Cardio: if one is totally out of shape, what is better to begin: 30 mins of slow jogging, or 5 mins of fast?

Question

any additional advice is welcome, but PLEASE, educated answers only.

Answer 1

30 minutes of slow jogging. NEVER start out fast if you are out of shape. It is best to always work your way into the exercise and routines slowly. Then progress with longer exercise time or a higher level of intensity or both as you feel fit. Don't be concerned with trying to accomplish some major feat. That will come as you become more fit.

Answer 2

20 minutes of slow steady jogging is best. 5 minutes of fast jogging is never a good idea. Take you time and take it easy is the answer.
You want to exercise the heart not abuse it. Start off slowly and When finished with your jogging, don't just stop dead in your tracks. Walk for at least five minutes and do some stretching.
Before you begin you might do some simple easy stretches also.

Answer 3

When I resumed an exercise program after ten years of inactivity, I was faced with the same question. I came up with my three exercise rules for the out-of-shape:

1. Don't drop dead.
2. Keep coming back.
3. Do a little more each time.

I'd recommend that if you're TOTALLY out of shape, start with 15-20 minutes of slow jogging. Keep the pace moderate and easy at first, and remember if you're jogging through the neighborhood that you have to return to the place you started from (home, office, etc.), so don't make the mistake of running till you're too tired to move or you'll never make it back.

The next time you go out, add a few minutes -- maybe one more block and back. And then a little more the next time, and a little more, and so on.

If you're using cardio machines (treadmills, exercise bikes, ellipticals), you can not only track the amount of time and the specific pace to a high degree of accuracy, but you may also be able to monitor your heart rate, which is what you're really solving for. As a general rule, you'll be shooting for a target heart rate which is 185 minus your age -- so if you're 45, you want to get your heart up to 140 beats per minute.

But here's the way to tell you're doing yourself some good: As your heart gets stronger, it will take you LONGER to get up to your target rate. When this happens, it's time to increase the pace or intensity. For me, when it takes me more than seven minutes to get up to my target heart rate, I increase the time on the machine; when I max out my time (30 minutes is all we're allowed in my gym at busy times), I increase the intensity and reduce the time to 20 minutes -- keeping Rule 1 in mind. Then I work back up to half an hour. Eventually I'll be running two hundred miles an hour, like the Six Million Dollar Man. :-)

The other key metric of cardio health is the time it takes your heart rate to drop when you slow down. I measure mine by cutting my pace in half and then seeing how long it takes my heart to drop 10%, 15%, and finally 20%. My heart rate drops by 20% after five minutes at half-speed, which I consider my cool-down time.

Oh, and about that -- NEVER finish a run and immediately drop down on the couch. ALWAYS walk slowly, keeping your legs moving. Why? It's simple hydraulics: your heart can PUSH blood with some force, but it can't PULL it very effectively. So your veins have valves in them, designed so that when your muscles contract the blood is forced back up toward the heart.

If you have been running and putting extra demands on your circulatory system and then suddenly stop, the heart isn't getting enough blood pumped back up to it. Not good, especially since your body needs extra oxygen at this time.

Answer 4

It's best to start out slow. I suggest starting out at 25 minutes. Warm up for 5, jog for 15, and cool down for 5. A week later, increase it by 5 or 10 minutes, whichever feels more comfortable for you. When you are in the groove of running, you can start doing high intensity interval training which consists of: 30 seconds sprint, one minute walk. You would only have to do that for about 15 minutes for it to be just as effective as jogging at a moderate pace for 30 minutes. Don't forget to warm up, cool down, and always stretch!

Answer 5

Start any fitness activity that is well within your personal comfort zone. If you can afford, start with 30 minutes of moderate-intensity activity on most days of the week. Remember to build incentive into your exercise program.... and reward yourself often t each small milestone in your success. I think you should try both and see which one you like most... you can always alternate between two and gain the benefit of shaping different muscles at the same time.

Answer 6

I would recommend you keep take of your heart rate, I use a heart monitor made by Polar--these things are awesome!

You'll want to keep track of your heart rate, so you can ensure you're within your target heart rate for at least 20 minutes (about 3 times a week). Your THR will be determined by your age and gender.

When you determine your THR, depending on what kind of shape you are in, you may find that you only need to walk to stay in your THR. Once, you start to condition your body, you'll find that you will need to begin jogging to stay in your THR for 20 minutes.

Good luck and train hard!