If your motivation dips the moment you walk into a crowded gym, outdoor workouts might be exactly what you need. Training outside isn’t just a change of scenery; it delivers potent physical, mental and emotional benefits that indoor workouts can’t replicate. Need convincing? This all-levels outdoor cardio workout is worth the experiment.
Why Working Out Outside Is A Great Idea
Get outside – to the park, your local school’s sports field, your back yard – and get in some Vitamin D at the same time: studies show those who work out outdoors get more D than others. And, vitamin D is crucial for proper immunity, bone function, muscle strength and even nerve function.
Doing your cardio outdoors does more than earn you kudos from Strava: it’s also shown to reduce stress and anxiety. Exposure to natural light, fresh air and green space helps lower cortisol (the stress hormone) and increases feel-good chemicals like serotonin and endorphins.
Outdoor workouts are also tougher on your body all-around. Since working out in the fresh air and uneven ground involves those natural obstacles, it recruits more stabilising muscles and increases energy expenditure –all without you consciously pushing harder.
READ MORE: This Total-Body Strength Workout Builds Lean Muscle
How To Do This Outdoor Cardio Workout
This workout combines cardio with no-equipment-required strength moves to build muscle while shredding fat. Plus, it only takes eight simple moves to score a killer workout. “Keep your core tight throughout this outdoor workout sequence – it’ll stabilise you and ensure you’re burning stubborn tummy fat,” says Timmes.
Repeat this outdoor workout circuit as many times as you can in half an hour, or do three sets of every move, with ten reps per set (excluding cardio, which you can do three rounds of).
Pro tip: if it’s getting hotter, schedule these sessions early in the morning (Hello, sunshine!) or in the afternoon, when you can watch the sun set.
READ MORE: No Gym Required: Workouts You Can Do Anywhere
Do-Anywhere Cardio Workout
- Time: 30 minutes
- Equipment: Empty strip of land, a bench
- Sets: Three of all OR as many as possible in 30 minutes
- Reps: 10 per strength move, 3 rounds of each cardio move
50m Sprints
- Stand tall at your starting point with feet hip-width apart. Drive off powerfully, pumping your arms and pushing through the balls of your feet as you sprint forward for 50 metres.
- Keep your chest lifted and your gaze forward. Slow down gradually at the end – don’t stop abruptly.
- Touch the floor and switch back quickly, sprinting back to the start.
- Continue for one minute.
Walking Lunges
- Stand tall with feet together. Step forward with your right foot and lower into a lunge until both knees are bent at about 90 degrees.
- Push through your front heel to bring your back foot forward into the next lunge.
- Continue alternating legs as you walk forward. Do ten steps per leg.
30-Second Plank
- Place your forearms on the ground with elbows under shoulders. Extend your legs back so your body forms a straight line from head to heels.
- Engage your core, squeeze your glutes and hold the position for 30 seconds while breathing steadily.
Scissor Leg Raises
- Lie on your back with legs extended and hands under your hips for support.
- Lift both legs a few centimetres off the ground.
- Alternate lifting one leg up while lowering the other, keeping both legs straight and your lower back pressed into the ground.
Lateral Shuttle Sprints
- Set two markers about 5–10 metres apart. Start at one marker in an athletic stance.
- Sprint sideways to the opposite marker, touch the ground, then immediately change direction and sprint back. Continue for one minute.
Triceps Dips
- Sit on the edge of a bench and place your hands beside your hips, fingers facing forward.
- Walk your feet out slightly and slide your hips off the bench.
- Bend your elbows to lower your body, then press through your palms to straighten your arms and return to the start. Do ten reps.
Side Step-Ups With Twist
- Stand sideways next to a bench with your right foot on top.
- Step up by pressing through your right heel.
- As you stand tall, drive your left knee up and rotate your torso to bring your right elbow toward your left knee.
- Step back down with control and lower into a squat.
- Return to start and repeat 10 times before switching sides.
Incline Push-Ups
- Place your hands on a bench slightly wider than shoulder-width.
- Walk your feet back so your body forms a straight line from head to heels.
- Bend your elbows to lower your chest toward the bench, then push back up to the start. Repeat for ten reps.
READ MORE: This At-Home Quick HIIT Workout Burns Cals All Day Long
Watch the moves here:
[embedded content]
Source: https://www.womenshealthsa.co.za/fitness/feed
