Whether you love it or hate it, cardio is one form of exercise that is almost impossible to avoid. The best part of this sort of training is that it can be as simple as a fast-paced walk or as advanced as an intricate circuit that targets a range of muscle groups. And while getting your heart rate up may seem daunting, it's the versatility of cardio that actually makes it much more approachable than initially meets the eye. In an effort to shake the training style's bad name, we've rounded up 15 easy cardio exercises for all skillsets.
The best part? They don't require any equipment and you can do them almost anywhere.
Beginner exercises to get you moving
Marching in place
Why it works:
Marching in place is a great exercise to incorporate in a warm-up or as part of a larger cardio circuit. Although it may seem relatively simple, it helps keep your heart rate elevated in-between more complex movements. If you're wanting to make this easy cardio exercise more challenging, you can increase the speed of your marches or even turn them into jumping movements.
How to:
Begin by standing with your feet hip-width apart and your hands on your hips. If you want to increase the difficulty, you can hold your arms out horizontally instead for an easy bicep burn. Then, start by lifting one leg and continue alternating.
Jogging on the spot
Why it works:
Similarly to marching, this is great for a warm-up circuit. It requires slightly more effort than marching, so is a great movement to raise our heartrate. You can also make the movement as fast or as controlled as you want. If you want to take is slower, make sure to take a pause in-between each leg and engage your core for a cardio and abdominal burn.
How to:
Starting with your feet hip-width apart, begin bouncing lightly from one foot to the other. Incorporate arm movements by swinging them back and forth with the opposite leg. To get the most out of this exercise, ensure your posture is in the correct position and you are using the arm movements to also engage your back muscles – squeezing your two shoulder blades towards each other and keeping your shoulders down.
Star jumps
Why it works:
Star jumps can be one of the most effective and easy cardio exercises if performed correctly. You can also do them anywhere and are a great full-body workout. The easiest way to push through star jumps is to find a song with the perfect rhythm for the movement – it definitely helps keep the momentum going.
How to:
With you feet hip-width apart and arms down, raise your arms in the air to the side of your body while simultaneously jumping your feet out – to create a star. Jump softly back to the starting position and repeat the movement.
Lateral shuffles
Why it works:
Lateral shuffles are great as they are both a cardio and glute workout. They are also very effective if you keep your squat low and your feet movement quick.
How to:
Start on one end of the room in a medium-depth squat – keeping your knees soft and your arms tucked tightly by your body like a running position. Then, start by performing a shuffling movement to the other side of the room, making sure your feet meet together before shuffling out again. From here, you can increase the speed of your movement or the depth of your squat for more of a challenge.
Bear plank shoulder taps
Why it works:
Bear plank shoulder taps are a great beginners cardio excercise as a core and stability burner.
How to:
Start in a bear plank position on all fours – with your knees in a right angle position under your hips and your shoulders directly over your wrists. Keeping your back flat and aligned with your neck, engage your core and then slowly lift one arm at tap your opposite shoulder. Continue alternating arms until you complete your reps. To challenge yourself, lift both knees off the floor and try the movement in a hovered bear plank position.
Intermediate exercises to increase intensity
Squat jumps
Why it works:
Squat jumps are a great cardio exercise for working the lower body; targeting glutes, quadriceps, hamstrings, and calves.
How to:
Starting with feet hip-width apart and arms by your side, transition into a squat position – bringing your hands towards the centre of your chest in a bent, preparation position. From here, jump into the air extending from the hips to create a straight position with your arms and legs. Return gently to the preparation position and repeat.
Skipping
Why it works:
Another full-body, cardio exercise, skipping is a great form of movement that can be incorporated for all skill levels. It gets the heart rate up and can be simplfied or accelerated for different skillsets.
How to:
The movement itself is fairly self-explainatory, but at an intermediate level, you should start experimenting withe the type of skipping variations as well as the weight of your skipping rope. Try alternating from single leg skips to double as well as high knee skips for an extra push.
