Exercising from home is something most people have been thinking about. If not, it is something you may have adopted. Home workouts can also be as effective as workouts that are done in the gym so you do not have to shy away from exercising at home. One of the most rewarding home workouts you can try is aerobic exercise.
Aerobic exercise actively engages most of your body muscles. As a result, it leaves you breathing faster and deeper. It will also give your heart a good workout. Do not be surprised if you find yourself gasping for breath some minutes into this exercise. This makes for an incredible benefit, especially if your goal is to lose weight.
Like any other workout, you must practice moderation when doing any aerobic exercise at home. The target of a healthy adult is 150 minutes a week for any moderate aerobic exercise. If the regime is more strenuous, then the target should be lower. The range of lowering would be from 150 to 75 minutes (9).
Best Aerobic Exercise At Home
The best aerobic exercise for you may be different from that of your instructor or friend. Certain factors are what will determine the best exercise. These include the effectiveness, safety, fun capacity and intensity of the exercise.
There are plenty of at-home aerobics you can try. They are bound to make you attain your fitness goals right from the comfort of your home. They include:
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Walking
Walking is an incredible aerobic exercise choice for most people. Besides being quite easy, it is also safe. Since there is no trick to walking, which makes it one of the easiest exercises of all time. It is also a great choice for aerobic exercise at home for beginners.
Nonetheless, its simplicity does not mean it cannot result in injuries. You can also hurt yourself from walks, especially when you trip or slip. These may occur when you step on unfamiliar surfaces.
Slips can occur when you step on wet or slippery floors. On the other hand, tripping results from striking various obstructions in your path. So even with such a simple exercise as walking, be cautious and watchful, even if it is just for fun.
Fitness experts recommend you grab for yourself the proper footwear. You should ensure that you have good comfortable walking shoes, which are light, and fitting. They should also have a good grip on most surfaces and traction to minimize slip, trip and fall injuries (9).
Read More: How Can Walking Come In Handy If You Want to Lose Weight
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Jumping Rope
Jumping or skipping rope is another beneficial at-home aerobic exercise. It is quite engaging, meaning you will end up breathing quite fast while performing it. The only equipment you need for this workout is a skipping rope.
It can also be an incredible aerobic exercise for weight loss at home. However, before adopting it as your daily exercise regime, consult with your doctor. They might recommend another workout plan, especially if you have injured or bad knees.
How To Skip Rope From Home
The first thing you need to do is identify where you will perform this exercise. You could do it from your backyard or while inside your house. If this is the case, then check that you have created enough room by moving things.
Once you do this, then follow these steps:
- Stand with feet at least shoulder-width apart. Your arms should be resting by your sides, but also gripping your skipping rope handles.
- Start to swing your forearms in the shape of a circle while still gripping your skipping rope. At the same time, slowly lift your feet such that your heels are kicking as when running (1).
- The rope will go under your feet while your heels are simultaneously kicking. If you are having problems jogging while swinging your rope, first try the exercise without it. Use an imaginary rope and when you gather momentum, go ahead and use it.
- Repeat this process until you attain your daily skipping rope target of minutes.
How To Skip Rope Properly
Here are some tips that can help you learn how to skip rope properly:
1. Practice
If you cannot do a proper skipping rope, then ditch it and practice without a rope. Pretend you are gripping an invisible rope and practice on coordination. Also, remember to practice on timing. Try to coordinate your movements to ensure you have fewer missteps.
2. Get The Right Rope Size
Your rope size matters a lot as it influences how fast you skip. If you are a beginner, go for a bigger rope. It may help in slowing down the momentum, giving you some time to keep up. Remember that speed does not necessarily count for a beginner.
3. Learn The Best Form
Ensure you learn how to keep various body parts such as your back and knees while skipping. If you ignore them, you will risk getting back pain and knee injuries.
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Biking
Biking is another exceptional at-home aerobic exercise to consider, especially if you want to work your lower body. It targets your glute muscles, hips and legs. You can choose to bike either indoors or outdoors. If you prefer indoors, then you will need to get yourself a stationary bike.
On the other hand, if you prefer the outdoors, then make sure you get a comfortable bike. In addition to that, you will also have to identify a safe bike trail beforehand. It will help in protecting you from unforeseen dangers and injuries.
Tips For Beginners Trying This At-Home Aerobic Exercise
The one of the things you need to nail down for this exercise is a comfortable bike. With that being said, you should go to a bike store and get a bike that is appropriate for your size. Secondly, you need to get your safety gear in check.
