Cardio - Jump Into It

When you just don't have time for a long cardio session, revert back to those childhood years of double dutch. Jumping rope has been around for hundreds of years and has proven track record of providing many health benefits. Jumping rope not only tones the entire body by developing long, lean muscles in all major muscle groups, but it also optimizes cardiovascular conditioning and maximizes athletic skills by combining agility, coordination, timing, and endurance.

Jumping rope is an amazing tool for burning calories when you are short on time. On average, jumping rope burns 11 calories per minute but the higher and faster you jump it can reach the limit to about 20 calories per minute. So, in just 15 minutes of exercise you can burn at least 165 calories! Not to mention, jumping rope is portable, inexpensive, easy to learn and a perfect activity that can be done with the kids too.

Cardio - 20 minute blast

If you only have 20 minutes to devote to your cardio program today, high intensity interval training is a great way to burn a ton of calories. This type of training will burn more calories from fat and studies have shown that high intensity interval training keeps your metabolism raised for up to 12 hours following a session!

Here is a sample interval workout to try - you can either use a piece of cardio equipment in the gym or you can couple these interval exercises with a run or walk outside.

Take 2-3 minutes to warm up by doing regular cardio activity (walk, run, elliptical, bike) at about 50% of your max effort.

Then you will begin the interval work.
Regular cardio activity for 2 minutes at 60-70% of your max effort (run, walk, bike, etc.)
Interval exercise for 1 minute at about 90% of your max effort (sprint, hill, exercise below, etc)

Complete this cycle 5 times and then cool down at 40-50% of your max effort level for 2-3 minutes.

For the high intervals, you can either increase the speed, incline or resistance of the cardio machine you are on to intensify your workload. Or, you can hop off and try some of these exercises as your high intervals. Mixing it up is key.

Four intervals to try:

• Jump Rope
• Jumping Jacks
  
• Squat Jumps
• Side Lateral hops (like a speed skater)
  

Remember, listen to your body. If the 1 minute high intensity interval is too intense, back down to 30 seconds. As you progress, you can always increase.

For more interval programs, visit www.youcanmakeitfit.com