Bu

t an

aro

bic

an

d a

ero

bic

exerc

ise a

re

lin

ked

. T

here

are

ple

nty

of

acti

vit

ies w

here

yo

u’ll

sw

itch b

etw

een t

he t

wo. Tennis

is a

go

od

exam

ple

– y

ou

need

th

e s

tam

ina t

o s

tay o

n

co

urt

fo

r th

e leng

th o

f a m

atc

h, b

ut

als

o n

eed

the s

ho

rt, sh

arp

bu

rsts

of

an

aero

bic

fit

ness

to r

un

fo

r th

e b

all.

So

whic

h s

ho

uld

yo

u b

e a

imin

g f

or

when

yo

u’re in t

he g

ym

? T

hat

co

mes d

ow

n t

o w

hat

yo

u’re t

ryin

g t

o a

chie

ve a

nd

yo

ur

level o

f fitn

ess.

Aero

bic

tra

inin

g is s

om

eth

ing

that

every

bo

dy

can

do

, says L

ou

rey B

ird

: “I

f yo

u’re o

verw

eig

ht,

unfit, o

r a b

eg

inner, a

ero

bic

tra

inin

g is w

here

yo

u

sho

uld

sta

rt.” B

ut

if y

ou w

ant

to a

chie

ve a

hig

her

level o

f fitn

ess o

r ra

pid

ly im

pro

ve, say, yo

ur

five

or

10 k

ilo

metr

e r

un

tim

es, o

r yo

ur

row

ing

or

cycling

perf

orm

ance, th

en inte

rval tr

ain

ing

is

an id

eal w

ay t

o a

dd

so

me a

naero

bic

tra

inin

g

to y

our

exerc

ise p

lan.

An

d if

yo

u’re t

ryin

g t

o lo

se w

eig

ht,

exerc

ise

that

inco

rpo

rate

s b

oth

aero

bic

an

d a

naero

bic

inte

rvals

is t

he b

est

way t

o g

o, w

ith

recen

t

researc

h f

rom

th

e U

niv

ers

ity o

f N

ew

So

uth

Wale

s s

how

ing

that

sho

rt b

urs

ts o

f anaero

bic

train

ing

can

eff

ecti

vely

uti

lise f

at

sto

res a

nd

help

sh

ift

unw

an

ted

kilo

s. D

r G

ail T

rap

p, w

ho

led

th

e t

eam

of

researc

hers

, co

mp

are

d t

he

Acco

rdin

g t

o e

xerc

ise s

cie

ntist

Mart

ha

Lo

ure

y B

ird

, aero

bic

tra

inin

g is a

ny low

to m

od

era

te inte

nsity e

xerc

ise. “A

go

od

way t

o t

ell

if y

ou’re w

ork

ing

aero

bic

ally

is if

yo

u

can c

om

fort

ab

ly h

old

a c

onvers

atio

n,” s

he s

ays.

Wit

h a

ero

bic

exerc

ise, m

uscle

s a

re less

likely

to

get

tire

d, so

genera

lly y

ou c

an e

ng

ag

e

in t

his

fo

rm o

f exerc

ise f

or

lon

ger

peri

od

s o

f

tim

e. Typ

ically, yo

u’r

e w

ork

ing

aero

bic

ally

wh

en

yo

ur

heart

rate

is a

rou

nd

60

to

85

per

cen

t o

f yo

ur

pre

dic

ted

maxim

um

heart

rate

.

When y

ou’re e

xerc

isin

g a

t an a

ero

bic

level,

an

d a

re s

uff

icie

ntl

y f

uelled

, yo

u a

re a

ble

to

take in

ple

nty

of

oxyg

en

an

d y

ou

r m

uscle

s

are

ab

le t

o c

on

tract

wit

ho

ut

fati

gu

e.

Exerc

isin

g a

t a m

uch h

igher

inte

nsity –

at

mo

re t

han

85

per

cen

t o

f yo

ur

pre

dic

ted

maxim

um

heart

rate

– m

ean

s t

hat

yo

u c

an

no

t

get

su

ffic

ien

t oxyg

en

to

yo

ur

mu

scle

s a

nd

th

ey

beg

in t

o w

ork

an

aero

bic

ally, p

rod

ucin

g w

aste

mo

lecu

les, su

ch

as lacti

c a

cid

, th

at

cau

se y

ou

to t

ire e

asily a

nd

feel u

nco

mfo

rtab

le.

