Get the Most Out of Every Step

Ugh! Having to do cardio can seem like quite the chore especially if your stress is hinging on the border of going ape-sh*t!

Since cardio is great for increasing your oxygen intake, boosting your heart fitness, and helping you burning a bunch of calories, we all know we need to get in. So what’s the trick to keep it interesting?

Maybe we just need to look at cardio in a different manner and implement different strategies that can still help that ticker ticking and your belly burning those calories like it had no choice but to just give them up.

7 Easy Ways to Maximize Your Cardio Workout

Alternate between Standing & Sitting

Whether you’re outdoors or in the gym, your cardio options usually involve either being upright or in a seated position. I always recommend to my clients to switch it up between the bike and treadmill, or the elliptical and rowing machine. You’ll hit different muscles.

Make Use of Hills

Speaking of resistance training, incorporating hills into your cardio routine is a simple way to step things up a notch and challenge your muscles. You can use the incline function on cardio machines, like a treadmill or elliptical, or you can make use of the natural variety outdoors.

Bonus Tip: if you ever get a chance to run barefoot on sand, go for it – it’s extra challenging and yet low impact so you’ll save your knees and burn 100 more calories every couple miles. 

Add Intervals

Interval training, or high intensity interval training (HIIT), is a great way to wake your body up from your same-old cardio routine. All you need to do is go at an intense speed for a short period of time (say 2-5 minutes), and then go slow for the next few. Alternate like this throughout your entire workout, and you’ll build up a killer sweat.

To see how it works, check out my Jillian Michaels Treadmill Workout here.

Superset between Weights

Want to do cardio in a totally new way? Try picking up a jump rope or doing some jumping jacks between weight-training sets. This is a great way to fight the boredom.

Hit the Pool

Adding a little swimming to your cardio program is a great way to change things up and work your body in a totally new way. I’ve seen some pretty killer toning results from people who incorporate swimming.

Try Plyometrics

Once you’re past the beginner stage of your workout program, try incorporating plyometrics into your cardio. Plyometrics is essentially jump training, and involves more dynamic moves that get your feet off the ground. You can get pretty advanced with this, but jump rope is a great way to start training your body for this kind of movement.

For beginners, try my Jump Rope Interval Training Routine to get started.

Maximize Your Workout Time

If you’re short on time but still want to work up a good sweat, then definitely grab some weights and knock out some high-rep, low-weight sets. Whether it’s squats or crunches, this is a great way to still fit in a little cardio.

I hope you agree that this article is one you’ll want to save on your Facebook/Pinterest/Twitter/etc and come back to time and time again so please make sure to like/share it and also leave me comments/questions!