Finding time to perform the recommended amount of exercise each week can be overwhelming. The current recommendations for healthy adults, according to the American College of Sports Medicine, are at least 30 minutes of moderately intense cardio five days a week, or 20 minutes a day of vigorously intense cardio three days a week plus two days a week of strength-training. Cardio circuit training combines vigorously intense cardio exercises and strength-training exercises in one workout, allowing you to workout only two or three times a week.
Circuit Training
Circuit training works when you perform a series of exercises one after the other, with little or no rest between exercises. Circuit training can be used for total-body workouts, upper body, lower body or specific muscle groups. After completing each exercise in your circuit, rest one to two minutes before repeating the circuit one to three more times. Circuit-training is an effective option for improving muscular strength and burning calories in a short amount of time.
Improving Aerobic Endurance
Adding short vigorous-intensity cardio exercise bursts, or interval training, into your circuit can help increase the intensity to improve aerobic endurance and burn more calories in one session. Repeated, fast-paced, brief exercise bouts with a short rest interval between bouts, achieves the same aerobic benefits as long, high-intensity, continuous exercise, according Jack H. Wilmore and David L. Costill, authors of Physiology of Sport and Exercise. Essentially, perform one or two strength-training exercises in place of a cardio rest interval.
Cardio Intervals
Cardio intervals can be performed in a variety of ways. If you have access to cardio machines, you can perform sprints on a treadmill or walk at a steep incline. Use a stationary bike, elliptical or stair-stepper machine for a low-impact option. Intervals can also be performed without equipment by doing exercises such as jumping jacks, jumping rope, stair running, burpees or outdoor sprints. Cardio intervals can last 30 to 120 seconds depending on your fitness level.
Sample Cardio Circuit Workout
Complete this total body cardio circuit workout two to four times a week on non-consecutive days for one to four circuits depending on your fitness level. Perform each high-intensity cardio interval for 30 to 60 seconds and each strength exercise for 10 to 12 reps. Cardio intervals can be performed on the same machine the entire time or by alternating machines. Warm up for five minutes at a moderate intensity before beginning your first interval. Exercise order could look like this: cardio interval, dumbbell squats, lat pull down, cardio interval, dumbbell chest press, leg curl, cardio interval, military press, triceps kickbacks, cardio interval, barbell curls, reverse crunches. Rest one to two minutes before repeating.
References
- American College of Sports Medicine: Physcial Activity Guidelines
- "Physiology of Sport and Exercise"; Jack H. Wilmore et al.; 2004
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