WHAT KIND OF EXERCISE IS RIGHT FOR YOU?

by Nicklaus Millican MS, RD, CES

For many of us, there is a great deal of confusion regarding what type of exercise we should be doing. Clearly, the type of exercise we should choose would help us achieve our goals. But most people are unsure of what type(s) of exercise will move them towards their goals.

In this article, we'll look at a few basics of exercise to help you answer the question, "What kind of exercise should I be doing?"

Exercise Occurs on a Spectrum

Everybody knows that "exercise" can refer to many different activities, from walking to heavy weight lifting. One major distinguishing factor between these types of exercise is the intensity of that exercise. 

Intensity is how hard the exercise is. Exercise that is harder (more intense), can only be done for short periods of time; less intense exercise is exercise you can do for a longer period of time. In other words, you can do low intensity exercise for a longer time than you can higher intensity exercise.

Your Body Adapts to the Intensity of Exercise

Now you've seen that intensity can be used to distinguish different types of exercise. This is important because your body will change according the intensity of your exercise:

• If you are using high intensity exercise your body will get good at working at high intensities. This means:
• More muscle and strength
• More forceful movements
• If you are using low intensity, your body will:
• Develop less muscle and strength
• Improve endurance

However, your body cannot do both! In other words, you cannot be a power-lifter and a marathon runner. For example, if you are trying to get as strong as possible, low intensity exercise will hinder your progress.

Sure, you can do a combination of the 2. You probably don't care to be either a power-lifter or a marathoner. But the mixture needs to be specific to your goals. If strength is less important to you than being able to compete in 5K races, your training needs to reflect this with more low-moderate intensity work and less high intensity work. Conversely, if you're trying to gain some muscle, your training needs to focus on higher intensity exercise such as weight lifting.

Lastly, a note about the right types of exercise for losing body-fat. I've written another article I hope you read, which specifically addresses exercise for fat-loss. In brief, fat-loss depends on high intensity exercise--NOT the type of low intensity most people do when trying to shed pounds. 

Conclusion

Thanks for reading, everybody. As always, I hope this article has been useful. If you have any questions, please feel free to leave comments or email me directly at nicklaus.millican@gmail.com.