Top 10 Vigorous Exercises To Burn Calories Fast August 3, 2016

Vigorous exercises are extreme workouts that speed up your heart rate and end up leaving you breathless. As the term suggests, these exercises are quite strenuous and require a lot of stamina and physical effort. Though these may seem quite a task to achieve, especially for those who are not really into exercising, getting in the habit of including these vigorous exercises in your daily routine can be quite beneficial, as they help burn more calories than regular exercises, and are a great way to stay fit and in shape.

10 Best Vigorous Exercises

1. Running and jogging:

Running and jogging

Image: Getty

Besides burning a lot of calories, running helps build up your cardiovascular capacity as well as increasing the endurance level of your muscles. Running and jogging are the two forms of a vigorous aerobic exercise that produce energy by combining glucose or fat present in your body with oxygen.

2. Walking Uphill: 

Walking Uphill

Image: Getty

If your objective is to shape those legs and tone those calf muscles, you need to add some severity to your exercise routine. One of the best ways to shape up your legs is by walking. While walking on a regular surface is in itself a good exercise, walking uphill gives greater benefits and works more on your calf and thigh muscles, toning them up and giving you stronger and fitter legs.

[Read:Tennis Elbow Exercises]

3. Cycling:


Image: Getty

This form of exercise can be enjoyed by people of any age group and in any setting or surrounding. The best part about this exercise is that you can choose to do it in the fresh outdoor air, inside your regular gym, or even in the comfort of your home. Cycling exerts little pressure on the joints but tones up your limbs, muscles and back.

4. Plyometric exercise:

 Plyometric exercise

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Also known as jump training, plyometric exercise involves relaxing and contracting the muscles in a fast sequence that will help you increase your muscle strength. This exercise is also a great way to improve the functioning of your nervous system.

5. Martial arts:

Martial arts isn’t just a form of exercise, it’s a form of lifestyle that gives you more benefits than just physical fitness. Practicing martial arts inculcates a sense of discipline and humbleness in your life apart from improving cardiovascular health and toning up the muscles. And not to forget the fact that it’s a great self-defense mechanism as well.

6. Zumba:

Image: Getty

Zumba, the modern fitness regime which involves fast dancing on music, is probably the most fun to do exercise in recent times. This is particularly great for those who are not keen to hit the gym and are looking to stay in shape while still getting involved in some kind of a workout. Practicing zumba burns lots of calories and tones up your body without making you feel too tired.

7. Sports:


By Sasho Trajkovski [CC-BY-SA-2.0], via Wikimedia Commons

Sports that involve you to run a lot, like tennis, basketball, hockey, soccer etc. are great for building up stamina. Such sports also help increase your body’s balance and coordination. One hour of playing these games can help you burn up to 700 calories.

8. Swimming fast:

Swimming fast

Image: Getty

Swimming is the only form of exercise that involves a full body workout. When you swim fast, your heart works faster than normal to generate energy. This in turn enhances your cardiovascular system. Swimming involves movement from all major parts of your body, from your neck muscles to arms, from your buttocks till your legs and feet.

[Read:Thigh Exercises For Strong Legs]

9. Skipping or climbing stairs:

Skipping or climbing stairs

Image: Shutterstock

Both these exercises give you better health and fitness in a very short period of time. Skipping or climbing up the stairs will put lesser stress on your knees or feet than jogging or running. These help build your lower body strength, increase stamina and improve bone strength as well.

10. Heavy gardening:

Heavy gardening would ideally involve more work than mere potting. This form of exercise, which will most likely be a part of your daily schedule, can help burn almost 600 calories per hour. Gardening is a classic form of workout because it makes you go through three kinds of physical exertion: strength, endurance and extensibility.

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