Which is the Best Cardio Exercise to Try at Home

Are you regular with your morning cardio exercise at home these days, or have you been missing them? A recent study has brought to light that only 42.9% of Indians take up the minimum physical activity recommended by the WHO [1]. Leading a sedentary lifestyle is one of the primary culprits leading to the rising dominance of diabetes and obesity in India [2]. Thus, the fact that more than half the country’s population does not physically exert themselves is a matter of grave concern.  

Inactivity leads to a range of health problems, and as per WHO guidelines, an adult individual should at least devote 150 hours a week doing anaerobic workouts or exercises such as brisk walking. Alternatively, 75 hours of intense workouts a week can also help.  

Movement is beneficial for health and wellbeing. So, taking out some time from your busy schedule to do some exercise will help keep your vitals within the normal range. In case you are pressed for time and can’t go out to a gym or for a walk, try some cardio exercises at home to stay on track with your health. Unlike other forms of workouts, cardio exercises are easy to do and do not require much equipment either.  

Why should you choose to do a cardio workout? 

There are many benefits of a cardio workout, such as keeping your heart and lungs in shape, keeping your muscles and joints in shape, getting better sleep, maintaining a healthy weight, and much more. While there is no one workout that can be called the best exercise for heart health, a cardio exercise where you get moving is what your body needs. 

The best thing about cardio exercise is that you can do it anytime, anywhere. This makes dedicating time to a cardio workout at home an easy affair, and you do not have to depend on a lot of paraphernalia to get started. This convenience offered by a cardio exercise routine is a big bonus. The best part is that anyone can start doing cardio without much preparation. This makes it fun – even for beginners!  

Best cardio exercises to try at home:-

Cardio exercises not only boost your heart rate but also work effectively in shaping and toning your body overall. Cardio exercises boost your core strength and increase your stamina and strength.  

Here is a simple cardio workout plan you can follow at home as a beginner.  

• Start with knee highs and raise your knees to your chest one by one while keeping your hands formed into fists in front of your chest.  
• Next, try butt kicks by maintaining your arms in the same position. To perform this posture, bring one heel toward your butt, lower it and repeat with the other foot.  
• You can introduce jogging as the next exercise. Do not move from your position when doing this cardio exercise. Instead, stand in one place and continue jogging for a minute to increase your heart rate.  
• In a similar vein, try jumping and landing on your toes each time. Continue this for a minute to feel a rush of blood.  
• Now that you have done some lower body cardio exercises shift your attention to the arms. Stand in a wide-leg position and rotate your arms in a circular motion, both clockwise and counterclockwise. Continue this arm wave for a minute and come back to rest.  
• When doing cardio workouts at home, you may need to take space constraints into account. Keeping this in mind, you can easily tweak your cardio workout. One good exercise in this regard is the squat. All you need to do is widen your legs and bend at your knees to squat.  
• Another interesting and easy cardio exercise is called a plank jump. Get in a high plank position and then, in a rhythmic way, move your legs apart and quickly get them back to the original position. Continue this 15 to 20 times to feel the stretch in your core muscles and hands.  
• Tuck jumps are also very good for your overall strength and are a cardio exercise that you can easily include every day. Stand with your feet close together and keep your arms straight out from the elbow. Now jump and try to hit your knees to your palms. Continue this for a minute.  
• If you are comfortable with these cardio exercises or are used to working out, you can combine two moves together to get better results. To start off, you can combine a squat and a jump and continue in a rhythm to get your heart pumping.  
• Another effective cardio exercise is the lateral shift. Simply lift your knees sideways and try to touch your elbows by keeping the hands in a folded position on your head.  

Armed with this information, be sure to add cardio into your daily routine for effective results. To add some fun, play music and time your steps to it. You can also add weights to give your cardio workout a boost. Along with cardio exercises at home, you can also try morning yoga exercises for holistic wellbeing. While creating your plan for morning yoga exercise at home, do not hesitate to consult a physiotherapist if you have pain or issues that keep you from being active.  

These health specialists can help you choose the right cardio exercise for yourself. Further, if you have been inactive for a long time, take a doctor’s appointment to understand what you need to do to become more active and boost your health. To make this process easy and more convenient, you can book an online appointment with the top practitioners on Bajaj Finserv Health. This way, you can talk to them in-depth about cardio, yoga, and other workouts in depth. So, go the extra mile today and get your health back on track!