Workout of the week: 10-min no-equipment cardio workout

ALL LEVELS / no-equipment cardio workout / 10 minutes

Equipment: Gym mat

People have a love-hate relationship with cardio workouts. The good news is: you might not love it, but cardio certainly loves you back. After all, it contributes to a healthy heart and lungs. It helps manage and reduce weight, enhances the immune system and even improves sleep quality. What’s not to love?

After considering this, you really should do this no-equipment cardio workout. It has 5 exercises to perform for 50 seconds, with 10 seconds to rest in between. You’ll do this for 2 rounds making this session exactly 10 minutes long.

Squat jump
Mountain climbers
Jumping jacks
Lunge jump
Scissor kicks

Let’s go and get that heart rate up!

WORKOUT SETUP

5 exercises
50 seconds on, 10 seconds off
2 rounds
No rest between rounds
10 minutes total
Equipment: Gym mat

WORKING OUT FROM HOME? NO PROBLEM.

EVO nurtures natural movement and our workouts, such as this one, usually require little to no equipment and minimal training space, making it easy to perform them everywhere.

WORKOUT EXERCISE LIST

2 rounds

1 – SQUAT JUMP

50 sec on, 10 sec off

Find some space and stand with feet hip-width apart. Engage the core and set the shoulders slightly, ready for movement.
Quickly bend the knees and hips (to about a ¼ squat position) as you move the arms backwards. Keep the knees over the toes throughout this part.
As soon as you hit the lowest spot, rapidly extend the hips and drive the arms up to straighten the body and perform a small jump.
Keep the core tight and remain balanced as you land, allowing the knees and hips to bend slightly to absorb the force.
Reset the body and repeat.

2 – MOUNTAIN CLIMBERS

50 sec on, 10 sec off

Start with your hands on the floor at shoulder-width, with arms extended. The hands must be aligned with your chest line.
Try to maintain your trunk straight while you pull your knee to the projected chest line on the floor.
Alternate pulling your knees to the projected chest line.
Make sure you’re standing on your hands with a tight core.

3 – JUMPING JACKS

50 sec on, 10 sec off

Start in a standing position with your arms by your sides. Engage the core slightly and set the shoulders, ready for movement.
Keeping arms and legs straight (but not locked out) simultaneously jump the legs out to the sides and raise the arms to shoulder height. Stabilise the hips, core and shoulder girdle.
Return to start and continue at a controlled rhythmic pace.

4 – LUNGE JUMPS

50 sec on, 10 sec off

Stand with feet hip-width apart, core engaged, and shoulders set
Jump straight up and split the legs into a lunge, allowing the back knee to drop close to the floor. Keep the core engaged and the torso upright. Use the arms in opposition to the legs to counterbalance the movement (if necessary).
As soon as you hit the lowest point, explosively jump upwards and split the legs on the other side. Maintain your balance and position throughout the movement.

5 – SCISSOR KICKS

50 sec on, 10 sec off

Lie on your back with your arms overhead. Engage the core and maintain a slight posterior pelvic tilt (dish shape).
Raise the legs, arms and head slightly off the floor – this is your start position.
Keeping the arms and legs straight throughout, begin the movement by quickly throwing the arms to touch the opposite leg. Return under control and switch sides.
Continue for 50 seconds.