The Secret to Increasing the Intensity of Your Workout
You’ve been training consistently for several weeks now and your current cardio routine doesn’t feel quite as effective. Increasing the intensity of your cardio workout is a great way to increase your overall fitness. There are three major ways to increase your cardio intensity.
Increase the Speed
The most obvious way to increase intensity is to bump up the speed of your workout. This is a fine option for some, but for anyone who has pain associated with running might want to try something different. Increasing speed increases your heart rate, but it also increases the downward forces on your joints as you run. This, in turn, increases your risk of injury.
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Increase the Distance
Another way to bump up the intensity of your cardio routine is to maintain your speed but bump up your distance. This is an excellent option for people who don’t want to increase the speed but also have extra time on their hands to dedicate to a longer workout.
Increase Your Cardio Intensity by Adding Weight
If you don’t have extra time to workout and you are looking for a low-impact way to increase your cardio, consider adding weight. When you carry more weight, your cardio intensity kicks up a notch, since you’ll have more resistance in your workout.
You don’t need any fancy equipment to add weight to your cardio routine, these simple DIY solutions are an excellent way to beef up the weight.
Add a weighted backpack. You can fill your backpack with extra water or even weights (one liter of water weighs 2.2 pounds)
Carry your kid in a backpack or baby carrier
Use a weight vest. You can control the amount of weight you carry
Carry something heavy such as hand weights, filled water bottles or small buckets. Keep the weight even, or switch every few minutes with uneven weight, just be sure to keep your shoulders square and upright.
You don’t need to put more impact on your body or workout longer to have a more intense workout. Be smart and efficient when you increase your cardio by adding weight.