Endurance Workouts

An endurance workout or aerobic exercise is any activity that gets your blood pumping and involves the working of large muscle groups. It’s also called cardiovascular activity. Examples of aerobic exercise are:

brisk walking
swimming
heavy cleaning or gardening
running
cycling
playing soccer

Experts usually recommend getting at least 150 minutes of a moderate endurance workout, or 75 minutes of vigorous activity every week for women in their 30s. Running or cycling are examples of vigorous activities while brisk walking or swimming are examples of moderate activities.

But why is this endurance workout recommended for women in their 30s? Read on to know about the benefits you can get by incorporating aerobic exercise into your routine.

8 Benefits of Endurance Workouts for Women in 30s

From weight loss to better heart health, and so much more, here are 8 endurance workout benefits every woman should know about.

1. Improved Sleep

If you’re having issues sleeping at night, try performing an endurance workout during your waking hours.

A study on individuals with chronic sleep issues revealed that a regular exercise program combined with sleep hygiene is a very effective treatment for insomnia.

Participants engaged in aerobic activity for 16 weeks and then completed questionnaires regarding their sleep and general mood. The activity group then reported better sleep quality and duration, as well as improvements in their daytime wakefulness and vitality.

Exercising or working out very close to bedtime may make it much more difficult to sleep, however. So always try to finish your workout at least two hours before bedtime.

2. Makes Your Joints Stronger

As most endurance workouts are low-impact, you can build muscle strength and endurance with less stress on your joints which means while any weight-bearing workout can actually help strengthen your joints, you can reap those results while minimising your risk of injury if you opt for any bodybuilding training.

Various moves—like squats and lunges—actually strengthen your joints while mimicking functional movement patterns. So, you'll be helping to keep your hips, knees, wrists, ankles, elbows, and shoulders healthy while also training your body to make your daily activities easier as well.

3. Best Forms of Low-Impact Exercise

The key to an endurance workout is to focus your workouts on compound movements involving more than one joint and muscle group and not to rest for too long in between exercises.

Combine 4-5 compound movements and do them with very little rest and you'll get your heart rate going and get all the benefits.

4. Weight Loss And Weight Management

Can you lose weight by doing endurance exercises? An endurance workout helps your body burn off more of the fuel you consume from food daily rather than storing it as excess energy in the form of fat cells. This kind of energy optimization is important if you are thinking about how to lose weight and manage fat loss.

5. Enhanced Cardiovascular Health

Recent studies show that endurance workouts can be very effective in boosting heart health. In fact, after looking at data of over 4,000 people as part of a year-long survey, researchers determined that endurance workout was better at decreasing a person's risk of heart disease as every kind of physical activity is necessary for overall health.

6. Protects Bone Health

Among its many other benefits, an endurance workout can also help you get strong, healthy bones, which becomes more important as you get older. Strength training is helpful for bone density, so it can help reduce your risk of osteoporosis. Osteoporosis, which is common as women get older, occurs when bones become porous and weak, and very much prone to breaking.

7. Boost Mood and Mental Health

It's also about the feeling you get when you strength-trains yourself and pick up weights. You feel powerful and energetic for the whole day.

Science also suggests that endurance training can boost your mood, stress management and mental health, according to a meta-analysis of 33 clinical trials. It found that participants who performed resistance training showed a significant reduction in the signs of depression.

8. Live Longer

Do it correctly in a proper way and you can strength train for your entire life—all while building and maintaining the strength you require to enjoy your days and favourite activities in your 30s.

It is easier to stay mobile and independent as well, as it's increasingly associated with longevity. In fact, a review suggests that strength training may be even more effective at minimising the risk of all sorts of common, age-related chronic issues than cardio.

Take Away

Most women in their 30s should aim for around 30 minutes of moderate cardiovascular activity at least five days every week which comes up to be around 150 minutes or 2 1/2 hours per week.

If you’re new to an activity, start for a short time and slow. You can always build as your fitness level enhances. Just remember: Any movement is always better than no movement.

If you have issues with the time, consider breaking up your exercise throughout the whole day into several 10-minute chunks. Even short sessions of aerobic exercise are enough to get the benefits.