If your wellness goal is simply to be “healthy”, then getting adequate amounts of daily physical activity is important. As an adult, we need to get at least 30 minutes of physical activity most days of the week to see health benefits. So, regularly walking or riding a bike for at least 30 minutes per day is a great start. How about if you have loftier aspirations like losing weight, gaining muscle mass, or training for a 10k?
To see gains in health and fitness you need to work out with two basic training principles mind: overload and progression. Overload is the amount of stress you put on your body to adapt and become fitter. Progression is the way that a person should increase the load over time to safely adapt. This is where the F.I.T.T. principle comes into play and can help you develop a successful exercise program.
F.I.T.T. stands for Frequency, Time, Intensity, and Type in relation to physical activity. Frequency is how often you are taking part in a specific area of activity- for instance running 3 days per week. Intensity relates to how hard you are working during a bout of physical activity- think about your heart rate during aerobic activities. Time corresponds to how long you are doing each kind of physical activity. Lastly, type refers to what kind of physical activity you are doing. If your goal is improve your cardiovascular endurance then activities like swimming, jogging, and cycling are all types of activity that will benefit you. When planning a workout routine you should consider all four of these components to determine if your plan will yield results. Not matter what kind of workouts you are doing, be sure that your program includes adequate rest as well.