Cardio exercise is important in managing your health and weight, but you don’t always have the time to fit in a workout. However, you don’t need to spend hours on the treadmill – all you need to do is choose the correct calorie-burning cardio exercise that suits you.
But before you start tapping away at your calculator to work out how best to spend your time at the gym, first weigh yourself. A person weighing 73kg doing high-impact cardio exercise will burn approximately 533 calories an hour, while a person weighing 109kg doing the same activity, will burn approximately 796 calories.
Take a look at our Top 5 calorie-burning cardio exercises
Indoor Cycling
Indoor cycling is one of the most effective forms of cardio exercise, with an average burn of 952 calories an hour at the intensity of 200 Watts or more. If the stationary bike does not display Watts, all you need to do is listen to the Indoor Cycling Instructor when they say turn up the resistance!
Rowing
Rowing is also an effective form of cardio, with an average 800 an hour calorie burn. The benefit of rowing is that it gives your lower body an effective workout. Once again, 200 Watts or more is the average intensity.
Jumping Rope
By skipping at a moderate pace you can burn approximately 800 calories an hour – take note this is an average of 125 skips per minute, depending on your body weight.
Swimming
Swimming provides you with an overall body workout and it ranks as one of the most effective calorie-burning exercises. By swimming at a moderate pace you can burn around 500 calories an hour.
Cycling Outdoors
Cycling is an excellent form of cardio exercise because it gets your heart rate up. By cycling outdoors you can burn approximately 600 calories an hour (depending on body weight). By including some hilly terrain you can burn even more.
How Do I Get the Best out of My Cardio Workout?
To get the best out of your cardio workout it is recommended to follow the following tips:
Don’t Pound Away on the Treadmill For Hours
When you perform an exercise repeatedly, your body adapts to it and – very soon – you won’t see the benefits you’re supposed to be getting from that particular workout.
So, instead of spending an hour on the treadmill why not mix up your training and spend between 10 and 15 minutes training on other cardiovascular machines such as the step machine or stationary bicycle. These are guaranteed to be calorie-burning exercises.
Do the Exercise Right
Checking your form when you do your cardio will not only prevent injury but will also make sure that you get the most of your workout. For example, in a indoor cycling class if your handle-bars aren’t adjusted correctly – in other words they are too high or too low – you run the risk of developing neck, shoulder or hand pain.
Workout on an Empty Stomach
If you really want to burn fat, and make all your workouts calorie-burning exercises, you need to burn what’s in your glycogen stores. This means that you’ll need to do your cardio on an empty stomach. Alternatively, just after you’ve done your weight training.
Contact Trifocus Fitness Academy
This is just a glimpse of what the world of personal training can help you – and others – with! In Trifocus Fitness Academy’s Personal Training Certification, you’ll learn more about how to maximise workouts – and that’s just the beginning.
