Cardio vs Aerobic vs Anaerobic?

Have you ever wondered if cardio, aerobic or anaerobic exercise are all the same?

What’s the difference between cardio vs aerobic vs anaerobic?

Well Cardio and aerobic exercise are the same, but they refer to slightly different mechanisms. When we exercise, our breath and heart rate increase to pump oxygen and blood to our muscles. “Cardio” refers to processes related to the heart, whereas “aerobic” refers to exercises using oxygen. When exercise doesn’t use oxygen, like in short sprints, this is called anaerobic exercise

Cardio is a catch-all term that broadly refers to any form of exercise that increases your heart rate.Typically, when we talk about “cardio” we’re referring to activities, such as running, cycling, swimming, or rowing. Cardio can include weighted activities too, but it’s usually done in a circuit-style fashion with the goal of increasing your heart-rate over a longer period of time rather than lifting weights to increase strength, power, or muscle mass.

Aerobic exercise is any form of exercise that uses oxygen. If you’re involved in activities where you’re sweating and breathing heavy, this means that your body is requiring oxygen and it’s a form of aerobic exercise.

During cardio and aerobic exercise your heart rate and oxygen intake both increases. However, while “aerobic” and “cardio” are used interchangeably, “aerobic” refers to using oxygen when exercising, and cardio refers to your heart pumping

So, though cardio and aerobic exercise are technically different, they are occurring simultaneously. When you do a cardio workout, you are working aerobically.

During aerobic activities, you’ll move large muscles in your arms, legs, and hips. Your heart rate will also go up for a sustained period of time.

Examples of aerobic exercises include:

• jogging
• brisk walking
• swimming laps
• aerobic dancing, like Zumba
• cross-country skiing
• stair climbing
• cycling
• elliptical training
• rowing

Anaerobic exercise is not cardio or aerobic exercise. It’s a different category of exercise onto itself. it refers to exercise without using oxygen. the type of exercise that requires short bursts of energy, such as when you’re lifting weights to improve strength, or when you sprint a short distance.

Anaerobic exercise uses Type II (fast-twitch) muscle fibres. Fast-twitch muscle fibres are activated when the body nears maximum exertion, especially for short bursts of power and speed. In contrast, they aren’t used for longer endurance activities. This style of exercise uses more oxygen than the lungs and heart can supply to the body. Therefore, it can cause a high amount of lactic acid in the blood, which can lead your muscles to burn out and fatigue. At that point, you’ll need to slow the pace of your exercise down so that your muscles can be fuelled by oxygen, which switches the type of activity from anaerobic to aerobic

Anaerobic exercises are performed at maximum effort for a shorter period of time. Examples include:

• high intensity interval training (HIIT)
• heavy weight lifting
• calisthenics, like plyometrics, jump squats, or box jumps
• sprinting (while running, cycling, or swimming)