Affiliate Disclaimer
Some links in this article are affiliate links. We may earn a small commission if you make a purchase through these links, at no extra cost to you. We only recommend products we find useful to our readers
Cardio workouts are often thought of the deal breaker which is an all rounder in keeping you in the best possible shape. And, that, to an extent is true as well. If you are trying to lose weight or just keep yourself in shape, try out some of the cardio workouts for women.
Owing to the fact that cardio workouts tend to impact the whole body, it is quite easy to get a better end result with just one type of exercise sorted out. The only thing to consider is the factor that you need time to get your body used to such exercises.
By the end of this article, you will have a better idea about the best cardio exercise for women that can help shape your body and even tone down the unnecessary deposition of fat.
List Of Cardio Exercises For Women
Now that we have arrived around here, let us walk ourselves through some of the best cardio exercises that you can switch to if you are tired of yoga and the weight training.
The only line of caution is to ensure that you never overstrain yourself while doing this. What this does is put a strain on the muscles unnecessarily and the same has been found to be harmful to the body.
1-Skaters
The very first in the list of cardio workouts for women has to be skaters. It is more like a warm up exercise and has been found to have amazing impacts in toning down the muscles.
How to do?
- Stand straight in the middle with your arms loosely by your side
- Start by putting your left leg behind your right and simultaneously bend your knee to form a perpendicular
- Stretch out your right arm to your side simultaneously swinging in your left arm across the right leg
- Jump across a few feet to the side by switching the position of the legs
How many times?
- 6-8 sets and with 8 reps
Benefits
- It is an easy exercise one can do in the comfort of their home
- Contributes to high intensity interval training for better toning of the body
- Woks your lower body as well as core
2- Jumping Jacks
Jumping jacks are one of the most common yet effective forms of women cardio workout that anyone can do anywhere because they are that easy to do.
How to do?
- Stand erect with your arms by the side of your torso
- Simultaneously, jump and spread your legs a few feet apart while stretching and joining your hands over your head
- Jump again and return back to the initial position
How many times?
- 8-10 sets of 5-6 reps
Benefits
- Helps boost heart function
- Promotes weight loss
- Improves the coordination and focus
- Amazing stress buster
- Improves the flexibility and warms up the body for further exercise
3-Walking
Walking is considered as a low impact workout which ensures that it is suitable for women of any age to do without having to worry a lot about the consequences.
But, the only thing to keep in mind is the fact that there is a difference in a cardio workout walking and a simple stroll in the evening. If you want to lose weight successfully and lead a healthier lifestyle, it is quite important that you indulge in a brisk, moderately fast paced walking.
Your aim is to get your heart rate up which would in turn help in burning off those unnecessary calories altogether.
How many times?
- A 30-45 minutes of walking every day or 5 times a week is good enough
Benefits
- Helps in weight loss
- Prevents risks of some chronic diseases like heart disease, diabetes, hypertension
- Helps in better blood circulation
- Promotes muscle and bone health
- Improves balance as well
4-Intermittent Sprints
Much like intermittent fasting, even intermittent sprints provide with amazing results in providing you with a fitter well being. If you are wondering how and why the same is possible, it is because of the step by step graduation of the exercise which makes it possible altogether.
How to do?
- Start by adjusting your treadmill to a 3-degree incline
- Once done, start your running speed at 6 mph and run for 1 minute straight
- Following 1 minute, increase the speed to 9-10 mph and run for 3 minutes
- After 3 minutes, again increase the speed up to 14-15 mph and keep sprinting for 30 seconds
- Reduce the speed down to 10 mph again and run for 3 minutes
- Once the 3 minutes are over, sprint for an additional 30 seconds
How many times?
- Repeat this entire process of sprinting for 30 minutes
Benefits
- Helps tone the thighs and the lower part of the body
- Helps burn excess calories
- Easy to do and a good exercise for weight loss
5-Rolling back exercise
Rolling back exercise is less of a cardio exercise for women and rather a form of pilate which provides with amazing results in improving the flexibility of the body. It does include a vigorous routine, so if you have issues with your lower back, knees, it is always best suggested to avoid doing that.
