Winter is almost here and the days are getting colder – what better way to warm yourself up than a kick-ass cardio workout to get your sweat on? Here’s some of our fave moves to get your heart racing and blood pumping as quick as possible. Go through three sets of these and you’ll be warmer in no time.
Repeaters
Standing on one leg with the knee slightly bent, keep your body upright and take your other leg behind you as if to lunge, then bring it back up in front of you with your knee raised. It should look like a slow motion sprint but just on one side of your body.
To take this move to the next level, bring both arms up over your head when your back leg is extended, and bring them both in to the sides of your hips when you bring your foot forward and through. Do 20 repeaters on each side.
Star jumps
Jump your legs out and circle your arms outward to finish above your head (add a clap at the top if your arms have a tendency to slack off!), then jump your legs back to your starting point under your hips circle your arms to finish by your sides. For a low impact version, stay low with slightly bent knees and extend one leg out to the side at a time while bringing your arms above your head – walk it rather than jumping. Do 20 reps.
Swinging squat
Standing with your feet wider than hips, toes turned out, squat low and bend forward, hanging your hands between your legs but keeping your feet flat on the floor. Press firmly through your feet, focusing your weight on your heels and swing your arms up above your head as you straighten your legs. Ensure that as you come up, you’re driving the movement with your legs and squeezing your butt, rather than using your back to ‘crane’ yourself up.
To make this more difficult, hold a weight in your hands such as a 2kg dumbell or a full water bottle. Do 20 reps.
Opposite foot kick
Step back and drop down towards the ground to perform a lunge, then kick the same foot forward and reach your opposite hand towards the foot. Be careful of your balance – don’t drop down into your lunge until your body has the correct position, with toes/ankles/knees/hips all facing straight forward. For an easier option, just take your foot back to touch the ground (no drop down; similar to the movement you did in your repeaters) and bring it through to touch your opposite hand to opposite knee. Do 20 of these then switch sides.
Image / FreeDigitalPhotos.net – Serge Bertasius