One piece of safety gear you will definitely need, especially if your aim is biking outdoors is a helmet. It will help to prevent any brain or head injury in case of a fall. The second one you need is a pair of gloves. These come in handy in the protection of your hands from the rubbing of the grips (4).
Another useful item would be the padded biking shorts. They may come in handy in making your bike seat much more comfortable. One other tip is to gradually pump up the intensity as one ranks higher in the fitness levels. It is important to work yourself up the ladder with intensity to avoid sustaining injuries.
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Running
Running is another at-home aerobic exercise with tremendous benefits. It is an example of a high impact aerobic exercise. It actively engages most of your muscles, making it a great full-body workout.
Besides helping you shed off some extra pounds, running can also help in improving your mood. Running has also been linked with easing depression and anxiety. These two conditions are quite common. They may occur independently or at the same time.
Running enlarges your hippocampus. The hippocampus is the area in your brain responsible for your emotions. So, experts believe it can help in improving your mood and managing both depression and anxiety.
However, before incorporating it for treatment and depression and anxiety, ensure you consult with either your doctor or therapist (5).
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Swimming
The other aerobic exercise to try at home is swimming. It is fun and just about perfect, especially if your hobby is swimming. You may find swimming to be only relaxing. However, it has more benefits to it than relaxation only.
Swimming tends to keep your heart rate up, like any other aerobic exercise. It also targets various muscles, making it a great exercise for muscle toning. Similarly, swimming can also help in improving your mood due to its relaxation capability.
If you have never swum before, then it is vital to seek the help of a swimming instructor. It will minimize your risk of harm such as drowning.
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Water Aerobics
Unlike swimming, water aerobics tends to involve your body more. They involve the performance of various exercises, with or without equipment. Some of these exercises could be leg lifts, bicep curls, or water walking.
Water aerobics can be great exercises to try at home, especially if you enjoy water exercises. These low-impact workouts are very beneficial to a particular group of people. These include people suffering from chronic pain or joint problems (13). They are also effective for older people as well as expectant women.
Tips To Help You Prepare For Water Aerobics
There are various things you must know before attending a water aerobics class. Like any other aerobic exercise, water aerobics are also exercises. So, take heed of the following tips:
1. Search For A Certified Water Aerobics Instructor
If it is your first time trying water aerobics, then it is significant to hire a water aerobics instructor. They will teach you the best exercise to perform in the aquatic setting to help meet your fitness goals.
Additionally, they will supervise you as you perform the water exercises. They will ensure you perform the exercises in the correct form to avoid any injury.
2. Get A Doctor’s Go-Ahead
Before you decide to try water aerobics, visit your doctor. They will advise if this heart-pounding workout is good for you, depending on your health status.
3. Practice Patience
A typical water aerobics class with an instructor lasts for about an hour. During this hour, you will be expected to perform a circuit of various water exercises (13). The key is to practice patience. Of course, you might feel like quitting in the middle of your session. This is nothing unusual. However, think of the bigger picture and try to manage through these emotions.
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Dancing
Dancing workouts are other forms of aerobic exercise examples at home. They are high impact exercises. Dancing involves moving your entire body, working most of your body muscles. You do not have to be an incredible dancer to pick up dancing as an aerobic exercise.
Instead, all you need is the groove to move to the beat. Again, only take on dancing as an exercise plan after your doctor or therapist approves of it.
Read More: Can You Lose Weight By Dancing In Your Room: It’s Time To Crank Those Tunes Up!
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Playing Tennis
Tennis is an example of an aerobic sport. Playing tennis for at least fifteen minutes can be considered an aerobic exercise.
Its active engagement can help in increasing your aerobic capacity. Additionally, playing tennis will help in improving your strength, muscle tone, and flexibility.
Identifying Other Forms Of Everyday Aerobic Activities
There are various daily activities you may perform that may also rank as aerobic exercises. They are as follows:
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Yard Work
Yard work can be classified as an example of aerobic activity (7). Taking care of your yard entails, for example mowing the lawn. It may also entail weeding the garden or raking the leaves in your yard.
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Vacuuming
Vacuuming is also another daily activity that ranks as an aerobic activity. It offers you cardiovascular conditional and also targets your shoulders and legs.
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Shoveling Snow
You can turn a simple household chore such as shoveling snow to an aerobic workout. Pushing and throwing snow workouts various body muscles, turning it into a workout.
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Sweeping And Scrubbing
These two house chores may also count as an aerobic activity if your heart rate is increased.
How To Do Aerobic Exercise At Home
From our recommendations, you may have a few aerobic exercise examples at home you would want to sample. Perhaps you are counting down days or hours before you get started with one you have in mind.
