There are many fantastic cardio exercises out there that work the body, however, which are the best? Which get you fit and fast? Cardio can be as gentle or as intensive as you wish it to be. Here are some motivating exercises to try. They burn many calories, improve your fitness, and they are fun.
Running
Jogging or running really works the heart. Many people run outdoors or on a treadmill. It is important, therefore, to pick the right footwear as outdoor running can put pressure on the joints. Running burns a fair number of calories, and performed regularly, can boost the metabolism over the long term. Regular running will trim your whole body, and each thirty-minute session will burn on average around 300 calories, dependent on body weight. A slim person with hardly any body fat will burn lesser calories than someone who has a heavier body frame.
Breathe steadily throughout, and if you have an MP3 player or iPod, use that. There is even a motivational device by iPod and Nike, which is placed in the shoe and pushes the runner further by playing their favourite upbeat track toward the end of the workout. The information is viewed on a PC, and uploads easily. If you like to set challenges, this is a piece of equipment that can be used regularly to enhance a workout.
Running is also weight bearing and strengthens the joints, but make sure you warm up the muscles beforehand or you could face injury. Work at your own pace. You can work at a slower pace for longer or train your body to fitness through intensive training. For example, three minutes of running at 7 mph, then 30 seconds of running at 10 mph. This will improve the fitness and help to build a stronger heart, and you will see benefits in as little as a couple of weeks.
Skipping
Although this is a tough exercise, it is so versatile. Jumping jacks can be performed, side twists, heel digs, double-unders, criss-cross jumps, and fancy arm movements…if you get the hang of it. Expect to burn around 100 calories per ten-minute session. Trying to skip for sixty minutes will be tough for most people, unless you are a professional boxer. Added to a regime that contains bodyweight training, such as press-ups, sit-ups, burpees, and squat thrusts, skipping provides a fantastic workout that will strip fat, tone the buttock muscles, develop the calf muscles, strengthen the wrists and develop hand eye co-ordination, balance, stamina and overall body strength.
Try to stay on your toes throughout the workout; this will help to develop the calf muscles. Skipping is weight bearing and helps to prevent osteoporosis, or brittle bone disease as its better known.
Your workout could consist of three minutes of skipping and a couple of double-unders (jump high enough to allow the rope to pass under the feet twice. In just three minutes, you will feel the burn in your whole body. After three minutes, start your bodyweight training session; perhaps perform 20 press-ups, 20 sit-ups, 30 jumping jacks, and 25 squat thrusts, then return to skipping.
Try to perform five sets. Overall, you will have completed 15 minutes of skipping, but you will also have trained the muscles in your body, which will burn fat for up to 48 hours after the workout.
Spinning
A group exercise performed to music that can burn as many as 800 calories per class – if substantial effort is given. The more resistance that is added to the bike, the more calories will be burnt and are likely to burn long after the workout. Spinning gives the heart a thorough workout, and after only a couple of weeks, a spinner will be able to feel the fitness benefits. They will regain their breath during rests – the quicker the breath returns to normal, the fitter the person, be able to push themselves during the workout, burn a substantial amount of calories, and shape their body all over.
Spinning is also motivational and a group exercise. In the class will be an instructor who takes the workout and uses loud, upbeat music and stimulating exercises to push out the stamina from your body. There will be road simulated cycling, hills which use a lot of resistance, sprints usually done on lower resistance, and even workouts to tone the arms, buttocks, and abdominals. Each spinning instructor is different. Times flies fast in spinning, so before you know it, the workout is completed, you are full of sweat, and you have burnt a large number of calories.
Spinning is a full body workout that burns a great number of calories, obviously dependent on the effort you are willing to put in, and will shape the body in as little as two months. Look forward to shapelier calves, muscular thighs, tighter buttock muscles, and fat loss from all over the body. Spinning can also improve your fitness if you like to mountain bike or enjoy road cycling. Hills will no longer be a struggle with your additional stamina, and you will retain your breath, which is also a sign of improved fitness.
These are just a few examples of how beneficial and fun cardio exercise can be. For each exercise, try to work for at least a minimum of 20 minutes. The spinning class will be a set workout of 30-60 minutes depending on the instructor.
