Top 5 cardio workouts

Get FIT
The best way to start, and stick with, an activity is to fit it into your lifestyle. Find a time of day that works best for you and build slowly and gradually. Fenton suggests following the FIT plan to design your program:

Frequency: three to five times a week.
Intensity: hard enough to reach your target heart rate but still able to talk. (To calculate your maximum heart rate, subtract your age from 220. Your target heart rate is 60 to 80 percent of the maximum heart rate.)
Time: Thirty to 60 minutes, with at least 20 minutes of aerobic activity in each session.

Safety concerns
If you have a medical problem, have been inactive, are overweight, or are middle-aged or elderly, be sure to get clearance from your physician before starting any program. For advice on how to do a certain exercise, see a professional fitness and lifestyle consultant, suggests Haennel.

Always start with a five- to 10-minute warm up, says Fenton. "A warm up can be as simple as performing the exercise at a relaxed pace, allowing the blood to flow to the muscles." Include a cool-down period at the end of the program. Fenton suggests spacing your workouts to allow the body to recover and rebuild.

"Always listen to your body," adds Haennel. "If you're finding that you're not tired when you're done or you're feeling like you're not getting a lot out of it, you're probably not doing enough. If, on the other hand, you're worn out or fatigued, you're probably working too hard."

Long-term tactics
A great way to keep up your program is to involve others -- your partner, kids, even the dog. If someone is depending on you, you're less likely to skip a workout. Plus, says Haennel, "It becomes a social thing, and that is very valuable." Set realistic goals, establish a schedule and treat your workout like any other important appointment, adds Fenton. And if you need a break, take one. You'll likely come back to the activity refreshed.

"Whether you have blood pressure problems, cholesterol problems, diabetes, whatever, exercise has a positive impact," says Haennel. "For people who are healthy, it's important. For people who have health problems, it's even more important that they be active."

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