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Thursday, July 27, 2017

Ditch the Gym: Intense Cardio Workouts You Can Do From Home


So many of us will sign up to a gym, visit once or twice and never return. Establishments make a massive profit from unused memberships and we end up wasting our cash because we don’t find the time to get to the gym between hectic work, home and social lives. But there is a solution to this. You don’t have to sign up to a membership plan at your local fitness centre to lead a healthy lifestyle. In fact, you can get a complete cardiovascular workout from home! So, ditch the gym and start working out at home. This is a low commitment arrangement but will see you undertake a more rigorous regime than ever before. Here are a few exercises to get you started!

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Jogging

A short jog each day will greatly improve your overall health without you having to stray too far from your home turf. It’s not surprising that it’s one of the oldest and most popular forms of aerobic exercise. It helps to improve your endurance, helps to prevent hypertension and heart disease, aids in weight loss and is also surprisingly relaxing, releasing stress and resulting in better mental health too. You don’t have to be a professional to start out. It is advised that you land on the ball of your feet and push forward with your toes. Get some decent jogging wear and invest in high-quality running trainers. These will support you and help to prevent twisted ankles and sprains. They will also be lightweight, allow you to feel as though you are gliding. Remember to take water too to keep yourself hydrated on the way round your planned circuit.

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Cycling

Cycling is a great cardiovascular workout. It gives you the same cardiovascular benefits as activities such as jogging, running and dancing. However, if you’re more of a home bunny than a gym bunny, you might like to invest in an indoor exercise bike. This way you can get an even better workout while watching your favourite television series. When cycling outdoors, you will often only press down on the pedals using your quads. However, when your feet are strapped into a static bike, you have the advantage of gaining to full stroke with each pedal, boosting your workout by pulling the pedals up behind you too! This results in an intense workout for your glutes and hamstrings too. Find the best upright exercise bike for your needs and place it in front of a TV, out of the way in a spare room. Time will fly. It will hardly feel like you’re doing an intense workout and before you know it you’ll have been cycling for an hour, burning calories and building muscle tone. Perfect!


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Plyometrics

Okay, this one won’t sound as familiar as the previous suggestions, but chances are that you’ve already engaged in some form of plyometric workout. This type of regime is perfect for the home, as it doesn’t require specialist equipment and can be carried out in almost any space. Form a routine of tuck jumps, knee dives, skaters and burpees. There are online tutorials that will show you how to carry out each exercise safely. As well as offering a great cardio workout, they boost muscle tone and increase your overall power.

Once you have given each of these exercises a tryout, why not set up a weekly routine where you rotate between the three? Focus on one exercise a day, repeat and take one day off as a rest break. This will allow you to reboot your energy levels and be fresh and ready for the next week’s routine.