Cardio Advice for Cold Climate

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phaithphan
phaithphan Posts: 1 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Newbie here. Looking for cardio advice for someone who lives in a cold climate. Getting outside is not an option until mid-April. What can I do in the house without equipment? I have no treadmill, stationary bike, eliptical etc. Thanks!

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  • NorthCascades
    NorthCascades Posts: 10,970 Member
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    I would dress for the weather and go do something fun, but there are lots of YouTube videos with indoor exercise routines.
  • MsCzar
    MsCzar Posts: 1,042 Member
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    I love my rebounder (mini-trampoline) all year 'round, but I especially love it in the winter. I get a good 30 minutes of cardio every day and love that it is joint friendly and burns mad calories.
  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 9,394 Member
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    How cold? Are you in a town center or more urban? Snow?
    Bodyweight exercises are of course always an option, and super adjustable as you just pick a more difficult variant once something becomes too easy. Snow: Cross country skiing? Not too much snow: Running or hiking?
  • Xellercin
    Xellercin Posts: 924 Member
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    You can 100% go outside in deep cold, you just need the right gear.

    That said, if you don't *want* to go outside, that's fine. I personally do a lot of pilates, and it's great for cardio, core strength, and maintaining muscle mass, and different routines focus on each of those to a different degree. Otherwise, there are endless videos for movement that could work for you. Hell, just some jumping jacks would do.

    Otherwise, I have a "smart hula hoop," which is easy to use indoors.
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
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    Must it be cardio that you do inside?

    If so - got stairs? At least a couple? And if so, a TV too because it's going to get boring.
    But so would jogging, jump rope, or walking in place.

    Many calisthenic programs are approaching cardio type training, though many are interval in nature.

    Depends on why cardio is the goal.
  • mikhnpaitsmum
    mikhnpaitsmum Posts: 119 Member
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    Crank up the music and dance!
    Lots of cardio workouts on youtube. Steep aerobics type things that can be done without the step will still give you a great cardio workout.
  • minnelizzy
    minnelizzy Posts: 45 Member
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    I live in a very cold climate and I would recommend getting some items like a treadmill or elliptical- it’s just practical. Or join a gym? There’s always cross country skiing, snowshoeing, ice skating, etc. if you want to try the outdoors. Step aerobics for indoors to a workout on a screen or just plain old jump rope, jumping jacks, burpees, etc also
  • Jthanmyfitnesspal
    Jthanmyfitnesspal Posts: 3,521 Member
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    The cheapest thing is to follow a video on YouTube. Doing "step aerobics" is also very affordable. For home equipment, the cheapest at-home piece of aerobic equipment is a spin bike (e.g., Sunny Health and Fitness, perhaps $300-400). Of course, you could blow a lot of $$ and get a Peloton or Echelon (>$1000 plus subscription). Usable treadmills are at least $2000 and good ones are more.

    All that said, you gotta like starting with a free video on youtube! Also, you can walk in very cold weather with the right clothing, boots. and crampons. It's fun!
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,874 Member
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    Probably YouTube videos. I'd personally just dress for the cold and go out.
  • cmsienk
    cmsienk Posts: 17,813 Member
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    I don't know how cold your cold climate is.
    It's love in the Midwest. Right now it's 19°F and I just came in from plowing and shoveling. Shoveling snow can be a good cardio workout. Other than that, I second doing the stairs and YouTube videos.
  • nossmf
    nossmf Posts: 9,070 Member
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    Plus one for shoveling snow.
  • zekikat
    zekikat Posts: 18 Member
    edited January 2022
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    I lived in upstate NY for several years, so I have been in your situation. Of course, snow shovelling is great exercise! Apart from that, there are YouTube workouts for all fitness levels. Search for videos that match your fitness level and the time you have (e.g. "30 minute hiit workout" or "20 minute low impact workout", "beginner workout", "walk with me", "boxing workout", etc).

    I use YouTube a lot, since I don't have access to a gym or home equipment. I strongly prefer videos that have narration and explain proper form for each move. I avoid videos with no narration and just music (there are tons of them and I don't know why). The Popsugar channel has some great ones. I also really like Jessica Smith; she doesn't post videos often anymore, but she has really good workouts at many levels and lengths, and she's great at explaining how to move and breathe properly. I like boxing workouts by Christa DiPaolo, too; she's very positive and good at explaining how to move.

    Another option is the FitOn app, which has lots of free workouts and even live classes that you can do at the same time as other participants for extra motivation.
  • watts6151
    watts6151 Posts: 888 Member
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    Rocky IV training montage should give you some great ideas 😁
  • NorthCascades
    NorthCascades Posts: 10,970 Member
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    cmsienk wrote: »
    I don't know how cold your cold climate is.
    It's love in the Midwest. Right now it's 19°F and I just came in from plowing and shoveling. Shoveling snow can be a good cardio workout. Other than that, I second doing the stairs and YouTube videos.

    This is me at -5F/-20C.

    51778179154_4b3276702b_o_d.jpg
  • ridiculous59
    ridiculous59 Posts: 2,842 Member
    edited January 2022
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    Define "cold". My cutoff for walking or snowshoeing with the dogs is -30C/-22F. If its any colder than that for more than a week then I have an old elliptical that I can use. Or do a YouTube workout. Otherwise, I'm walking, hiking, cross country skiing, or snowshoeing. I only a run in the warmer months but I see other people still running in this weather. That's not me though.
  • briscogun
    briscogun Posts: 1,135 Member
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    Try Fitness Blender videos on YouTube. Tons of free videos for all levels. some of the HIIT videos will get your heat rate up and your breathing too!
  • martie1123
    martie1123 Posts: 14 Member
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    Mall walking
  • cassique
    cassique Posts: 164 Member
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    I got myself a jump rope. I am not great at it and working on building up my stamina, but it is fun and easy to do just about anywhere. I try to do one minute at a time and a total of 10 minutes a day adding 5 minutes each month--it has only been a week so far.

    I prefer to do outdoor cardio but having to bundle up can be very demotivating and makes it hard to be consistent but the jump rope I can just pull out at random times throughout the day. I've even been doing it at work during my lunch break (I am a teacher) so when the kids are at lunch I push the desks aside, and jump rope haha. I got a cordless one too, but it isn't as much fun for me as the rope.

    For me cardio needs to be fun. HIIT workouts and "aerobics" videos are NOT FOR ME!! I also dance--very badly but it is for my eyes only so who cares.
  • Hiawassee88
    Hiawassee88 Posts: 35,754 Member
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    phaithphan wrote: »
    Newbie here. Looking for cardio advice for someone who lives in a cold climate. Getting outside is not an option until mid-April. What can I do in the house without equipment? I have no treadmill, stationary bike, eliptical etc. Thanks!

    Simply walk out your front door and dress accordingly. There's always more than two schools of thought.

    "Does cold weather affect cardio?
    When your muscles get colder they don't get as much oxygen, which can be seriously detrimental to a cardio workout where they need oxygen for fuel. Your aerobic abilities are limited when you work out in cold weather, according to a study in the International Journal of Sports Medicine."

    "Cold weather forces your body to work harder during training, and this also applies to your cardiovascular system. As the heart works harder to pump blood around the body during cold weather exercise, this invigorating workout helps to keep your heart health in tip-top shape." Aston University, UK

    Don't overthink it. If we waited for warmer weather we wouldn't get anything done and that includes all those who must work outside for a living. If it's too snowy, invest in some snowshoes. There's always a way.



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