According to the Harvard Heart Letter, you can burn more than 400 calories, depending on how much you weigh, by using stationary exercise equipment at home. But purchasing a home treadmill or elliptical trainer can be prohibitively expensive. There are other types of exercise equipment—as well as methods of exercise not requiring equipment—that offer a way for meeting cardio exercise goals at home. The American Heart Association’s recommends 30 minutes of moderate cardio, five days a week or 20 minutes of vigorous cardio three days a week.
Stationary Rowing
Rowing machines occupy the low end of the home exercise equipment price range, easily available at for less than $200 if you can tolerate the relatively high noise level of a low-end rower. According to the Harvard Heart Letter, a 155-pound individual can burn anywhere from 260 to 316 calories in just half an hour with rowing. Stationary rowing also gives you a great leg, core and back workout.
Stationary Biking
Stationary exercise bikes are a natural choice if you like biking; the movement is natural and already familiar to most exercisers, tones your lower body and you can get a no-frills exercise bike for $200 or less. The Harvard Heart Letter lists biking as anywhere from 260 to 391 calories per half-hour for a 155-pound individual.
Jumping Rope
You can easily find a jump rope for less than $10 and they require little space for storage. Jumping rope weighs in at an impressive 372 calories for a half-hour of effort, and you might even find that you enjoy this blast-to-the-past style workout. Mix in boxing-style jump rope drills, such as spinning the rope twice under your feet each time you jump, to keep things interesting.
Calisthenics
Calisthenics--body weight fitness exercises such as jumping jacks, push-ups, squats, squat jumps and burpees--come in at about 300 calories for half an hour of vigorous exercise. Calisthenics are an ideal at-home cardio choice if you have the discipline to keep moving constantly. It’s the consistent, rhythmic contraction of your larger muscle groups--legs, back and chest--that qualify this as cardio exercise. Best of all, calisthenics are free—no equipment needed. You can even do them out in the yard on sunny days, if you like.
Chores
Yes, shoveling snow counts as a workout. According to the Harvard Heart Letter, you burn more than 200 calories in half an hour clearing the driveway. Mowing the lawn and chopping wood both offer nearly the same cardio benefit as snow shoveling, so next time you have to do chores around the house, be brisk about it and count it as workout time.
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