“An

aero

bic

exerc

ise is h

igh

-in

ten

sit

y, sh

ort

-

dura

tio

n e

ffo

rt –

str

enuo

us a

ctivitie

s s

uch a

s lifting

heavy w

eig

hts

or

sp

rin

tin

g a

re g

oo

d e

xam

ple

s.

Yo

u c

ould

n’t s

peak m

ore

than a

few

wo

rds w

hen

exerc

isin

g a

t th

is level,”

says L

ou

rey B

ird

.

FA

ST O

R S

LO

W T

WIT

CH

MU

SC

LE F

IBR

ES:

WH

AT A

RE T

HEY

?

“Fast

-tw

itch

musc

le �

bre

s re

spond m

ore

to

anaero

bic

tra

inin

g a

nd g

et

larg

er

the

more

you t

rain

anaero

bic

ally

. Slo

w-t

witch

m

usc

le �

bre

s re

spond m

ore

to a

ero

bic

tr

ain

ing.

That’s

why,

for

exam

ple

, if

you a

re

a m

ara

thon r

unner

you a

re less

lik

ely

to

have

bulk

y m

usc

les

than s

ay,

a s

pri

nte

r,”

says

Loure

y B

ird.

Though w

e a

re a

ll born

with b

oth

typ

es

of

musc

le �

bre

s, s

om

e p

eople

are

genetica

lly

pre

dis

pose

d to h

ave

more

of

one t

ype t

han

anoth

er,

maki

ng t

hem

pote

ntially

better

endura

nce

ath

lete

s or

conve

rsely

, better

at

spri

nt

or

pow

er-

base

d s

port

s.

results f

rom

tw

o g

roup

s o

f overw

eig

ht

wo

men

wh

o c

ycle

d t

hre

e t

imes a

week o

ver

a 1

5-w

eek

peri

od

. T

he g

rou

p w

ho

did

eig

ht

seco

nd

s o

f

sp

rin

tin

g o

n a

bik

e, fo

llo

wed

by 1

2 s

eco

nd

s

of

exerc

isin

g lig

htl

y, fo

r a t

ota

l 20

min

ute

s,

lost

thre

e t

imes a

s m

uch

fat

as t

he g

rou

p

who

exerc

ised

at

a c

onti

nuo

us, re

gula

r p

ace

for

40

min

ute

s.

A s

imple

way

to g

ain

an a

ppro

xim

atio

n o

f yo

ur

maxi

mum

hea

rt r

ate

is to

take

2

20

and m

inus

your

age.

So,

if

you a

re 3

5, t

hen y

our

maxi

mum

heart

rate

is

arou

nd 1

85

bea

ts p

er m

inut

e. To

wor

k ae

robi

cally

, you

nee

d to

get

you

r he

art r

ate

up to

60

per

cen

t of yo

ur

maxi

mum

hea

rt r

ate

and to

mov

e in

to the

anaer

obic

zo

ne,

you w

ould

need to g

et

your

heart

rate

up to 8

5 p

er

cent

and b

eyond. rat

e

This

sim

ple

calc

ula

tion is

help

ful if y

ou a

re

rela

tive

ly n

ew

to e

xerc

ise; if

you

are

more

ex

peri

ence

d, t

hen t

ry taki

ng y

our

heart

rate

at

th

e e

nd o

f a v

ery

str

enuous

run o

r oth

er

form

of

exerc

ise a

nd u

se t

hat

as

your

maxi

mum

.

FIN

DIN

G

YO

UR

MA

XIM

UM

HEA

RT R

ATE

Co

nfu

sed

ab

out

wheth

er

yo

u s

ho

uld

be

exerc

isin

g a

ero

bic

ally o

r anaero

bic

ally,

or

even w

hat

these t

wo

wo

rds m

ean?

Here

’s a

sim

ple

guid

e.

WORDS

KA

YT

E N

UN

N

43

flex

exe

rcis

e

fern

wo

od

!tn

ess.c

om

.au