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10 Ways To Do Cardio Besides Running

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When people think of cardio exercises, the first thing that comes to their mind is running. Well, there are many other cardio workouts besides running. These can be as enjoyable as dancing, as useful and low impact as bicycling, or as heart-thumping as boxing. Here are some of these exercises along with the number of calories one can shed off with each type.

Circuit Training

A cardio exercise that you can do even on vacation or at the comfort of your own room is circuit training. This training is very suitable for those living in a small space and does not have access to expensive equipment. The basic set of exercises consists of at least one routine for each of the three zones – upper, middle, and lower. For the upper zone, you choose between push-ups or dips. For the middle zone, you can do forward crunches, side crunches, bent knee leg lifts, and V-ups. Lastly, for the lower zone, you can do bodyweight squats, bodyweight lunges, and jump rope. You can perform as many exercises as you like.

Increase the intensity or do light weights with high frequency if you like to get your heart rate up. With this exercise, you can burn from 340 to 660 calories per hour.

Kickboxing

If you are aiming for a more intense workout, go for kickboxing. This is not just heart-thumping, it can also boost your metabolism higher by 10% to 15% your normal rate. Kickboxing lets you punch with jabs, hooks, and uppercuts; and do front and roundhouse kicks. The average man can burn 800 to 1,200 calories within one hour.

If you want to get more excited, enroll in a cardio kickboxing session where dancing and kickboxing are combined. It will definitely improve your endurance and cardiovascular fitness.

Boxing

Boxing is another cardio exercise that will surely get your heart pumping and can help you burn those calories. It is a full-body workout that can be done by those who are tired of usual cardio workouts like running on a treadmill. Use a bag with a heavy filling, gloves, and cloth wraps. In this training, you execute punches such as jabs, straight right, hooks, and uppercuts.

Cardio boxing can boost your heart rate range by 50% – 70% of your max heart rate. Most programs of cardio boxing comprise of variable heart rate work and actual boxing moves. Punching a bag can burn 350 to about 560 calories per hour. In sparring, you can burn 530 to about 840 calories.

Another intense cardio workout is shadowboxing. It refers to throwing punches at no one in particular or sparring with an imaginary opponent. It is used mainly to prepare the muscles before a person engages in stronger physical activity like in a boxing fight. It is also used as an exercise routine. This workout doesn’t require any equipment, nor mitts or bags, hence it doesn’t cost anything. In shadowboxing, you can burn 400 up to 600 calories per hour.

Jump Ropes

One of the cardio exercises that can burn high amounts of calories is jumping rope. Jumping rope for one hour can cause you to burn 500 to 800 calories. According to Edward Jackowski, a fitness center owner in New York City, 10 minutes of jumping rope with an intensity of 150 turns a minute is equivalent to running for 30 minutes with a speed of 6 to 7 miles per hour. This workout is better to be combined with lighter cardio routines such as light jogs in place. This will regulate your heartbeat.

Bicycling

Bicycling can cause you to burn 500 to 1000 calories in one hour. This depends however on how fast you go and your resistance level. It is a workout that you can incorporate into your daily routines. Ride a bike in doing your errands around the community. You can also cycle to and from work. This exercise is a low impact one and is suitable for those with joint ailments. Bicycling can be a great cross-training for high impact ones like aerobics or running.

Swimming

Like running, swimming is an effective cardio workout. Swimming through as many laps as possible in a fast pace will get your heart pumping. Recover for 45 seconds in between each lap. Make sure that you do it at a pace that is appropriate to your level.

Swimming also provides a great overall exercise. In recreational swimming, you can burn 180 to 440 calories per hour. About 300 to 740 kcal are burned in a moderate one. Make it more vigorous and you can lose 440 to 1100 calories in an hour.

Wrestling/Jiu-Jitsu

Wrestling and Jiu-Jitsu, a martial art and self-defense system, are cardio exercises that can burn a lot of calories. Both wrestling and Jiu-Jitsu are very intense workouts. These entail grappling and ground fighting where both players exert their greatest physical strength to gain an advantage.

For an average person weighing 150 pounds, he or she can lose about 400 calories per hour of wrestling exercise. If you weigh 200 pounds, you will likely burn 580 calories. You can burn more calories in Jiu-Jitsu training, particularly the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. If you weigh 150 pounds, you will lose around 680 calories for 60 minutes of training. A heavier guy, at 200 pounds, will likely burn about 920 calories.

Dancing

If you are bored with the usual cardio exercise, get into the beat. Dance and have fun while you lose weight. Dances that are great cardio exercises are pony, grapevine with a three-turn, Caliente, Cha-Cha, and charleston. Doing these for an hour will let you shed 400 calories. Do the Dance Dance Revolution with your kids and promote a healthy lifestyle in your home. With this game, you are not just exercising but you are also playing and bonding with them.

High-Intensity Weight Training

If you like to burn fat, say, in your belly part, try high-intensity weight training. In both men and women, the one place where the body likes to store excess fats in the belly. High-intensity weight training, described as a sprint-type or high-intensity interval training (HIIT) can help you trim that part. In this type, you do a workout at a high intensity, with intervals, at a heart rate of about 95% of your maximum. An example is circuit training at CrossFit done in progression with a very little amount of rest in between, say, 30 to 60 seconds long. An intense circuit of eight exercises that last for eight minutes can use up 159 to 231 calories. That is about 1200 to 1700 calories in one hour!

Power Yoga

Power yoga is a yoga type that gives a whole body workout. The routines improve flexibility, muscle tones, strength, and functional movements. Power yoga, therefore, brings out what a cardio session or good aerobics exercise can do. It is fast-paced, hence, it can make you sweat and get a high heart rate. One hour of power yoga lets you use up 300 calories. Even if the power yoga does not burn as much fat as other cardio exercises do, it is still a great weight loss exercise because it increases metabolism, and alleviates stress, which can cause you to eat more.

Now you know that cardio is not just about running. You can go dancing or do jump ropes and burn just the same amount of calories that running can take out. In losing weight or aiming for wellness, doing these cardio exercises right will surely give you the desired results. Pick one that best matches your needs, lifestyle, and interest.

There you have it, ten ways to lose burn calories without having to run. So if you want to learn how to lose belly fat without being bored to death by the treadmill, try the ten cardio exercises above.