How to train your endurance! The best tips for cardio training as a beginner and endurance training for advanced.
You prefer to take the elevator because you run out of breath on the stairs? Then it's time to train your endurance!
Endurance training is important. No matter what sport you do and what goal you are pursuing.
Yes, I know - there are two opinions: One love Exercise endurancethe others hate it. But this much is said: It's worth it for everyone. And here you can find out why.
Table of contents
What endurance training actually is
Endurance training is also called cardio. The term cardio comes from "cardiovascular". So strengthening the heart and circulation.
Cardio training means endurance sports sessions of 12 minutes or more.
Endurance training includes all sports that challenge and strengthen your cardiovascular system. Running is a classic example, Bike and swim.
Sports that train your endurance
- Zumba
- Inline skating
- Cycling
- Cross country skiing
- Mountaineering
- Nordic Walking
- Swimming
- Badminton
- Squash
- Handball
- Running
But even longer workouts on the cross trainer or rowing machine can improve the Exercise endurance.
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And how do you know you should start endurance training? There's a very simple test.
If you quickly run out of breath after a few steps or fast walking, it's time :)
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What endurance training really brings
If you train your endurance, you do something good for your body. And on several levels at once.
1. endurance training helps to lose weight
When you focus on long and moderate workouts your body learns to burn fat more efficiently.
The recipe for success in losing weight with endurance sports is: slow pace, low pulse for at least 30 minutes.
This way you learn your body to use the energy from the fat reserves. Every single exercise session ensures that you burn calories and thus get closer to a calorie deficit.
If you want to lose weight, you have to set the calorie deficit as a goal - that is, consume more calories than you eat.
2. cardio training makes muscles efficient
In order to train efficiently, our muscles need energy. On the one hand, they get this through nutrition. And what many do not know: Through breathing!
The supply of oxygen plays a very important role for the muscles. Many sports beginners forget this.
So breathe deeply in and out from the first step. Through regular Exercise endurance you increase the maximum Oxygen intake of your body.
More oxygen also means your lung volume improves.
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3. endurance sports strengthens the heart
Regular Endurance training strengthens the most important muscle - our Heart.
With each beat, the heart can circulate more blood. Your body is therefore better supplied with blood. This has many advantages. You feel much fitter, you get a better immune system and your cholesterol level is lowered.
In the long run, you'll reduce the risk of heart attacks.
Blood pressure is lowered and you have a lower resting heart rate.
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4. training endurance makes you happy
Just run away from work, that feels good :) With a workout, you consciously take time out from everyday life. Be it work, university, household, children or whatever else stresses you out.
Training is all about you alone. You just leave all the crap behind you. Your head clears, your circulation gets going and you pump more oxygen into your body.
Sweat away the stress while breathing in and out very deeply.
All this ensures that a body releases hormones of happiness. A wonderful feeling - at least after the workout :) Cardio sessions have an antidepressant effect and improve mood in the long term.
This is what happens when you go running for the first time!
How to start with endurance training
All beginnings are difficult. That goes for cardio sessions, too. The good thing, though, is that pretty much anyone can run, swim, and bike.
As a beginner, you make rapid progress in endurance training. This motivates you to continue and train regularly. While with strength training you often have to wait a long time, with endurance training the first results are visible after only 4-6 weeks.
You won't get out of breath as fast, you'll be able to run longer than 1 km and you'll even feel good.
It is very important that you do not get discouraged by the first 5 sessions of your endurance training. If you just starting to runI'll be honest: It's going to be brutal. Really bad. Your head turns red, you sweat and feel bad. No, it's not that bad. But it is a little exhausting.
Once you get through the first difficult sessions of endurance training, things will start to look up. Promise :)
Then the better and fitter you get, the more you'll enjoy it and then you'll be unstoppable.
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A lot of variety ensures more stamina
If you don't want to get out of breath so quickly, your endurance training should be extensive. That means not just going for a run.
Swimming, cycling, dancing and an absolute insider tip: jumping rope. All this improves your endurance.
The more different things you try, the slower you will get bored. This will make you last longer.
You'll improve your endurance and strength at the same time if you regularly use a skipping rope. The more often you swing the rope, the easier it becomes. It's best to start on soft ground. Then the fall does not hurt so much :)
Also, the higher the quality of the skipping rope, the easier your swings will be.
Watch the pace during endurance training
Attention, attention dear beginners: you tend to be over-motivated. When you start endurance training, you need to take it slow.
Instead of getting the workout over with as quickly as possible, you need to allow time. If you train too fast, you will overload your body. This can lead to injuries and will demotivate you. Because you'll be gasping for breath after just a few minutes.
When you start endurance training, you must give your body Give time to get used to it. It's not just the lungs that need to adapt to the increased breaths. Cooking, vision and ligaments also need more than a few steps to get used to endurance training.
And this can only happen if you train slowly and gradually increase the pace later.
Shift down a gear and keep your heart rate relatively low. This has the advantage that your body gains energy from fat and can thus break down body fat better.
