Holiday Home Workout – 5 Cardio Moves

Tis the season of food feasts, sweets, special meals, and parties (at least with close families). It is the time of the year where most of us tend to have that mentality of splurge eating, drinking, and just taking things easy and relaxed. Too relaxed that we allow the weight gain to creep in almost unnoticed.

For those already are in an active lifestyle and fitness is a way of life already, I think there won’t be much of a problem in the Holiday weight gain arena as they already know how to balance eating and exercising. But to those who are just beginning to diet, or those who are not that active but want to survive this so called holiday weight gain, I have here 5 easy cardio moves you can do at home everyday!  

According to a study in American College of Sports Medicine,  the average adult needs at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity cardiovascular activity each week to maintain a healthy lifestyle.

Here are 5 cardio exercises you can comfortably do at home – no equipment needed! Just yourself and your will to move and keep and active and healthy lifestyle.  Simply find a suitable spot within your home and make sure you have enough space to move. Take 20-30 mins of your time daily to sweat!

These easy-to-do exercises increases heart rate to regular fat-burning capacity

1. Jog in Place – Running in place elevates your heart rate, improves blood sugar levels, and burns calories and fat, all of which help with weight loss. You’ll also boost cardiovascular function, enhance lung capacity, and improve circulation.

2. Butt Kicks – a jump training or plyometric exercise. This is a powerful exercise for your cardiovascular system.  In particular, butt kicks may help increase the speed of hamstring contractions, which can help you run faster (who knows you’ll progress to running soon!). This explosive move works both your hamstring muscles and your glutes, and it can also be used as a dynamic stretch for your quads.

3. High Knees – High Knees are a cardio-intensive exercise performed at a fast pace. This is another cardiovascular exercise that is highly recommended for any fitness level. It engages your core, strengthens all the muscles in your legs, gets your heart rate up and improves momentum, coordination and flexibility.  In five minutes, you burn as many as 55-60 calories depending on the intensity. 

4. Jumping Jacks – remember this from your childhood? We just did this for fun wayyyy back not knowing it’s a full body workout! Jumping jacks can target major muscle groups, strengthen bones, and improve cardiovascular fitness and heart health. Jumping jacks are all about coordinating your limb movements with the jumps. This, in turn, helps improves coordination between your limbs and brain. You will develop a better sense of timing, rhythm, balance, and posture.

5. Skater Jumps – often just called skaters. This is a cardio exercise involving jumping in a pattern that shifts your body weight from side to side to create a skating stride. It is considered a full-body, dynamic workout as it also targets your gluteus medius and adductors of the hip joints. This exercise strengthens the glutes, hips and legs, and enhances coordination and balance.

Most aerobic exercises come with the added benefits of improving mood and reducing stress. They release happiness hormones endorphins, which reduce stress and perception of pain. It helps in reducing blood pressure and lipid levels as well as reducing stress and anxiety.

Hope that Helps! Let me know if you have any questions!

-xoxo-