How to do?
- Start by lying on your back on a yoga mat ensuring that your legs are extended out and your arms are by your side
- Fold your knees and inhale deeply and form a 90-degree angle with your knees and the ground
- Exhaling deeply, roll your spine and shift your hip raising it slightly
- Again, lift your legs vertically straight and inhale during the process
- Exhale gradually and then move your legs back towards your head until they touch the ground
- Inhale deeply again and then return your legs back to the vertical position
- Exhaling, bend your knees and return to the initial position gradually without rushing through the process
How many times
- 3-4 sets of 5 reps
Benefits
- Helps in making the spine more flexible
- Lengthens the spine
- Helps improve the flexibility of the lower back muscles
- Improves balance
6-Jumping rope
Jumping rope is yet another one of the effective cardio workouts for women that work magic in helping working out your entire body. It is believed to help burn over 220 calories in just less than 20 minutes. The best thing of this exercise is the fact that it can be done in the comfort of one’s own home, all you need is the jumping rope and that is more than enough.
How to do?
- Hold two ends of the jumping rope on either side of your body and keep the looped rope in front of you
- Simultaneously while you are jumping, turn the rope with handles through under your feet bringing it from above your head
- Do this consistently at a stretch for effective results
How many times?
- Do 100 jumps at a stretch and take a break of a few minutes and do again
Benefits
- Helps in bringing flexibility to the entire body
- Tones down the thighs and the arms
- Boosts the weight loss
- Improves blood circulation and heart rate
7-High intensity interval training
Just like the name of the exercise suggests, high-intensity interval training involves a high intensity cardio workouts for women followed by a break and then back to the same. This is quite effective in helping bring in better fitness to one’s overall fitness and well being.
How to do?
- There are several exercises that fall under high-intensity interval training like burpees, jumping lunges, high knees and even step jumps
- These exercises are quite effective in helping regain the overall health and fitness, the only thing you need to ensure is that you are doing every single exercise correctly
- For each of the exercises, do 10 reps of each of them and then follow it up with a 10-second break
- Don’t prolong the break because that is what is most crucial
How many times?
- Depending on how many exercises you are picking to do. Ensure to do 10 reps of each of them with 10-second break in between
Benefits
- Helps in toning the muscles around the abs and the legs and arms
- Helps in weight loss
- Gets rid of the unnecessary deposition of fats in the body
- Makes the body more proactive
8-Lateral Toe Taps
Lateral toe taps is mainly targeted for helping boost the efficiency of the legs and tone down the muscles around the thigh region. It is also quite easy to do which further makes it one of the best cardio workouts for females to indulge in.
How to do?
- Stand erect keeping a foot or so the distance between your feet
- Place a kettleball or even a cone in the middle of your feet
- Start with the right foot, jumping slightly to touch the target tapping it with your toe while keeping the weight on your left leg
- Don’t stop and keep doing this with alternate foot
- Keep tapping the target with alternate foot
How many times?
- Do this continuously for 30-50 taps at one go
Benefits
- Helps tone the thigh muscles
- Improves the flexibility in the leg muscles
- Improves balance
- Promotes weight loss
9-Jogging in place
Jogging in place has been found to help burn around 200 calories in just 20 minutes. Given that it impacts the entire body, the results are quite amazing. If you have been looking for equipment-free cardio exercise for women, this is one of them.
How to do?
- Start by standing erect on the ground, keeping your spine straight
- Bring your palms in front of your chest and hold them together there
- Following that, start jogging in the place, starting the intensity with slow and then gradually increasing the speed
- Do this continuously for 20 minutes. If not possible, do for 10 minutes, take a minute break and do another 10 minutes
How many times?
- Do the exercise for 20 minutes in total for each day
Benefits
- Helps lose weight
- Promotes better toning of the body muscles
- Burns calories and excess accumulated fats in the body
10-Resistance Band Frog Jumps
Yet another one of the cardio workouts for women is the band frog jumps using resistance band. It has been found to help in bringing in better flexibility in the back muscles and even promote weight loss effectively.
How to do?
