threshold, where
lactic acid starts building up more intensely.
● Improves efficiency of cardiovascular system 75-85 15 Hard

Hard
● Vigorous effort, heavy breathing, maintaining a conversation 16
becomes difficult.
● Anaerobic metabolic pathway starts to dominate.
● Often used for interval training.
● Trains the ability to withstand higher levels of lactic acid in
your blood for longer. 85-90 17 Very hard
Maximum 18
- Maximum effort, very heavy breathing, no ability to speak or
say even a few words;
- Anaerobic metabolic pathway. >90 19 Very, very
- Develops anaerobic productivity: ability to make a bigger hard
effort, ability to maintain maximum effort for longer periods
of time.

For conditioning fitness training nearly 60% of the general cardio

activity volume should be performed at the next levels of intensity,
according to your fitness level:

Fitness Level Beginner Intermediate Advanced

Intensity
60 - 75 70 - 85 80 - 90
(%HRmax)

6. Where to start?
If you are a beginner, focus on moderate-intensity exercise, since
higher-intensity exercise has been associated with a risk of
exercise-related complications, such as injury and discomfort. Gradually
increase the volume and intensity to avoid overtraining (10% increase in
volume is recommended).
 If you've just started, we suggest signing up for a 5-week program to
build a base of aerobic capacity and improve your fitness level
conditioning. This program will allow you to choose any cyclic type of
cardio (walking, running, cycling, etc., outdoors or on an exercise
machine) and guide you with our tips and recommendations.

Total weekly Frequency

Session duration Intensity
Week volume of (times per
(min) (% HRmax)
activity (min) week)

1 60 min 3 3 X 20 60 - 70

2 X 24 60 - 70
2 66 min 3
1 X 18 65 - 75

2 X 25 60 - 70
3 72 min 3
1 X 22 65 - 75

2 X 30 65 - 70
3
1 X 20 70 - 75
4 80 min
2 X 24 65 - 70
4
2 X 16 75 - 80

3 3 X 30 65 - 75

5 90 min
2 X 28 65 - 75
4
2 X 16 75 - 80