The fitness world of today has slowly been been moving away from promoting long distance cardio and going more and more towards pushing purely anaerobic forms of exercise (like sprinting and weight lifting).

It's definitely for good reason. Studies have shown that sprinting, body weight exercises and/or weight lifting in conjunction with daily walking have huge benefits to both the way you look and feel. Especially since everyone was under the belief that marathon running was the only thing that meant fitness, it was important to make clear that there is more to fitness than long distance cardio (and even that long distance cardio could be harmful to your joints and isn't necessary).

That being said, if you're interested in functional fitness and having strength as well as endurance, then cardio DOES matter. That doesn't mean marathon running, but it does mean being able to run 3-5 miles at a solid pace.

The History of Cardio

Cardio, also known as aerobic exercise, was something that became hugely popular in the U.S. in the late 1960's. This is largely because of the popular book Aerobics (the link is to a more recent book by Dr. Cooper) by Dr. Kenneth H. Cooper and Col. Pauline Potts, a physical therapost, both in the United States Air Force.

Essentially, they began to research the subject because they wanted to understand why people who were extremely muscular weren't always able to run or swim long distances easily. They eventually came to an understanding that it wasn't muscle strength alone that affected stamina, but your breathing muscles and heart muscle as well.

[Speaking of running, check out this video of two brothers doing "free running". It's amazing.]

The Problem

After the book came out, cardio became extremely popular. To this day, nothing says fitness and good health to the general public more than going marathon running. The problem? While cardio can be amazing for functional fitness, people got carried away. Long distance cardio done overboard is not only unecessary, it's probably not good for you in the long run.

In my opinion, when going for cardio you're better aiming at 3 to 5 miles at a solid speed as opposed to the 26.2 miles done in a marathon. You'll be able to get the functional benefits of increased stamina without the increased injury risk of running longder distances.

Is Cardio Really Necessary for Functional Fitness?

Yes. There's no question that if you want to be strong as well as have stamina and be able to keep up activities for a longer time, you'll need to train cardio. Almost all athletes run in order to build up their heart and breathing muscles. It doesn't mean you have to make a huge commitment. Even running 3 miles (once you work your way up to it) twice or three times a week will make a huge difference in your endurance.

The Good News

Building and toning muscle, strengthening ligaments and tendons, gaining overall strength and eating right take time to really build as a habit and to accomplish your goals. Building up your heart and breathing muscles however, tends to be a comparably much faster process.

If you start running or swimming, you should notice improvement in your stamina and how much you're able to do after the first session. Not too bad a deal, and it's also a good way to burn off some extra calories after the holidays.

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Rafi Bar-Lev is a former combat medic and the founder of Passionate Fitness.

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