Jumping lunges
Why it works:
Jumping lunges have a very similar benefit to jump squats, except this excercise is unilateral; which means it works one side of the body at a time. This is great for intermediate-level training in order to achieve a more targeted workout.
How to:
Start in a lunge position with one foot infront and the other behind. Make sure your body is centred in the middle. Push off with your back leg and jump – with both feet meeting in the air – before transitioning into the same lunge position on the alternate leg. Keep your arms in a running position the whole time alternating with each leg switch.
Half-burpees
Why it works:
It's true, burpees are one of the most dreaded cardio exercises, but this easy half-burpee variation makes this full body movement a little bit more tolarable. No matter how much they burn, there's no denying that that burpees are effective for a reason; giving you a full body workout like no other.
How to:
For this variation on a traditional burpee, start with your body in a hand plank – making sure that your back is straight and that your neck, shoulders and hands are in alignment. Then, jump your feet in towards your hands and straighten your upper body to a squat position. Then, return back to a hand plank, jumping your hands and feet back and forth and a comfortable pace.
Plank jacks
Why it works:
Another plank-based exercise, plank jacks are great for focussing on core stability while also keeping the heart rate up. The key to this exercise is keeping your upper body still and controlled while your legs do the moving.
How to:
Start in the same plank position as you would for half-burpees – making sure your legs are hip-width apart. Then, without moving the upper half of your body, jump your feet out to form a v-shape with your legs and back in. Repeat at a similar pace to start jumps.
Advanced exercices to get your heartrate up
Stairs
Why it works:
For people who don't enjoy running, stairs is a great and easy alternative to regular cardio exercises. It's definitely a more advanced movement and the incline adds and extra level of difficulty.
How to:
Find a flight of stairs with roughly 10-15 steps either indoors or outside. It's important to make sure that the stairs are safe and sturdy enough for this type of movement. Start at the top and run down to the base (using the downwards phase as your recuperation time. Then, using maximum power, run up the stairs at your fastest speed. If you want to challenge yourself, try skipping a step on your run back up.
Running mountain climbers
Why it works:
Running mountain climbers are one of those easy cardio exercises that target multiple muscle groups – particularly your abdominals if done correctly. It's also a great opportunity to focus on your posture and stability while holding the plank position.
How to:
Begin in a strong plank position, making sure that your abdominal muslces are engaged, your shoulders are rotated and your head is in line with your neck. Then, bring one knee up towards your chest, and alternate – picking up the pace so that it resembles a run.
Candlestick roll-up to tuck jump
Why it works:
Similarly to many of the other advanced cardio exercises on this list, candlestick roll-ups are an easy way to get a full body workout without having to use equipment. This exercise is all about form and making sure that each element is done perfectly.
How to:
Start by sitting on your bottom with your feet flat on the ground and your knees tucked towards your chest. Keep your hands also flat on the ground beside you and rock back onto your shoulders into a candlestick position ensuring your legs are directly straight in the air. Then rock forward to the starting position, using your hands to help push you off the ground to stand with your knees bent. Using the momentum, finish the sequence with a tuck jump; returning to the bent knee preparation position and rolling gently down the the floor to start again.
Box jumps
Why it works:
Box jumps are one of the best easy cardio exercises because they can be incorporated into almost any circuit and are a great lower body workout. The focus in this movement is on power, rather than endurance, but it will get your heart rate up just the same.
How to:
Box jumps can be done on a variety of different style boxes, so you don't have to worry if you don't have access to an equipment-grade foam box. Just make sure that whatever you are using, it is sturdy, supportive and safe. Start by standing behind the box – about 30cm away – with your knees bent in the preparation position. It is important to never try to jump from a full standing position as this can cause injuries. Then, use the momentum of the preparation and your arms to swing forward and jump onto the box, landing again with soft knees and extending to straight. Then, step back down and begin again where you started.
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