Monitoring the Benefits of Exercise
Most health outcomes appear to be related to the accumulated
volume and intensity of exercise, and so monitoring compliance
will theoretically provide evidence that the desired beneficial
adaptations are occurring. However, there may be benefit also
in monitoring the improvements in cardiovascular fitness from
training, as aerobic capacity itself has an even stronger
relationship to mortality than level of physical activity.38
Documenting improvements in fitness or function may have a
reinforcing effect on long-term behavioral adaptations as well.