What is Anaerobic Exercise?

Anaerobic exercise involves pushing yourself to the point where you are doing an activity at an intensity where it feels like you cannot get enough oxygen while depleting your body's fuel storage. We exercise anaerobically in order to build up more lean muscle mass. Do you have loose skin around your midsection that doesn't seem to be getting any tighter despite all the cardio you are doing (good job, by the way!)? More than likely, you have loose skin in that area from your weight loss and the only way to tighten it up is to incorporate some anaerobic activities into your workout routines.

Anaerobic exercises include things like sprinting on land, in water, or on your bike; or adding resistance training to your routines. Resistance training sounds intimidating, but if you are not comfortable being in a weight room around people that seem to know every trick to weight lifting, have no fear, you have alternatives.

While I highly encourage you to add weight lifting to your exercise routines after you gain some confidence, I understand the intimidation factor many new gym-goers feel when they enter the weight room for the first time. A fun way to start finding resistance workouts is to attend group exercise classes. Like I said before, anaerobic exercise is just making yourself do an activity while your body struggles to meet the oxygen demands you are placing on it (sounds like death...I promise it's not!), so high-intensity Zumba, my aqua aerobic classes (shameless self-promotion), Turbo Kick, Body Pump, Body Combat, RPM, TRX...the list is on-going and all of those incorporate an interval style approach to anaerobic activity. Doing bursts of anaerobic activities is a staple of any good group exercise class, if the instructor doesn't incorporate anaerobic sets between their aerobic sets, then don't go back to their class. Seriously, you're just wasting your time. I have seen instructors tell classes to wiggle their fingers and try to call that cardio...for real.

If you aren't in a position to purchase a gym membership at this time, fear not, there are anaerobic activities you can do at home. Classic exercises like push-ups, sit-ups, prisoner squats, and forward lunges can all be done in the comfort and privacy of your own home. I found a great article from Men's Health magazine (ladies are more than capable, and encouraged, to try these too) outlining correct technique and gives you a rep number to start with, click below.

10 Minute Fat Blaster

So don't lie to yourself and tell yourself that you can't do anaerobic exercises/can't afford a gym membership/are too busy, this is your life and I want you to be as healthy and happy as you possibly can. The options for different forms of exercises are abundant, try one, then try another one, then try another one, and another...until you find what you enjoy and what works for you.

Land Speed vs. Water Speed

I like this video a lot because she makes an important distinction between land speed and water speed. Land speed is what you will find in normal land group exercise classes; think of exercises done to the beat of the music at all times. In the water, the natural resistance of the water means you will probably need to double the count for most of the exercises.

She demonstrates water speed at 0:11 and land speed at 0:25 for a jog. I also like that her warm-up is easy to follow. She stretches the classes legs, starts getting the heart rate up to an aerobic level (you can tell she's working...she's huffing and puffing into her mic), stretches their arms with a simple rocking horse, and cues her class into the next transition. Her warm-up utilizes the entire body and her class should be ready to work specific muscle groups if they followed along. Try this by yourself at your pool, or utilize some of these moves for your own warm-up routine if you are instructing a group aqua class.




I'm sure she had her class close together for filming purposes, but I would tell my class to spread farther apart. You tend to start splashing, punching, and kicking each other if you're too close to your fellow classmates. And that is not a good way to make friends.

What is Aerobic Exercise?

Aerobic exercise is activity that noticeably increases your breathing and heart rate for an extended period of time, but doesn’t leave you feeling out of breath. It’s exercise that challenges your heart and lungs.

Aerobic means “with oxygen” and refers to your body using oxygen to make energy (Oh, hey, Krebs Cycle). It’s also referred to as cardiovascular exercise (“cardio” for short), or endurance exercise.

Aerobic exercise also involves continuous movement of your large muscle groups: your legs, thighs, butt, back, and/or chest.

Common aerobic exercise includes:

• Aqua Fitness Exercises
• Swimming
• Running
• Walking
• Biking

IFTA, and FirstHealth, recommends at least 30 minutes of aerobic exercise in order to lose weight, tone, and maintain healthy weight loss at least 4-5 days per week. ACSM recommends 45-60 minutes 5-6 days per week. 

Tip: Start slow! If you are just getting into a workout routine, you will need to take a "slow and steady" approach to exercising. Start with 10 minutes of walking at a pace that leaves you catching your breath. The next time you walk, aim to do 15 minutes of walking at a pace that leaves you catching your breath. On the third day, aim for 20 minutes of walking at a pace that leaves you catching your breath. In a few weeks, you should be able to push yourself to complete 30 minutes of non-stop walking!

This gradual approach works for every aerobic exercise. Example: Swim 25 yards on Day 1, 50 yards on Day 2, and 75 yards on Day 3. Bike for .25 miles on Day 1, bike for .50 miles on Day 2, bike for .75 miles on Day 3. Commit to 20 minutes of a group exercise class on Day 1, 30 minutes of the class on Day 2, and the whole hour on Day 3 (this example is hyperbolic...in reality, it may be difficult to commit to the entire hour just by Day 3)! Don't concern yourself with time until you are confident you can do continuous exercise for at least 30 minutes without rest. Just get out there and do something!

Sources:

ACSM’s Guidelines for Exercise Testing and Prescription, 7th edition (2006)
ACSM Position Stand: Appropriate Intervention Strategies for Weight Loss and Prevention of Weight Gain for Adults