Why do cardio? I have Reasons:
1. It improves mood. Seriously. My spin bike is actually called The Magic Mood-Fixing Machine. Science says that you will feel better after.
2. It makes your brain work better.
3. It burns calories.
4. It reduces stress. Remember this when your house is full of contentious relatives. Going for a walk is way better than ending up in jail for assault.
So: yesterday we took a look at where we are in our cardio fitness. If we’re not quite where we’d like to be, I have good news: we can make a good amount of progress by the end of the year.
Of course, all good news has a dark side. You have to do stuff. I’m going to use walking as my example, but this system works for whatever kind of cardio we happen to like. Walking is just accessible to most folks and doesn’t require any stuff besides good shoes.
When we start, we want to build consistency more than anything else. Cardio is a habit. It thrives on daily or near-daily feeding. In the first week, you want to make a stupid-easy goal that you can do for six days in a row. Depending on where we’re starting from, this can mean anything from walking around the block slowly one time to spending half an hour walking. The key thing is that we have to do it six days in a row. That last day, we get a rest.
The second week, we just add a little more: one interval. If our first week was a five minute walk, our second week is two minutes of walking at regular pace, one minute going faster, and two minutes of walking at regular pace. Or, if we’re going around the block, the first two sides are at regular pace, the third side is faster, and the last side is back to regular.
After that, we add a little more time or distance or another interval each week. (It’s easier to add intervals when we’ve already built up a little more time or distance.) The overarching goal remains consistency. This has to feel manageable.
What if it isn’t? I got you. Let’s say you miss a day. OK: restart the clock. You need six days in a row.
Let’s say that week one goes great and week two is OK, but week three is suddenly harder than you could possibly imagine. Hang out at the week two level until you are ready to progress. No one is watching. You can take as much time as you need.
Tomorrow: some motivation for the process.
News flash from Captain Obvious: it’s December and that means we’re coming up on the end of the year. That means we have an opportunity to reflect on where we are and what we’ve done over the last year and maybe also an opportunity to choose some gifts for ourselves for 2026. Over the course of the month, I’ll talk about a bunch of different things we might want to evaluate and celebrate. This first week, I’m going to talk about cardio.
Cardio exercise is not the main focus of my work with my clients for the very good reason that it’s dumb to pay me to watch cardio. Of course, the kind of workouts I design do get people’s heart rates up and clients will be getting some cardio intervals built in to their weight workout. It’s just not the main goal.
Ideally, the time my clients spend with me working out is not the entirety of their workout time. I sincerely hope they are getting in some cardio and maybe more weights when they’re on their own.
Cardio fitness is one of the things that first pops into mind when folks think about what being fit means to them. We all know what it’s like to get to the top of a long hill feeling out of breath and unclear on our reason for continuing to live and it’s not a good feeling. We all like to feel like our hearts and lungs are up to whatever it is we have in mind.
There are actual assessments of cardio fitness. (If you want one, let’s talk.) But most of us know when we’re at the level we’d like to be. Take a minute or two and think: are you where you want to be?
If so: good on you. If not, I have some suggestions tomorrow.
This workout is a flexible one. Folks who want more challenge can add the back lunge to the step ups or swap renegade rows for the regular ones. If jumping is not appropriate, folks can still get their rotational work done with curtsies. And plain lateral raises are always available for those who don’t want to be on hands and knees. Whatever folks choose, aim for three rounds.
step ups | 30 |
rows | 20 |
kickbacks | 10 |
| |
suitcase swings | 30 |
bench press | 20 |
quadruped lateral raise | 10 |
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skater jump/curtsy | 30 |
flies | 20 |
pretty princesses | 10 |