Start with basic endurance
Just don't overdo it. Take it slow. Before you can train your endurance, you need to get some basic endurance first.
What is that again? Basic endurance?
The goal of basic endurance over a longer period of time is to To be able to play sports at the same pace without having the feeling to die right away :) So do not run for 10 minutes and then stop.
You don't have to be particularly fast. Find your comfortable pace and stay with it for a longer time.
For running, 30 to 40 minutes is a good guideline. For cycling, 60 to 90 minutes and for swimming, 30 to 60 minutes. Don't worry, you don't have to achieve these times from the start - that's impossible.
This is how easy you can train your endurance with cycling!
Train endurance - the first units
As I said, it will be hard. But don't get discouraged :) You can do it!
In the beginning, 3 training sessions per week are optimal to build up the basic endurance. With this number of units you set moderate stimuli throughout the week. And at the same time your body has enough time to recover.
This does not mean that you have to go running 3 times a week. You can also do a short HIIT training insert, 1x go running and 1x cycling.
If you are just starting to run, keep your sessions short and slow. Adapt the sessions to your speed. The first few times are about perseverance. The next step is about speed.
If after 4-5 weeks you notice that you are doing well in your workout, you can increase the minutes or units. But it is always important to listen to your body.
Straight running is difficult for very many. That's why it's best to start with Bicycle ride or a light running training for beginners.
Endurance training as a woman
For us women, it's a little different. Because when we train endurance, we are also dependent on our cycle, among other factors. If you have your period, you should keep the load within limits.
At least for the first two days, you'll probably feel less like working out.
Cardio exercise, however, works well to relieve cramps and increase circulation, which can do good but doesn't have to. Listen to your body.
If the spook is over after a few days we are full of energy. Perfect to start with the endurance training. Now we can take advantage of the extra power. Read more in the article "Train in the cycle"
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Find the best time for training
Morning, noon, night? There is no answer to this question. We all tick differently. Or to put it another way: You decide when the best time for your workout is.
There are really motivated morning people and there is me. I absolutely cannot train in the morning. But I have plenty of power in the evening.
It is very important that you schedule fixed days for training. And days on which you recover. Plan at least one day break between the units. But the Muscle soreness will not allow more just at the beginning anyway :)
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Endurance training GA1 and GA2
In endurance training plans you will be confronted with the terms GA1 and GA2. GA stands for basic endurance. Both ranges train your body below the anaerobic threshold. This improves lung volume and oxygen uptake.
When you train in the GA1 range, your body draws energy from depot fat. Your heart rate is between 65 and 80 percent of your maximum heart rate.
If you train in basic endurance 1, you will feel very comfortable and can endure the workout for several hours without any problems. This training area is especially good if you want to lose fat.
For those who are a bit more advanced, perform 25 to 40 percent of the workout in the GA2 range.
During this more difficult workout, the body draws on its carbohydrate stores. In addition, you burn fat. Quite typical GA 2 training is interval training.
How to improve your endurance
And soon you'll be at a point where you can easily handle the distance you didn't think you could handle at first.
This means that you were quite good at endurance training. You can only achieve improved endurance with consistency, i.e. regular training.
Complex carbohydrates for more endurance
Nutrition plays a big role in endurance training. Stay away from low carb recipes. What you need now are carbohydrates.
But of course not in the form of cake, sugar or white flour. Your body needs during endurance training complex carbohydrates.
If you do a lot of endurance training, you should meet 55 to 65 percent of your calorie needs with carbs.
Take a look at these recipes:
Right before your workout, you're doing a body good by eating carbohydrate-rich foods. This way, you'll have enough energy to keep you going throughout the workout.
If you still have puff when you exercise, but feel tired and feel like you can't keep it up - try eating more carbs next time.
You can find healthy carbs in
- Whole grain
- Natural rice
- Oatmeal
- Millet, quinoa
Also, drink enough water throughout the day. There is little point in drinking half a liter right before a workout. It will only give you a water belly. Hydrate your body consistently throughout the day.
Longer and further for more endurance
Easy to say or? If you want to train and improve your endurance, you simply have to cover longer distances. Add another 5 to 10 minutes to each running, swimming or cycling session.
Try to keep your heart rate low throughout the workout. That way you can cover the distance at a constant pace.
That way you won't feel so tired at the end and still have some power left. So run/swim/bike slowly and try to keep going without a break.
Always remember: endurance first, then speed.
Plan tempo runs
Normally you run slow and far. Tempo runs are about running faster than a normal workout.
If you do tempo runs every now and then, you show your body how to get lactic acid out of your bloodstream faster.
You can then run longer without getting tired and slowed down by lactic acid.
Improve your endurance with these fitness exercises!
These running sessions will help you when you want to increase your pace. Your run time is now reduced from 30 minutes to 20 minutes.
Our conclusion
If you want to start training your endurance, you have to do it slowly. First, you need to build up basic endurance. Here it is less about being fast. It is much more important to persevere and stay in shape.
Make sure your heart rate doesn't get too high. And don't get discouraged if it's hard at first. After 4 to 6 weeks, you'll start to see significant improvements.
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