Really, What is Cardio For?

When most people hear cardio exercise, they think of running on a treadmill, sweating through a spin class, or climbing stairs until their legs give out. But cardiovascular exercise is about more than just burning calories—it’s about heart health, endurance, and overall performance.

If your goal is to be stronger, faster, and healthier, regular cardio exercise plays a key role in getting you there. But here’s the thing: cardio isn’t enough on its own. Strength training—like what you do with the NordBench—helps you build muscle, boost metabolism, and reinforce movement patterns that protect your joints while you train.

So, should you focus on aerobic exercise or lifting weights? The answer is both.

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Cardio Supports Strength Training (and Vice Versa)

A balanced fitness routine combines both cardiovascular exercise and strength work because they fuel each other. Aerobic metabolism helps you recover between heavy lifts, and strength training reinforces muscles that power your cardio workouts—whether that’s jumping rope, running, or cycling.

💡 Related Read: How to Structure Your Workouts for Maximum Results Strength? Cardio? Mobility? Here’s how to build a training schedule that makes sense.

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Cardio for Heart Health and Longevity

Your cardiovascular system pumps more oxygen to your muscles, fueling everything from brisk walking to high-intensity interval training. Studies show that consistent moderate intensity exercise reduces the risk of heart disease, high blood pressure, and even certain cancers (Journal of Preventive Medicine, 2022).

If you’re lifting heavy with the NordBench, adding low-intensity cardio on rest days—like climbing stairs or cycling—keeps blood flow steady and aids recovery.

💡 Related Read: A Balanced Weekly Strength and Running Routine for Runners How to balance running and strength training for max performance.

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Cardio Helps with Recovery and Fat Loss

While strength training burns calories and builds muscle, cardio exercise helps maintain a healthy body weight by improving metabolism and supporting fat loss—without sacrificing muscle mass.

But more cardio doesn’t always mean better results. If weight loss is your goal, alternating high-intensity cardio with strength sessions is an effective fitness program that protects lean muscle while improving cardiovascular fitness.

💡 Related Read: 3 Supersets to Help Your Explosiveness and Functional Strength These supersets will build strength while keeping your heart rate high.

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What Type of Cardio Should You Do?

Not all cardio workouts are created equal. The best aerobic exercise depends on your goals, fitness level, and recovery needs.

• Low-Intensity Cardio (walking, aerobic dance, cycling) improves blood flow and keeps your body moving on rest days.

• High-Intensity Cardio (jumping rope, sprints, high-intensity interval training) improves endurance exercise capacity and burns more calories in less time.

• Moderate-Intensity Exercise (brisk walking, rowing, bodyweight circuits) is a balance of both, making it easier to recover from while still building aerobic capacity.

💡 Related Read: Understanding Reps and Sets: Your Guide to Workout Programming Lifting weights? Learn how to program your training effectively.

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Strength and Cardio: A Complete Training Plan

You don’t need a gym membership or fancy equipment to build an effective fitness program. A simple plan could look like this:

• 3-4 days of strength training (using the NordBench for lower-body strength and core work)

• 2-3 days of cardio workouts (alternating moderate-intensity cardio and high-intensity exercise)

• 1-2 days of recovery work (walking, stretching, mobility drills)

💡 Related Read: A Push and Pull Workout for Daily Functional Strength Keep your workouts balanced with smart strength training.

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The Bottom Line: Cardio and Strength Go Hand-in-Hand

If you’re serious about performance, cardio exercise and strength training should work together.

✔️ Strength training builds muscle, power, and stability ✔️ Cardio workouts improve heart health, endurance, and recovery ✔️ A balanced program makes you a stronger, healthier athlete

The NordBench makes it easy to train with resistance, and your cardio sessions fill in the gaps to create a complete fitness routine.

💪 Train smarter, move better, and keep your heart and muscles strong.

🔥 Ready to optimize your workouts? Grab the NordBench and start training for strength and endurance today!