Exercise ideas

4 Exercise Ideas for Cold Weather Days

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Ideas for Cold Weather Days

What do you do when there’s no sun and it’s just too cold to go outside for a run? Do you hibernate or plod along? Truth is, along with the chilly air, your desire to exercise can also grow cold during the winter. Cold weather can make you feel sluggish and lazy and you can lose your motivation to exercise. But don’t let the cold weather ruin your fitness goals. We’ve rounded up some of our favorite calorie-busting exercises that you can do indoors.

  1. Go for a spin  

If you don’t like the feeling of cold wind on your face while you bike outside, a spinning class might just be perfect for you. These high-energy and intense cycling classes can burn about 700 calories in an hour and even has interval sets to target your buns, thighs, calves, and core. You don’t even need to wear a helmet. So, park your bike for the meantime and try a spin class.

  1. Climb a wall

Go vertical and try indoor rock climbing! Indoor rock climbing can get your mind and whole body in shape. When climbing a wall, you use your arms and upper body to pull yourself up and grab the next peg while you use your legs to thrust your body higher. While doing all these, you also engage your core muscles to support both your arms and legs. Indoor rock climbing can also sharpen your problem-solving skills as you figure out where to place your hands and feet as you climb. Lastly, rock climbing can make you feel great by giving you a feeling of accomplishment.

  1. Try Burpees

If you’re looking for an exercise that you can do virtually anywhere, Burpees is it. Burpees do not require any equipment or any special outfit. All it requires is stamina and a never-give-up attitude. Burpees combine push-ups and squat jumps in one intense activity and it’s not for the faint of heart. You begin by crouching on the floor with your hands in front of you. Quickly push your feet back and bend your arms so you’ll be in a push-up position. Do one push-up and swiftly bring your feet back under you, then quickly jump as high and land in the squat position. Repeat this routine as many times as you can.

  1. Box the cold away

Boxing combines cardio and strength training in one workout. It also improves your balance, coordination, agility, and reactivity. A few rounds in the ring can also engage your core. In boxing, the power of a punch doesn’t come from the arms and the shoulders alone, it also comes from the core. When you box, your body needs to move in unison and that movement is coordinated by your core muscles.

The cold weather may give you plenty of reasons to snuggle up and be lazy, but don’t let them stop you from exercising. Get creative and consider these interesting suggestions to stay active.

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4 Calorie Burning Cardio Exercises You Can do Every Day

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cardio exercises

It’s a well known fact that cardio-centric exercises should be a part of every workout routine, but do we truly know why cardio is so good for us? There are some obvious standard lines of thought you likely go to, like “it can help me lose weight” or “it’ll help tone my body,” but cardio exercise is much more than a diet supplement. Cardio activities can help to lower stress, strengthen your heart and lungs, help promote better sleeping habits, relieve anxiety and depression symptoms and reduce the chances of heart disease and cancer.

What if that’s not what’s really holding you back from cardio, though? You know the benefits, but you just don’t have time for lots of running or going to the gym for fitness training. The good news is that cardio exercises are actually quite simple, which makes them easy to do every single day — whether you’ve got 15 minutes of time to spare or a full hour.

These four cardiovascular activities are easy to do, don’t require lots of equipment and don’t take up much time. Do as many or as few as you can and you’ll still be on the right track to heart health and a slimmer waist.

Aerobics

The best thing about aerobics is that as long as you aren’t incorrectly stimulating your muscles, there aren’t many rules. In general, aerobics is simply movement that gets your heart pumping continuously, and there are a variety of ways to make that happen. Something like dancing can be considered an aerobic exercise, or step aerobics if you want something more simple. The point is that 15 minutes of continuous movement that gets your pulse elevated can be considered a cardio workout.

Kickboxing

Kickboxing is best done in a classroom environment, but the beauty of the Internet is that you can learn pretty much anything online. Find some credible workout videos on a fitness site or YouTube and get to practicing! Kickboxing is an excellent form of exercise that can tighten your core, build up your upper body strength and can be used as self-defense in sticky situations.

Jumping Rope

Remember that playground game you used to love as a little girl in school? There’s no age limit to jumping rope, especially considering how great it is for your health. Put on some music and get on a flat, outside surface. No need to get fancy and play Double Dutch — just have fun jumping for a few minutes at a time. You’ll be amazed by how invigorating it actually is!

High Knees

You can get all of the cardio benefits of running while you stay inside — and in the same place! High knees only require that you lift your legs up as high as they can go while jogging in place. This exercise helps with flexibility, heart stimulation and builds up your leg muscles. It can be exhausting, but the long term results are well worth it.

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