Go for lower-impact cardio exercise

“The best way to improve your cardio fitness is by using cyclical work with a higher pace of movement and low muscular demand to create metabolic stress,” says Hoggins. All that means is that you want to be moving faster without putting too much pressure on your muscles. That’s why running is so good (sorry!). You move cycle through the legs at a faster pace and although running obviously does put the quads, calves, hamstrings under pressure, there’s no external load. More lower-impact options include cycling, rowing, ski-erg and swimming.

That kind of work, Hoggins explains, “actually has lower interference with strength gains” than running, because they tend to challenge a certain part of the muscle rather than demanding the muscle work through its full range.

Zone 2 training

And that means that we might possibly last longer or endure more of those lower-impact forms of cardio than running. She continues: “There’s a thought in the fitness industry that we should always be pushing for max effort in our cardio workouts – hitting the red zone is always the goal.”

But Hoggins suggests we should be aiming to work in zone 2 (about 60-70% of your max heart rate), as that’s the perfect range for developing your engine. “It may be boring but spending time doing moderate work at that rate will build your aerobic capacity… if you can get it done two or three times a week for 20-30 mins (just don’t tell the high-intensity boutique gyms though).”

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