Tips for Cardio at Home

While a gym might be the usual place to get a full cardio workout, sometimes it just isn't possible to make it there, especially if you are working or have a family that needs you at home. So how do you make cardio part of your day? It might be a bit of a challenge, but it is definitely possible, hundreds do it every day and so can you. This article will show you exactly how.

First, let's take a look at the amazing benefits of cardio exercise. It is a workout designed to raise your heart rate to the optimum level for burning calories, usually called your target heart rate. This great form of exercise helps you lose weight by burning calories faster and raising your metabolism. It also relieves symptoms of diabetes, lowers cholesterol and helps to prevent heart attacks. All in all, a pretty good line up of benefits for such a simple thing as cardio exercise.

Three to five days of cardio exercise per week is all you need in order to experience the benefits as long as you are working out for between 30-45 minutes. If weight loss is your goal, you will want to go for five days at around 30 minutes to start off with. This might seem like a daunting task, but really, we are talking about half an hour of movement per day, which really is not that much!

Doing cardio at home is relatively easy. You have plenty of options these days, with DVDs and videos that are already pre-timed to get you to your target heart rate in the recommended amount of time, along with jazzy music and hot bodies moving to the rhythm. You can find aerobics videos cheap on Ebay or at the local thrift shop, so for the price of one month at the gym, you could easily get a large collection of exercise videos, ensuring that boredom will never set in. Every time you feel yourself getting tired of the routine, just pick out a new video from your collection. Rotating every week or so also keeps your body on edge and burning calories.

Another good way to get your cardio in is to hit the road with your dog. If you don´t have one, borrow one or start a dog-walking business. Animals are great for forcing you into a routine, since they have daily needs and have to be outside at least twice a day. You can use this time to walk briskly or even do a little jog with your dog, who will love the attention and keep you moving!

Cycling can also be a good cardio workout, particularly if you use harder gears or head up hills. This is a good exercise to be done with another person and can be the perfect opportunity to combine your cardio with your family life. Pedaling around the park rapidly with your significant other is a nice way to connect and both will benefit from the exercise.

Cardio done at home tends to be more varied and people are more likely to stick with it than if they hit the gym for their workout. So why not grab your dog or your bike or both and get out there?