Train Like A Pro!

Train Like a Pro! Monitor Your Maximum and Target Heart Rates.
Improve your level of cardiovascular fitness by learning how to determine your maximum and target heart rates. Here’s how:
To calculate your maximum heart rate, subtract your age from 220. For example, if you are a 50-year-old, that would be 220 minus 50 (170 beats per minute). To determine your target heart rate, you must take your pulse during exercise. It’s easier than it sounds. Just stop during exercise and take your pulse. You can find the pulse point on the side of your neck or on your wrist. Count the number of beats per second for the first 15 seconds; then multiply this number by 4. If you are a member at a gym, most exercise machines will do this function for you.What Are The Benefits?
Individuals who are normally sedentary can reap the benefits from exercising at 60% of their maximum heart rate! For example, a 50-year-old, this would be 170 times 0.6, or 102 beats per minute. At the onset of your program, you should aspire to maintain your target heart rate for approximately 20 minutes. As you progress and become more fit, this 60% can be increased to 75%. A little bit at a time adds up in no time at all. Just be patient!So How Much Exercise Is Enough?
Walking, biking, rope jumping, or running while able to say four or five words between breaths is a good marker of the aerobic benefit of heart rates in the 110–130 range. Exercise should be challenging but not torturous!Consult Your Healthcare Provider! Before the onset of any cardiovascular program, be sure to consult with your healthcare provider. Certain persons with various healthcare concerns (congestive heart failure, arrhythmias, unstable angina, uncontrolled high blood pressure, uncontrolled diabetes - to name a few) should not engage in an exercise program unless under the supervision of a qualified healthcare provider.
Traditional Chinese Medicine and Fitness
When you frequently visit your practitioner of Traditional Chinese Medicine, tell him or her that you are embarking onto an exercise program and discuss your goals. Together, you can partner with your practitioner and develop a regular treatment plan to ensure optimum performance and minimize injury. Remember…some the greatest martial artists of all times were also Chinese doctors!
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