5 Cardio Exercises for Weight Loss

While strength training will help you burn calories at rest, when it comes to true weight loss, cardio is the game changer. Cardiovascular exercise is defined as any exercise that raises your heart rate. Remember, your heart is a muscle, and it needs to be worked to be kept in its best shape. In addition, Health Status reminds us, “A stronger cardio-vascular system means more capillaries delivering more oxygen to cells in your muscles. This enables your cells to burn more fat during both exercise and inactivity.”

Simply put, a regular cardio exercise routine will help you lose weight efficiently and effectively.

Cardio workouts help keep your heart healthy and boost your endorphins–so you feel great during and after your workout. These high-energy exercises can also give your immune system a lift, as well as improve your circulation. Very Well Fit notes, “Anything that gets your heart rate into your target heart rate zone will work, but there are some workouts that give you a little more bang for your buck.”

Try out (with your doctor’s approval of course) any of these excellent calorie burning workouts.

1. Run the Stairs: You could burn up to 1000 calories per hour, depending on your weight and fitness level, simply by taking the stairs. Well, simply by running the stairs for a solid hour. But don’t make that your goal. Look for ways you can incorporate stair running into your cross training or make it part of your everyday lifestyle. Even walking up and down flights of stairs burns calories and helps you lose weight, so making this your new everyday routine will help you nudge away those pesky pounds.
2. Jump the Rope: Plyometric workouts like jumping rope are excellent exercises to increase heart rate and burn calories. Considered to actually be less high impact than running, a solid jump rope routine may actually burn more calories than your mile run. Plus, jump rope is a great activity that can be fun for the whole family. Get Healthy U recommends a simple 10-minute Jump Around Cardio Workout to get you started.
3. Ride a Bike: Another lifestyle cardio exercise, bike riding, will help you burn calories and get some much needed Vitamin D if you ride outside. Another great family activity, bike riding improves heart health and builds leg muscles. Bonus, you can also cycle indoors at your favorite gym or at home with a stationary bike. Another great perk is the trend of cycling classes, which the American Academy of Sports Medicine reports helps participants burn 400-500 calories per session. Cycling is naturally low impact and great for those who worry about knee and back injuries from other higher impact workouts.
4. Row, Row, Row Your Workout: Usually tucked away in the gym corner–and usually unoccupied–is the rowing machine. But with its ability to help you burn up to 300 calories in a 30-minute session, the rowing machine might be your new gym pal. Rowing is not merely upper body exercise. It actually targets your entire body and helps you tighten and strengthen your core. Plus, its intense and high intensity workouts help you burn more fat.
5. Interval Workouts: Designed to have you work intensely for short periods with short periods of recovery in between, interval workouts are one of the best exercise programs for targeted weight loss. Your heart rate increases but so does your body’s strength and ability, leading to an overall healthier you. Studies show that high intensity interval workouts burn more calories in a shorter amount of time, so you achieve more than you would through regular steady-rate cardio exercises.

No matter how you get your cardio done, exercising is an important component to your healthy lifestyle. Choose routines and workouts that suit your ability and time, then enjoy the results. You have nothing to lose–except the weight of course.