This may come as a surprise to some, but cardio equipment is not resistance training equipment.

If you are trying to increase your endurance with a cardio machine, make sure you are using the equipment properly and you have an idea of what your heart rate should be.

“You have to regulate the machine … so that you are getting your heart rate up to 65 percent and as high as 90 percent,” said John Katsares, personal training coordinator at Ohio State.

There are some common mistakes people make while training.

“Spending too much time at too light of a resistance” is a mistake Katsares has seen people make, he said.

Steven T. Devor, professor of exercise sciences and physiology and cell biology at OSU says he often sees people put “way too much resistance [on the machine] and that forces them to, A, not be able to do it as long and then, B, they don’t get an aerobic stimulus.”

So you don’t want to be the macho man who pumps resistance all the way up, the one that grunts the whole time, engaging in an epic battle with the heavily resisting machine.

You also don’t want to be the granny speed walker; the person who finds it unnecessary to break a sweat.

So how do you determine that happy medium and what equipment is best for you?

“I think the best aerobic cardio machine is the one that you enjoy doing,” Devor said. “If I tell you that running is the best cardio and you loathe running, then running isn’t the best for you because you’re never going to do it.”

Another piece of advice is train like an athlete.

“To me, if you are engaged in some kind of sporting activity and you take it seriously and are dedicated to it, I think you’re an athlete. It’s not just somebody with an OSU varsity coat on,” Devor said.

One such athlete would be Chanel Mack, a fourth-year in psychology.

“I train at least five times a week doing an hour of cardio. My favorite cardio equipment is the arc trainer and I really like the ARC over rpac,” Mack said.

Another helpful hint is to look at the size of the machine around you.

“The more machine you have around you, the more the energy is being absorbed. You might have to go a little longer because the machine is doing more of the work for you,” Katsares said.

This means that you may have to go longer on the bike than you would on the treadmill to yield the same results.

The RPAC offers approximately 66 cardio machines in cardio canyon alone. Pick a machine and figure out what your heart rate should be. You do this by taking 220, subtracting your age and then multiplying that number by 65 to 90 percent.

The treadmill creates the most impact on your body. If you require something less stressful, use the elliptical or the stationary bicycle.

“Over the long term, do what you like to do. Just do something! But make sure that you enjoy doing it,” Devor said.

For more information on cardio equipment at Ohio State facilities, visit recsports.osu.edu/locations_rpac.asp.