Cardio for me is never a fun experience, but especially not during the cold wintery months. I am not a great runner so the extra “chill factor” does not do me any favors.
I have also read some articles suggesting that running in cold does more harm than good for your respiratory system. That evidence paired with my aversion to running is enough for me to want to find alternate cardio workouts.
Compound weight lifting faster is one such way of getting your cardio in. I do so by opting for a lighter weight, and sometimes even opting for dumbbells instead of barbells, and doing my sets faster and with more reps. So if I usually do three sets of 10, for my cardio workout I may do one or two sets of 25 or 50. This is also the prime time to superset your lifts with an ab circuit to achieve maximum results with your elevated heart rate.
The trick here is to make absolutely sure you are comfortable with the weight you are lifting so as to not injure yourself. You can even do just body weight and amp up your reps.
Another great cardio option is swimming laps. In a 25 meter pool 60 laps is one mile and in a 50 meter is 30 laps is one mile. Additionally, swimming works each muscle of the body, all the while being much lower impact on joints than running.
Hot yoga is another good option for cardio (you can read more about it on my post on the different types of hot yoga). Hot yoga does amazing things for flexibility, amps up your metabolism, it detoxes your body, all while getting a great cardio workout.
Lastly, there are several other indoor options for cardio like jump rope, elliptical, stair master, and burpees. Either way there are several alternatives to freezing your butt and lungs while running outside.
Written by: Carmyn Isabella