Cardiovascular System Adaptations

You might think that weight training has no effect on the cardiovascular system-that you actually have to get on the step machine or run a couple of miles to do cardiovascular work. If you believe that, you are not the only one who does. This belief started in the 1980s with Dr. Ken "the Father of Aerobics" Cooper, who expounded on the value of aerobics and claimed that having excellent cardiovascular conditioning was the key to total well-being. He recommended LSD (long slow distance) training and keeping the body in a so-called steady state. He did see the benefits of strength and flexibility exercises, but only as an adjunct to a good aerobic exercise program.

Now we know that anaerobic exercise (the type of exercise that employs short bursts of strength and power) has many of the same benefits that aerobic exercise has on the cardiovascular system. The cardiovascular system transports oxygen and nutrient-rich blood throughout the body and removes waste products like carbon dioxide. The heart is a muscle that contracts, expands, and hypertrophies as other muscles do when worked. Arteries and veins that carry blood throughout the body are elastic in nature, but can become inflexible with lack of use. So any kind of exercise, because it is exercise and not lying down on the couch, benefits the cardiovascular system. Blood pressure and heart rate go down because as the heart gets stronger, it also gets more efficient and able to pump out more blood per beat. Flexible and plaque-free arteries and veins help deliver the nutrients and get the wastes out more quickly. Consider also that those who exercise have a healthier and less stressful lifestyle that may contribute to these findings.

The body adapts significantly to aerobic conditioning, just as it adapts specifically to weight training. However, the terms aerobic conditioning and cardiovascular training really aren't interchangeable. Despite the difference, somewhere along the line we have muddled the terminology. It all goes back to what you want for your body and what goals you have. To run a marathon, you absolutely must train aerobically, and your cardiovascular system will show specific and beneficial adaptations to that type of exercise, but you won't be much good at sprinting. If you train with weights, your cardiovascular system will also show specific and beneficial adaptations to that type of training, but you won't be preparing that system to run a good marathon. In each case, your cardiovascular system is improving for a specific goal.