Cardiovascular exercise
Regular exercise is essential for one’s health. The cardio workout involves exercises particularly for your heart and lungs, to keep them healthy.
Cardio (cardiovascular) is also called aerobic exercise. It gets your heart rate up to make the blood flow faster. This helps to deliver oxygen throughout your body which is important for every human being.
When this happens, it has multiple benefits for an individual. Cardio workouts can help you lose weight, improve your mental health and provide you with better sleep. In addition, it also reduces your risk for various chronic diseases.
The best part about these exercises is that you don’t need any equipment. Most people do it at home by using their own body weight. You can do it almost anywhere, such as in your home, park, or outdoor space.
Maybe some days you can’t get outside for your routine workout such as hitting the gym, playing a sport, or as simple as running. No worries, there are plenty of cardio exercises that you can do as an alternative.
Basically, you need to do those exercises which suit your current fitness level, but eventually, you can switch to high-impact exercises as your fitness level enhances.
7 Cardio Exercises:
1) Indoor Jogging
This is a simple warm-up exercise that you can do at the beginning of your workout. It’s very effective as it increases your heart rate, enhances lung capacity, and improves circulation.
You can perform it by bouncing from one foot to another, what intensity you do depends on your fitness level. Just as normal jogging, you do this at the same place.
2) Jumping Jacks
This exercise works upon your entire body that involves your arms, abdomen, and legs. It can be done anywhere which makes it a handy exercise and also has great importance in a cardio workouts.
Steps:
1) Stand on your feet hip-width apart and relax your arms pointing to the ground.
2) Raise your arms on top of your head while you jump with your feet apart.
3) Jump back to the same position as you started with, that is feet hip-width apart and your arms downwards along the hips.
4) Keep doing this back and forth until you feel that you have done enough.
The intensity of this exercise can be modified by either jumping faster or slower, according to your fitness.
3) Dancing
Yes indeed, dancing to music can have a great deal of positive impact on your health. It’s a whole-body workout and moreover, it’s fun and enjoyable. It helps with your balance, is good for your heart and lungs, and even burns calories to some extent.
4) Plank Jacks
This exercise is similar to jumping jack but in a horizontal way. It engages your arms and upper chest to hold your weight as you move your legs. This is meant to activate your core muscles which is beneficial for overall health.
Steps:
1) Start with a plank position, hands under your shoulders and legs together, and make sure that your body is straight.
2) Force your body to jump and spread your legs wider than your shoulders.
3) Jump back to your original position and keep repeating.
5) Mountain climbers
This is an intense entire body exercise. As a beginner, you need to start slow and gradually increase the pace as you feel comfortable. It tones your abdominal muscles.
Steps:
1) Get into a plank position, hands directly under your shoulders.
2) Using your core, pull your right knee toward your chest and go back to plank, and then pull your left knee toward your chest and bring it back again.
3) Repeat this cycle slowly, according to your comfort, and stop when you feel it’s enough or feels tightness in your core.
6) Basic squats
The squat is a well-known exercise that is performed to strengthen the muscles of your lower body, reduce calories, and engage your core. This can be done anywhere as well. It is also beneficial for cardiovascular health.
Steps:
1) Stand on your feet with hip-width apart and hold your hands together pointing vertically.
2) Bend your knees as you come (squat) down.
3) Return back to the standing position and repeat this pattern for a min or two.
4) Maintain the intensity or speed as you feel comfortable doing it.
7) Skipping or Jump rope
This exercise has many benefits that include both mental and physical health. It surely improves your heart health, it boosts your mental growth that is concentration, and focus and also improves your overall balance.
You can speed up its intensity according to your fitness level. One can do it either by jumping with both feet or jumping from one foot to another.