But before you do that, there are various things you need to know about doing aerobic exercises at home. They are as follows:
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Your Age Matters
Ageing is one of the aspects linked to inactive lifestyles (11). There is a belief that people above a certain age limit cannot exercise. However, most seniors are defying this odd in today’s society. Manyd are slowly embracing various aerobic exercises.
However, before doing so, you are advised to consult a doctor and determine what exercise program best suits you. It is especially the case if you present risk factors for fatal conditions like high blood pressure and heart disease.
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Goal Setting Is Crucial
You must think about why you are taking up aerobic exercise. These reasons will highly influence the aerobic exercise you pick. Again, they will always remind and motivate you to work out.
Perhaps your goal is to lose weight. First, visit your doctor and listen to their recommendations. If they recommend an aerobic exercise, think about what activities you enjoy as well as how active you are.
If you dislike water, then swimming and water aerobics are not the best exercises for you. If you are not quite active, you may want to start with a simple aerobic exercise at home such as walking (8).
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Have Fun With It
Most aerobic exercises are fun to perform, for example, swimming, walking, and dancing. They also allow you to enjoy some music while still performing them. It means that you can still walk, run, swim, and still enjoy your music playlist.
Music may aid in the improvement of your stamina and mood. It can also help in doing away with weariness, especially when you are not psyched for exercising. So, have fun either using music or by simply enjoying your aerobic exercise workout.
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Screen Time Regulation Is Key
Watching tv may seem harmless. However, it is bad for you, especially if you spend most of your time sitting. It is bound to affect your results. You might argue that you are already taking up any aerobic exercise.
However, the time spent sitting down may negatively impact your weight loss journey. So, minimize your screen time and replace it with other activities like walking. If your aerobic exercise for weight loss is skipping rope, walking will help you see results faster (6).
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Exercise Moderately
Take it easy with your workout plan. Overdoing your exercise hours or intensity do not guarantee you quicker results. Instead, overdoing aerobic exercise may increase your risk to injuries.
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Your Fitness Level Matters A Lot!
If you have never exercised before, you may be unfamiliar with the various fitness levels. There are three fitness levels: beginner, intermediate and advanced. If it is your first time exercising, then your fitness level is the beginner phase.
Identifying your fitness level plays a significant role in determining what aerobic exercise you choose. It also influences the intensity of the workout you choose.
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Never Miss A Warm-Up
Regardless of your workout plan, ensure that you always warm up first. A warm-up aids in slowly adjusting your body from reset to exercise. It also helps in improving your flexibility, allowing you to perform your exercise more properly.
Warm-up exercises should not be highly intense. They should be of a low-intensity level. One of the best warm-up exercises to do is stretching (12).
The Bottom Line
There are numerous aerobic exercises you can do at home with or without any equipment. They include biking, swimming, dancing, walking, running, skipping rope, and water aerobics.
Some other house chores such as vacuuming, yard work, sweeping, and scrubbing also rank as aerobic activities. These can increase your heart rate, making your blood pump even faster.
Before choosing an aerobic exercise to do at home, ensure you get a doctor’s or therapist’s go-ahead. Your health comes first. So, ensure your physician agrees with your chosen exercise regime.
Likewise, involve your fitness instructor, especially if you are in the beginner phase. They will teach you the correct exercise forms and guide you through your workouts to avoid injuries.
DISCLAIMER:
This article is intended for general informational purposes only and does not address individual circumstances. It is not a substitute for professional advice or help and should not be relied on to make decisions of any kind. Any action you take upon the information presented in this article is strictly at your own risk and responsibility!
SOURCES:
- A 10-minute cardio workout you can do at home (2018, nbcnews.com)
- Aerobic exercise (2019, medlineplus.gov)
- Aerobic exercise: Top 10 reasons to get physical (2020, mayoclinic.org)
- Biking (2018, webmd.com)
- Cardio Exercise: Good for More Than Your Heart (2020, webmd.com)
- Exercise and activity for weight loss (2018, medlineplus.gov)
- Exercise and age (2020, medlineplus.gov)
- Fitness: Create a program that’s right for you (2018, mayoclinic.org)
- Fitness: Fitness basics (2019, mayoclinic.org)
- Fitness for less: Low-cost ways to shape up (2020, mayoclinic.org)
- Get-Fit Advice for Women Over 50 (2020, webmd.com)
- Heart Disease and Exercise for a Healthy Heart (2020, webmd.com)
- Water Aerobics (2020, webmd.com)
