I caught the tail end of a piece on Global news last night, about a study done on the intensity of exercise. The video is below.
Not surprisingly, most people overestimate how intense they are working. Whether that's a mental trick of the mind, or that we're just not used to pushing our bodies as hard as we can, it's an important thing to take note of. For one thing, are you really burning as many calories as you think you are, if you track that sort of thing? Secondly, are you tricking yourself into thinking you've worked hard enough to "earn" that extra indulgence, thereby negating the work you've done. Finally, are you reaping the health benefits that you believe you are, that you intended to, if you're not working within the target zone that you thought you were?
"Health Canada recommends adults between the ages of 18 and 64 should get 2.5 hours of moderate to vigorous exercise each week and sustained for ten minutes or more during each workout.
Moderate activity should cause a person’s heart rate to reach 64 to 76 per cent of the maximum heart rate. Vigorous intensity, is when a subject’s heart rate reaches 77 to 83 percent of the maximum. Kuk says an accepted calculation to find a person’s maximum heart rate, is to subtract your age from 220."
I'm a big believer in doing what you enjoy, that movement of any kind is a positive thing, and that nobody has an obligation to be active or healthy. But, for myself, if I have goals like weight loss and a healthy heart, then this is something to pay extra close attention to.
Self! Listen up:
Work harder.
Get your heart rate into the vigorous zone.
That is all.
Not surprisingly, most people overestimate how intense they are working. Whether that's a mental trick of the mind, or that we're just not used to pushing our bodies as hard as we can, it's an important thing to take note of. For one thing, are you really burning as many calories as you think you are, if you track that sort of thing? Secondly, are you tricking yourself into thinking you've worked hard enough to "earn" that extra indulgence, thereby negating the work you've done. Finally, are you reaping the health benefits that you believe you are, that you intended to, if you're not working within the target zone that you thought you were?
"Health Canada recommends adults between the ages of 18 and 64 should get 2.5 hours of moderate to vigorous exercise each week and sustained for ten minutes or more during each workout.
Moderate activity should cause a person’s heart rate to reach 64 to 76 per cent of the maximum heart rate. Vigorous intensity, is when a subject’s heart rate reaches 77 to 83 percent of the maximum. Kuk says an accepted calculation to find a person’s maximum heart rate, is to subtract your age from 220."
I'm a big believer in doing what you enjoy, that movement of any kind is a positive thing, and that nobody has an obligation to be active or healthy. But, for myself, if I have goals like weight loss and a healthy heart, then this is something to pay extra close attention to.
Self! Listen up:
Work harder.
Get your heart rate into the vigorous zone.
That is all.
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