Soft Cardio: Is low-intensity exercise better for your health?

Soft cardio, as the name suggests, involves activities that aren’t challenging and don’t increase your heart rate much. When done more often, they can provide health benefits.

What counts as soft cardio

Daily tasks that aren’t very difficult fall under this category. For example, during low-intensity exercise, you can sing or talk. Here are a few examples:

·       A casual walk around the block

·       Swimming laps at a slower pace

·       A gentle bike ride

·       Weight training with light weights that you can easily lift many times per set

· Everyday tasks like gardening or pushing a grocery cart around a store may also be low intensity.

Just like zone 2 cardio, soft cardio or cozy cardio is becoming popular. Basically, your heart rate will be slightly elevated without putting much stress on your joints or muscles. Studies indicate that it can be incredibly effective for improving heart health, boosting circulation, enhancing endurance, and supporting weight management—while being very gentle on joints like the ankles, knees, and hips.

It is considered one of the foundational pieces of long-term fitness. To improve your health, you don't always need to be drenched in sweat or gasping for air.

Is soft cardio the same as zone 2 cardio?

No. It’s something else altogether. The pace of soft cardio is much lower that Zone 2 cardio, which is exercise at around 60 to 70 percent of your maximum heart rate. Soft cardio is around 40 to 60 percent of your maximum heart rate.

Both help in weight loss as they fall under the “fat-burning zone.” Soft cardio won’t burn fat at quite the same clip as zone 2 cardio, but it does have a handful of unique benefits that don’t apply to zone 2 cardio.

Benefits of soft cardio

Active recovery: You can just do soft cardio if you work out a few times a week, instead of on a total rest day.

Consistency: Consistency is key to a strong fitness regimen. On days when you aren’t in the mood or able to do a strength or HIIT workout, soft cardio is the way to go.

Getting started

If you are late to get onto the fitness bandwagon, soft cardio is an accessible entry point. Build an aerobic base before you strength train. To put it plainly, soft cardio is for beginners, as well as people who have not worked out in a while.

Mental health

It is a little bit of a stress to do HIIT workouts or strength training, although they have a lot of benefits. Soft cardio provides a refreshing alternative. It is ideal for reducing stress, and if you take things outside, it gets even better.

How do you actually do soft cardio?

Soft cardio is not so much about what you do as it is about how you do it. Whether you opt for the treadmill, or exercise bike, the key is to make sure you’re moving at the right intensity.

Aim for around 150 minutes a week, if you are doing moderate-intensity exercise. If you're only doing soft cardio, double that to around 300 minutes per week—30 to 45 minutes a day. If you are doing strength training or HIIT workouts, etc., then you probably only need one or two of these workouts a week.

—manuvipin@newindianexpress.com

@ManuVipin

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