As you lace up, your gray matter sends out get-ready signals: Without your even realizing it, breath and heart rates quicken. Once you're sweating, the brain delivers feel-good endorphins to help ease the ouch of an all-out workout. "Happy" chemicals, like dopamine, release during and after the workout to lift mood—aka the runner's high.
2. Your Heart
The second you start to Zumba, your heart begins beating progressively faster, pumping out more blood with each squeeze. Then it revs to about 160 to 180 beats per minute (60 to 80 at rest) during seriously strenuous bouts, like HIIT moves. The stronger your heart, the more blood it pumps when it contracts, which in turn lowers your resting heart rate—that way, it doesn't have to work as hard when you're not exercising. And a fitter ticker equals a healthier body.
3. Your Muscles
During low-intensity workouts, more slow-twitch (aerobic) fibers are firing because they have stamina. They're like the tortoise—contracting slowly but going and going. The fast-twitch (anaerobic) fibers that come alive when you sprint or do other vigorous activities are like the hare: They are powerful but fizzle out quickly.
4. Your Fat Cells
Your body uses more fat than carbs when you're in the long, slow zone. And because burning fat requires more oxygen, keep your breath nice and easy. Clocking long sessions is key because fat takes longer than carbs to break down. But doing them is worth it—fat has 9 calories per gram, and carbs have 4. Grab a friend and pass the time by catching up. It's a win-win.
5. Your Lungs
Oxygen is the ingredient muscles need to convert carbs and fat into fuel for muscles. The harder you go, the more oxygen it takes to remove carbon dioxide, a waste product made by muscles. To get more air, you start breathing faster, going from 12 to 15 breaths a minute at rest to up to 35 to 45 at max effort levels. Tell yourself it's all good because the harder you go at it, the faster you'll burn off calories.
Article courtesy of www.self.com
2. Your Heart
The second you start to Zumba, your heart begins beating progressively faster, pumping out more blood with each squeeze. Then it revs to about 160 to 180 beats per minute (60 to 80 at rest) during seriously strenuous bouts, like HIIT moves. The stronger your heart, the more blood it pumps when it contracts, which in turn lowers your resting heart rate—that way, it doesn't have to work as hard when you're not exercising. And a fitter ticker equals a healthier body.
3. Your Muscles
During low-intensity workouts, more slow-twitch (aerobic) fibers are firing because they have stamina. They're like the tortoise—contracting slowly but going and going. The fast-twitch (anaerobic) fibers that come alive when you sprint or do other vigorous activities are like the hare: They are powerful but fizzle out quickly.
4. Your Fat Cells
Your body uses more fat than carbs when you're in the long, slow zone. And because burning fat requires more oxygen, keep your breath nice and easy. Clocking long sessions is key because fat takes longer than carbs to break down. But doing them is worth it—fat has 9 calories per gram, and carbs have 4. Grab a friend and pass the time by catching up. It's a win-win.
5. Your Lungs
Oxygen is the ingredient muscles need to convert carbs and fat into fuel for muscles. The harder you go, the more oxygen it takes to remove carbon dioxide, a waste product made by muscles. To get more air, you start breathing faster, going from 12 to 15 breaths a minute at rest to up to 35 to 45 at max effort levels. Tell yourself it's all good because the harder you go at it, the faster you'll burn off calories.
Article courtesy of www.self.com
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