Losing weight requires you to burn more calories than you consume. To make the process go faster, combine exercise with a low-calorie diet to create a one or two pound per week weight loss. While this may not be as speedy as you desire, this rate helps to increase the chances that you will stick with the program and keep the weight off, reports the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. You do not have to belong to a gym to incorporate high-intensity exercise that burn a lot of calories.
Boot Camp
Boot camp classes combine classic calisthenics, explosive plyometrics, and strength training moves to give you a total-body workout and calorie scorcher in a 45- to 60-minute session. You can create your own boot camp at home using minimal equipment---just a coffee table, a set of eight to 10 lb. dumbbells and a soft mat-like surface. Warm up for five minutes with a march or jog in place. Alternatively, if you have a staircase, run up and down it at an easy pace a few times for a warm up. Repeat each segment three times and then move on to the next series of exercises. Perform 20 squats, 20 push-ups and 20 jumping jacks. Move on to 20 biceps curls, 20 walking lunges and 20 high knees. Do 20 triceps dips off your table, 20 crunches and 20 burpees. Cool down with a five minute easy-paced walk and stretch to complete a total of about 45-minutes and burn about 415 calories for a 150-lb. person. This, without any other exercise or dietary changes, could lead to almost a half pound weight loss per week.
Cardio Circuit
If you have limited space, consider a cardio circuit routine that requires only about 10 square feet of space. Do these exercises in your garage, your basement or in the living room while watching television. The intensity of this circuit matches a high impact aerobics routine, without the choreography, and burns about 475 calories in an hour for that same 150 lb. person. After a five minute warm-up consisting of a very light jog in place and step touches, perform a minute of each of the following exercises: football runs, scissor jumps, tuck jumps, front kicks, knee lifts, torso twists, fast side-to-side squats, shadow boxing, jumping jacks and side shuffles. Repeat five times and then cool down with a light march.
Jump Rope
Jumping rope requires little skill and equipment. Even without a rope, you can mime the movement to effectively burn calories. In just 30 minutes, a 150 lb. person burns over 300 calories. A jump rope is portable, so you can take it with you when you travel or carry it to different rooms of the house. If you are new to fitness and maintaining intensity for 20 minutes or more is challenging, break up your jump roping sessions into shorter segments. Go for 10 minutes in the morning, at lunch and in the afternoon. Gradually lengthen the session times to burn more calories and lose weight even faster.
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