Cardio exercises at home are great for your overall physical and mental health, and much of the time requires no equipment.
If you have an exercise bike, ellipsoid, or treadmill at home, you’re in luck and you can easily do a cardio workout at home. But what if there are no such simulators? Running in place, shadow boxing and other cardio activities are difficult to perform for more than 10 minutes in a row.
In this article, you will find an example of a home cardio training program in a circuit mode. Such exercises increase the heart rate, creating an aerobic load. The advantage of the program is that the exercises do not require equipment and can be performed with body weight.
CARDIO Exercises AT HOME
Cardio is a physical exercise to raise your heart rate. Traditionally, cardio includes running, cycling, jumping rope, and other aerobic workouts. However, regular body weight exercises are also suitable to increase your heart rate.
The key rule of cardio training at home is a fast pace of exercise and a training duration of at least 30-40 minutes. Ideally, use the stationary bike as a warm-up followed by a full cycle of workout.
Recall that circuit training involves performing the exercises of the program one after the other, with minimal rest time. Despite the fact that the exercises themselves are quite light, the fastest possible rhythm turns the workout into full-fledged cardio at home.
Cardio at home – the rules:
- 3-4 times a week
- 30-40 minutes per workout
- circuit training
THE BENEFITS OF CARDIO exercises
Your body needs regular exercise to stay healthy. The recommendations from doctors say that you need to take at least 7-10 thousand steps daily – or do fitness exercises 3-4 times a week for 30-40 minutes.
The health benefits of cardio are both in burning extra calories and in increasing blood circulation in the body through an increased heart rate. Ultimately, it helps the body get rid of toxins, as well as strengthens the walls of blood vessels and improves the functioning of the cardiovascular system.
CARDIO WORKOUT AT HOME PROGRAM
To do your workout at home, you will need a sports mat (a yoga mat will do), a timer, and active music to boost motivation. When doing the exercises, pay attention to your breathing, as well as the feeling of muscle involvement in the work.
A circuit cardio program involves doing exercises one after the other, with minimal rest time:
1. Jumping jacks
Begin your home cardio workout with jumping jacks.
STEPS:
Stand with your feet together, knees slightly bent, and arms to your sides.
While jumping, raise your arms and separate your legs to your side. Land on your forefoot with your legs apart and arms overhead Jumping jacks
Jump again to lower your arms and legs back to the starting mid-line position. Both jumps should be fluid and connected motions
- 12-15 fast paced reps
2. Wall sit
After completing the previous cardio exercise, without resting and keeping your heart rate high, do a static exercise to strengthen your leg muscles.
STEPS:
Lean against a wall while standing straight
Side down until your knees form 90-degree angels. Hold this position while keeping your abs contracted.
- 30-45 seconds motionless
3. Push-ups
STEPS:
Lie prone on the floor with your hands slightly wider than shoulder-width. Raise your body up off the floor by extending your arms, while keeping your body straight.
Once your arms are fully straight, lower your body to the floor by bending your arms
- Repeat 12-15 times.
4. Abdominal Crunches
STEPS:
Lie down on the floor with your knees bent. Keep your hands extended straight out in front.
While contracting your abdominal muscles, slowly lift your shoulder off the floor while keeping your neck in alignment with your torso (i.e., do not bend your neck or head).
At the top of the movement, contract your stomach, hold for a second, then slowly lower back down to the floor
- 2-3 sets of 30-45 seconds
5. Chair step-ups
One of the simplest, yet effective, gluteus medius exercises. When done in a fast cardio mode, tightens muscles, increasing blood circulation and helping burn fat. Step up the elevation one at a time, keeping your abs tense.
STEPS:
Stand facing a chair.
Place the foot of one leg on the chair. Extend your hip and knee of that leg to stand up on the chair with both legs. Once standing, step down with the opposing leg leading the way.
Repeat the motion but with legs reversed.
