Indoor Workouts

by Heather Long | More from this Blogger

09 Jun 2007 12:01 PM

It's summer out there and let me tell you, it's here hot and sticky. The temperatures are soaring up into the 90s and the air is so thick, you could cut it with a knife. The last thing I want to do is go out and try to power walk in hot, sultry soup - so let's take a look at some indoor workouts we can do.

Walking is the Number 1 Choice

I read a study yesterday that stated walking is the number 1 choice, by far, for most individuals. This is hardly surprising. On another website, a poll that had more than 200,000 respondents found that 53% said walking was their preferred exercise of choice. They can do so much with it. And if you walk at home, either outdoors or on a treadmill, you have total control of your fitness regimen.

The great thing about walking is you can do it at home and as much as I endorse treadmills, you can walk in place to get your blood pumping and your body moving. The point of walking is that it is a cardio exercise and it's designed to get your body in motion.

So let's get started on today's indoor workout. You want to go slow, ideally to warm your body up. So do a light march in place. Be sure to keep your posture correct with your back straight and control your breathing. You want to get comfortable in the motion, so spend the warm up time doing this.

As you get more comfortable, pick up the pace. March with your legs going a little higher, maintaining your posture. Now pump your arms, because when you engage your arms, you will increase your heart rate and the number of calories you are burning. You can push your arms up over your head, you can take them down and rotate them as well.

About 15 minutes of this type of activity will cover about a mile. So take a moment, catch a few deep breaths and do some deep stretches. You can do another 15 minutes at this pace and at the end of the 30 minutes of walking, you'll have burned about 250 to 300 calories. Your body will also continue to burn extra calories over the next couple of hours after you've finished your workout.

Planning an indoor walk today?

Related Articles:

The Four Kinds of Walking

My Little Inspiration: Our Local 1-Mile Walk

Planning Ahead - Want to Walk a Mile?

Walking Fitness: Your Form

Learn more about Heather Long

Heather Long is 35 years old and currently lives in Wylie, Texas. She has been a freelance writer for six years. Her husband and she met while working together at America Online over ten years ago.

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