Gym memberships are not cheap, and not everyone who is overweight is comfortable working out in a gym environment. You can save money and time by staying home. Although not spending money to purchase useful equipment such as a rebounder, cardio machine or exercise DVDs is somewhat limiting, there are still free options you can do at home to burn calories and lose weight. Avoid light-intensity activities, such as walking slowly, as this is unlikely to burn enough calories to cause weight loss.
Moderate-Intensity Exercises
Walking, marching in place, dancing, housework and aerobics are all examples of exercises you can do for free that burn calories. These are also examples of moderate-level exercises. Moderate exercise causes heart rate and breathing rate to speed up, but it does not increase the breathing rate to the point where a conversation cannot be held.
Exercise Guidelines for Moderate Intensity
Long exercise sessions are not necessarily more effective than mini-workouts. Three short workouts of 10 minutes burns just as many calories as one 30-minute session and may be easier for beginners. Perform a total of 150 to 300 minutes of moderate activity each week for health benefits, as recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Work up to 300 minutes of exercise if you wish to lose weight.
Vigorous-Intensity Exercises
Vigorous-intensity exercises cause your breathing rate to elevate enough that you cannot carry on a conversation, but you should be able to say a few words. These exercises burn more calories and may result in weight loss more quickly than moderate-intensity exercises. Most of these exercises, though, are high-impact, which may not be suitable for people with joint problems. An exception to this is swimming laps, which you can do at home if you have a pool. Other vigorous level exercises include jumping jacks, squats jumps and shadow boxing, which is bouncing around and throwing punches and kicks like a boxer at a fast tempo without rest.
Exercise Guidelines for Vigorous Intensity
Because vigorous-intensity exercise is more difficult, less overall time is recommended. One minute of vigorous-intensity exercise is as tough on your body as two minutes of moderate-intensity exercise. This means that you can cut workout times in half. This may sound tempting, but vigorous and high-impact exercise may be risky for people who do not have a high level of fitness. Discuss limitations with your doctor.
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