- 12-15 reps per leg
6. Squats
Continue without rest to squats with arms extended forward
STEPS:
Stand with your arms extended forward
Squat down by bending your knees forward while allowing your hips to bend back behind. Keep your back straight throughout the movement and pointed in the same direction as your feet.
Descend until your things are just past parallel to the floor, then reverse the motion by extending your knees and hips until your legs are straight.
- 12-15 fast paced reps
7. Chair triceps dips
STEPS:
Sit on the chair and place your hands on the edge of the chair. Position your feet away from the chair. Straighten your arms and slide your rear and off of the edge of the chair. Rest your heels on the floor with your legs extended straight.
Lower your body by bending your arms until you feel a slight stretch in the chest or shoulder. Raise your body and repeat.
- 12-15 fast paced reps
8. High knees running in place
One of the most powerful cardio exercises in a home workout program. Make alternate lifts of bent knees as high as possible – helping with your arms for balance. Keep your abs tense and watch your inhalation and exhalation cycles by trying to breathe faster.
STEPS:
Run in place with your arms above your knees.
Ensure that you are raising your knees as high up as you can during the running motion
- 30-60 fast paced reps
9. Plank
After doing the dynamic upper body exercises, move on to the static plank. The abdomen should be pulled in, the core should be tense. Hold the position for 30-45 seconds, maintaining a normal breathing rhythm.
STEPS:
Lie prone with your forearms flat on the floor. Your elbows should be positioned under your shoulders. Place your legs together with your toes on the floor.
Raise your body upward by straightening your body in a straight line. Hold this position with your abdominal core muscles.
- Repeat 2-3 times.
10. Lunges
STEPS:
Stand with your hands on your hips.
Lunge forward with your first leg. Lower your body by flexing your knee and hip in front of the front leg until the knee of your rear leg is almost in contact with the floor
Return to the original standing position by forcibly extending your hip and knee of the forward leg. Repeat the lunge with the second leg.
- 12-15 reps per leg
11. Push-ups with body rotation
Advanced exercise, suitable for people with a good level of fitness. When done at the end of a workout, it maximizes cardio. First, do a regular push-up from the floor, then push off and raise your arm up, keeping your body extended in a line.
STEPS:
Preform a push-up by lowering your body to the floor and extending yourself back up off the floor.
At the end of the push-up, rotate your body to the right by lifting your right arm off the mat and pointing it at the selling.
Return your right hand to the floor, perform another push-up, and repeat with the left arm
- 5-10 reps per side
12. Side Planks
This exercise helps strengthen your transverse core muscles, as well as your glutes and thighs. When doing it, make sure that the elbow is located exactly under the shoulder joint – this will help to avoid injury. Don’t drop your hips down or lift them up too high.
STEPS:
Lie on your side with your forearm under your shoulder, perpendicular to your body. Your upper leg should be stacked on top of the lower leg and your knees and hips should be straight
Raise your body upward by straightening your waist so that your body is rigid. Hold this position and then repeat with other side.
- 2-3 sets of 30-45 seconds
Cardio at home - how many calories are burned?
When doing cardio at home, the rhythm of the exercise plays a role. The faster, the more calories are burned. In addition, the level of physical fitness affects the ability to consciously involve muscles in work.
On average, doing the above cardio workout program burns 300 to 600 cal per hour. If you complete the exercise program quickly enough, repeat it again. Circuit training implies from 3 to 6 cycles while a break is allowed only between cycles, but not exercises.
In order to train in a more active mode (and therefore to increase your heart rate), before starting your workout, make yourself a strong cup of coffee. Due to its stimulating effect, caffeine increases the effectiveness of cardio, helping to burn more calories.
The key rule of cardio at home is the consistency and duration of your workout. The best way to do an active workout at home in the absence of simulators is circuit training, doing exercises one by one without breaks. In my opinion, fitness ball, dumbbells (5 -15 lbs), and resistance bands are the best home workout equipment. Exercises With Fitness Ball and 5 Best Fitness Bands Exercises are always a good start!
Can I drink while exercising?
