10 Best Cardio Workouts for Home Or Gym

Most guys do cardio exercises to lose weight and gain muscle. There is nothing wrong with this workout routine.

The best cardio workout for burning fat and spiking your heart rate depends on your desired lean body type.

If you want a distance runner's body, you should train like a distance runner by doing lots of miles at relatively slower paces. If you want a sprinter's body, you should train like a sprinter by doing short, high-intensity workouts.

Intensity is important for burning calories. That's why interval workouts are a good choice for people who want to lose weight while still gaining muscle.

Here are some types of cardio that will help you lose weight quickly and see results sooner. You don't need to worry if you're not a runner. There are many different forms of high intensity cardio that will get your heart pumping, such as mountain climbers, squat jump, and jumping jacks.

1. Sprinting

You can burn a lot of calories by doing sprints outside, on a treadmill, or even up stairs or bleachers. You don't need any equipment to do these workouts and you can do them just about anywhere.

Adams says that sprinting is a great way to lose weight because it burns a lot of calories. Running at a steady pace burns calories, but if you want to lose weight, you need to run faster and with more intensity.

Sprinting is really good for your muscles because it works all of them. This is according to Ryan.

The best way to do it:

If you’re outside on a track, try sprinting a lap and then jog a lap.
Keep repeating this for as long as you can.
If you’re on a treadmill, do an all-out sprint for 20-30 seconds, then slow the belt down and jog for a minute or so before repeating.
At a stadium or flights of stairs? Run up to the top as fast as you can, then jog or walk down.
It’s never a good idea to run down stairs or bleachers, so use the downward portion for your active rest periods. Really lift those knees high to get your glutes some great action and build sprinter power in no time.

2. High-intensity Interval Training

HIIT is a great way to get a well-rounded workout while also burning a lot of fat and calories.

HIIT workouts burn a lot of calories, from 500 per hour to 1500-plus per hour for a 180-lb man. HIIT workouts are great because they are intense and involve a variety of exercises and reps.

You can improve your fat-burning routine by combining body-weight movements with weighted movements and traditional cardio elements.

The best way to do it:

Look for Tabata, HIIT, high-impact aerobic, and vigorous interval classes using weights at your local gym.
No gym or class? Check out these 10 HIIT workouts to get shredded.
Be sure to keep rest periods to a minimum to really maximize your efforts.

3. Rowing

When you look at the physiques of collegiate rowers, you might feel envious of their athleticism and well-defined V-shaped torsos.

Rowing is a good way to exercise both the upper and lower body while causing little stress on the joints and ligaments. It is also a good way to exercise the muscles in the back.

A man who weighs 180 pounds can burn 800 calories in an hour by rowing at a moderate pace. If he increases the intensity with short sprints, he can burn more than 1,000 calories in an hour.

The best way to do it:

Keep your chest up and use your entire body when rowing.
But don’t let your arms do all the work—try using your legs to get the motion going.
Set a clock for 20 minutes, row 250 meters as fast as possible, rest for one minute and then repeat for the entire 20 minutes.

4. Swimming

Swimming is an excellent workout for your entire body, and it starts as soon as you begin treading water.

Essentially, when you are swimming you are fighting gravity and your muscles have to work very hard to keep you afloat without a break. Boudro says that in just one minute of fast swimming you can burn 14 calories.

Adams stresses the importance of variety in your workout routine, saying that different strokes burn different amounts of calories – so make sure to mix it up!

The best way to do it:

An easy way to burn calories in the water is to simply tread water.
You can do a few laps, then have a water-treading interval, then repeat.
If you’re able to swim at a high level, then swim as fast as you can for as long as possible.
If you aren’t such a strong swimmer, then do swimming intervals: Swim as fast as you can down the length of the pool and back, then swim slower for the same distance.
Alternate these intervals for the duration of your workout.

5. Cycling

Most people aren't waiting in line to use stationary bikes at most gyms because they're not as effective as other workout machines.

If you want to burn a lot of calories, you have to go all out–no texting or checking Facebook on your phone while you pedal. A 180-pound man can burn up to 1150 calories per hour during a vigorous indoor cycling class, whereas a more moderate class will only burn around 675 calories per hour.

The best way to do it:

Doing intervals on a stationary bike is a great way to maximize your calorie burn in minimum time.
Keep the intensity really high on the intervals for a couple of minutes, then slow down for a minute or so, continually repeating these intervals for as long as you can.

6. Kettlebells

A kettlebell workout may not be only a cardio exercise, but it can help you burn a lot of calories.

Kettlebell workouts are the best of both worlds because they include strength training and cardio, Adams says. A recent study on the calorie-burning effects of kettlebell workouts showed that they burn around 20 calories per minute, which takes into account both the aerobic and anaerobic calories burned. Not many cardio exercises build muscle, but kettlebells are one of the exceptions. You can expect to burn 400-600 calories in just 30 minutes, Adams says.

The best way to do it:

If you can do a particular movement for 40-50 reps, chances are your kettlebell isn’t heavy enough. Don’t go too light, and don’t go too heavy either.
Some of the best ways to do a kettlebell workout to maximize calorie burning is to do a movement for 30-40 seconds, rest for 20-30 seconds, then repeat the movement or cycle through several movements.
Set your timer for 30 minutes and see how many rounds you can get.

7. Jumping Rope

There is a good reason why jump ropes are commonly used in a boxer's training program. Jumping ropes is a cheap and easy way to increase foot speed and burn a lot of calories. If you think about your favorite boxers, wrestlers, and fighters, you will notice that they all jump rope.

Jumping rope can help improve your footwork, shoulder strength, and coordination, and can also help you burn as many as 500 calories in just 30 minutes, according to Ben Boudro, C.S.C.S., owner of Xceleration Fitness in Auburn Hills, MI.

The best way to do it:

While very few people can jump rope for 30 minutes straight, it’s best to do intervals of fast and slow jumps to keep you going.
Can’t do that very well? Jump as fast as you can for one minute, then rest for 20-30 seconds. Repeat until you’re done.
If you’re a frequent traveler, throw a jump rope in your suitcase for a great workout without ever having to leave the hotel room.

8. Stair Climber

An exercise device called a stair climber is a popular way to burn fat and calories, but only about 500-600 calories for a 180-lb. man at a moderate pace.

Climbing stairs requires more leg muscles than just walking, which strengthens your legs in a functional way, says Adams.

If you have bad knees, using a stair climber can put a lot of weight and pressure on your joints, which can be difficult.

The best way to do it:

“Try incorporating 90% or more effort on the stair climber for 30 seconds with a one- to two-minute ‘active recovery,’ like a farmer carrying medium-weight kettlebells or dumbbells to incorporate upper body and core strength,” says Ryan.
Doing 10-15 rounds of this workout will spice up your workout way above the normal range of calories burned.

9. Running (Moderate Pace)

If you want to build muscle, you need to run at a faster pace.

Ryan says that a 180-pound man can burn 940 calories in an hour while running an 8.5-minute-per-mile pace—or 7 mph on the treadmill for an hour. However, Ryan notes that this pace is not sustainable and not practical to do every couple of weeks.

The cons:

If you run too fast, you could break down muscle and hurt yourself.