Winter Indoor Cardio HIIT Workout

Winter Indoor Cardio HIIT Workout

Winter is not conducive to doing outdoor cardio and many of us dont have room for expensive cardio machines. Here are excellent cheap indoor cardio options!  If you have the space and the money, you can consider buying some excellent stationary cardio equipment – I dont though.

  1. Jumping rope!  If you dont have high enough ceilings then consider using an imaginary jumprope or those rope-less electronic jumprope handles.
  2. Running in place.  Few people can keep up enough intensity to get an effective workout this way because its way too easy to slack off without realizing it.  The only way this works for indoor cardio is if you have a heart rate strap and set an audible alarm that will go off if your heart rate drops below 70% of your max heart rate.  I like the Polar H7 bluetooth heartrate monitor strap as it works in conjunction with many free iPhone fitness apps.
  3. Indoor biking.  If you already have a bike, the cheapest and best way to get an indoor stationary bike is to buy a pneumatic bike trainer like the Kurt Kinetic Trainer that I have.  It is well constructed and folds up in 2 seconds to slide under a bed or in a closet.  To use it you just attach it to the rear wheel of your bike and bike away.  The resistance it provides is proportional to the speed so it provides an effective workout for the pro cyclist as well as for Grandma – just change the gear on your bike to make it easier or harder!
  4. Kettlebell HIIT workout!  Before I can tell you about that, I need to show you how to do the kettlebell swing and the kettlebell burpee pushup.

 The Kettlebell Swing

Kettlebell-Swing-Down-Position Kettlebell-Swing-Up-Position

When you go down, make sure your knees point in the same direction that your toes are pointed!  Swing down between your legs while keeping the back in the neutral position.  Avoid the strong temptation to round the back to get more range of motion.   Swing the kettlebell up.  As the kettlebell falls, resist its fall to slow it down – this works the core hard.

No-Back-Rounding

Do NOT let your back round! Keep the lower back in the neutral position.

The Kettlebell Burpee Pushup

Kettlebell-Burpee-Pushup-Start Kettlebell-Burpee-Pushup-Down Kettlebell-Burpee-Pushup-Jump-Back

Kettlebell-Burpee-Pushup-pushup Kettlebell-Burpee-Pushup-Down Kettlebell-Burpee-Pushup-Start

This photo progression tells most of the story!  The main issue is one of safety.  To do these you either need kettlebells or hexagonal dumbbells.  Using a round dumbbell is just asking for disaster.  Small kettlebells can be quite hazardous as well as they have a tendency to tip over, because of this I don’t recommend using kettlebells under 40 pounds.  If you need to use a lighter weight than 40 pounds then use the hexagonal dumbbell for a more stable pushup platform.

 

20 Minute HIIT Winter Cardio Workout (no kettlebell required)

 

  1. Choose a hexagonal dumbbell that lets you do 15-30 of dumbbell burpee pushups.
  2. Do as many dumbbell burpee pushups as you can
  3. rest 45 seconds
  4. repeat for 20 minutes

 

20 Minute HIIT Winter Cardio Workout

This is a superior workout because it works more bodyparts but it does require kettlebells

  1. Choose weights that let you do about 15 reps of each exercise
  2. Do 15 reps of kettlebells swings
  3. Do as many kettlebell burpee pushups as you can
  4. rest 45 seconds
  5. repeat for 20 minutes

Winter-Cardio-Kettlebell-Workout-TN-550