What Is Aerobic ?
Rhythmic exercises performed to music. During an aerobics workout, dance steps are mixed with callisthenics, running and jumping. Ballet, disco, jazz, rock, and other types of music supply the tempo and rhythm for the exercises. A well-structured session works the entire body, and takes muscles and joints through their full range of movement, enhancing flexibility and improving strength. A good workout can also develop stamina and help maintain bone mass, vital for women around the menopause and beyond.
To avoid injury, it is essential to have a good instructor who is properly qualified. Good instructors insist that participants always perform appropriate warm up and cool down exercises to reduce the risk of injury and muscle soreness. They are sensitive to the ability of each member of the class and ensure that the exercise level is neither too low nor too high (many instructors offer graded classes taught at different levels of intensity). Particularly good instructors will expect participants to check their pulse two or three times during the class. They are able and willing to explain how to perform the exercises and the reasons for performing them, and readily correct anyone's poor technique.
An aerobics session may consist of high-impact or low-impact movements, or a combination. High-impact movements include running on the spot and jumping up and down. These can cause stress injuries, such as shin splints and lower back pain, especially if done on a hard floor (concrete floors are worse, sprung floors are best). Low-impact movements are performed keeping one foot on the ground all the time. They have a low incidence of injury but have to be performed at a high intensity to improve aerobic fitness. Low impact aerobic movements are sometimes combined with upper body conditioning in which exercisers use their own body weight (or light hand weights for added resistance) to improve muscle strength and toning.
Many people join aerobics classes to lose weight, but most studies show that, although muscles are toned, there is no significant change in the body weight of the majority of participants.
1. A form of aerobic exercise popularized by Kenneth C. Cooper in the 1960s. He evaluated the demands of particular exercises for oxygen, and their subsequent effects on the heart and lungs. He then devised exercise programmes, giving them points according to their duration, frequency, and intensity. To develop cardiovascular fitness, a person is expected to earn at least 30 points per week.
2. A type of aerobic exercise consisting mainly of continuous callisthenics performed to music.
To avoid injury, it is essential to have a good instructor who is properly qualified. Good instructors insist that participants always perform appropriate warm up and cool down exercises to reduce the risk of injury and muscle soreness. They are sensitive to the ability of each member of the class and ensure that the exercise level is neither too low nor too high (many instructors offer graded classes taught at different levels of intensity). Particularly good instructors will expect participants to check their pulse two or three times during the class. They are able and willing to explain how to perform the exercises and the reasons for performing them, and readily correct anyone's poor technique.
An aerobics session may consist of high-impact or low-impact movements, or a combination. High-impact movements include running on the spot and jumping up and down. These can cause stress injuries, such as shin splints and lower back pain, especially if done on a hard floor (concrete floors are worse, sprung floors are best). Low-impact movements are performed keeping one foot on the ground all the time. They have a low incidence of injury but have to be performed at a high intensity to improve aerobic fitness. Low impact aerobic movements are sometimes combined with upper body conditioning in which exercisers use their own body weight (or light hand weights for added resistance) to improve muscle strength and toning.
Many people join aerobics classes to lose weight, but most studies show that, although muscles are toned, there is no significant change in the body weight of the majority of participants.
1. A form of aerobic exercise popularized by Kenneth C. Cooper in the 1960s. He evaluated the demands of particular exercises for oxygen, and their subsequent effects on the heart and lungs. He then devised exercise programmes, giving them points according to their duration, frequency, and intensity. To develop cardiovascular fitness, a person is expected to earn at least 30 points per week.
2. A type of aerobic exercise consisting mainly of continuous callisthenics performed to music.