- Start by looping through a resistance band through your legs, placing them on the middle of the thighs or beneath your knees, whatever is more comfortable for you
- Keep your feet a little further apart more than the hip-width apart, ensuring that it is slightly turned out
- Start by squatting down while simultaneously placing your palms in between your legs, ensuring that you keep your chest and chin upright
- Jump and spring back up throwing your arms in the air to ensure that you have your body completely extended
- Again from that position, squat back down like how a frog would do and repeat the cycle in a loop
How many times?
- 8 -10 reps ideally
Benefits
- Helps activate the muscles around your hip regions
- Improves the mobility in the hips, knees and the ankles as well
11-Mountain Climbers
Mountain climbers are considered as one of the best cardio workout for women mainly because it more or less engages the whole body in the workout. You are assured to have a better physique and tone down the muscles involved.
How to do?
- Start by lying down in the plank position
- Place your hands a little wider than your shoulders
- Next, draw one knee in towards your chest without lifting your hips up
- You will have the feeling that your legs are skimming the floor and that is okay
- But, if you want better results, it is best suggested to keep your hip in place and not lift it
- Bring alternate knee up to the chest in a constant rhythm
- Do this consistently for some time
How many times?
- 8-10 reps
Benefits
- Tones and boosts the fitness of the entire body
- Strengthens the core muscles
- Boosts the function and flexibility of the hip joint
- Helps lose weight too
12-Swimming
If you are not aware of how to swim, try and learn it because the results are amazing for the body. It boosts your cardiovascular functions and has also been found to have beneficial impacts in helping bring better flexibility to the body which is definitely an added bonus.
If possible, get properly trained to learn the varying types of swimming strokes that will come in handy for better workout for your overall health.
How many times?
- If you do swimming on a daily basis, try and swim for 30 minutes to an hour everyday
Benefits
- Strengthens the core
- Improves the overall flexibility of the body
- Helps boost the metabolism of the body
- Promotes weight loss
13-Lateral shuffle taps
Yet another type of the population cardio workouts for women includes the lateral shuffle taps. It is quite easy to master and is categorised under the high intensity interval workout and all for the right reasons.
How to do?
- Stand with an athletic stance but keeping your body loose and relaxed
- Keep the feet wider that the hip-width apart
- Start by shuffling along a few steps to your right and then bowing down to touch the ground
- Return back to the initial position and do the same thing on the left side
- Repeat this for multiple times without any break in between
- Make sure that you don’t overstrain yourself and do it as much as you can
How many times?
- 10 reps including 4-5 sets
Benefits
- Helps in keeping the lower body active and in action for better flexibility and efficiency
- Promotes weight loss
- Stretches the lower back region
- Boosts the reaction time in the body
14-Squat Jumps
Squats are good for your body and fitness but if you are on the lookout for the cardio exercise for women that help in engaging your entire body, squat jumps are your answer to that.
Just ensure that you take the time out to know the basic mechanics of how a squat works because that is important.
How to do?
- Start with the squatting position
- Once there, jump as high as you can and return back to the squat position again
- Do this at a stretch without stopping till you have the stamina for it
How many times?
- 10 reps depending on how well you do it
Benefits
- Helps in improving the flexibility of the muscles and bones in the body
- Stretches the back and lower back
- Strengthens and stabilizes the core
15-Cycling
Cycling exercises are also one of the best cardio workouts for women that one can most definitely indulge in. There are several variants to it but it is best suggested to opt for the stationary cycles available in the gym for the best results.
This is one of the best cardiac workouts for women who want to focus their workout for the lower half of the body.
Owing to the fact that the cycling predominantly works the muscles around the lower half of the body, especially the thigh muscles, they have been found to have amazing benefits in keeping your thighs and cuffs lean and flexible and strong.
If possible, do it on a regular basis for better results all the more.
Cardio workouts for women are quite effective in toning and shaping their figure and boosting one’s overall fitness and well being. If you have been struggling along to find good exercises to follow through, we definitely do hope that these come in handy. Make sure to follow through the steps, look out for any precaution and then proceed with doing these exercises for better health.
