7 Full Body Cardio HIIT Workouts With No Equipment

Cardio and HIIT workouts paired together may sound scary. However, it has many benefits. HIIT cardio helps burn calories, lose weight, and build muscle and muscle strength. While improving the flow and oxygen and blood, HIIT and cardio also help maintain blood pressure and blood sugar levels.

What Is High-Intensity-Interval Training (HIIT)?

HIIT is a workout session that includes short bursts of intensive exercise, followed by low-intensity recovery periods. HIIT routines are one of the most time-efficient and effective workouts that work many major muscles. It can range from 10 to 30 minutes in duration.

No matter what the time duration of your HIIT workout is, it benefits your health twice as much as moderate-intensity exercise.

For example, if you are using a stationary bike, you will cycle as fast as possible for 30 seconds against high resistance, and then go easy on the cycling with low resistance for a few more minutes. It will make your heart rate speed up and burn a lot more calories.

A study by the National Institutes of Health suggests that high intensity is a key element for efficient and effective exercises.

What Is Cardio?

Cardio is simply a workout where your heart rate and breathing exercises, however, not so much that you need to rest now and then. Cardio depends mainly on the aerobic energy-generating process. It involves a sufficient amount of oxygen flow during exercise via aerobic metabolism to adequately meet energy demands.

Some of the cardio workouts may include speed walking, stair climbing, running, and cycling.

So, what happens when you combine both of these types of exercises? Well, you reap a lot of health benefits for sure.

Cardio And HIIT Combined

HIIT burns a significant amount of calories in a short span of time thus requiring more oxygen than cardio exercises supply to the body.

Let’s take a look at some effective full-body cardio workouts that require nothing but your body weight. You don’t need any equipment for these exercises, all you need to do is warm up nicely before the exercise.

Pro-tip: Warm-up allows your body to adjust to the intensity of the workout ahead.

Warm-Up Routine

• Arm circle: Stand straight with your legs slightly open. Move your hand in circles, alternatively, for 30 seconds. You can work each arm for 15 seconds. Take rest for 10 seconds before the next exercise.

• Arm Swing and Hug: Stand straight with your legs slightly open. Swing your arms in front of you and hug your shoulders with your arms. Then swing back your arms out to your sides, pulling back and stretching a little. Keep swinging your arms for 30 seconds, and take a 10-second rest.

• Hamstring Sweeps: Take a short forward stride with your right leg as you keep your heels firmly on the ground. Keep the left leg behind and slightly bent at the knee. Repeat for the left leg. Work each leg for 15 seconds, 30 seconds in total.

Rest for 10 seconds.

Now that you have warmed up, you are ready for the intense workout routine to work your full body. Embark on a healthy workout journey with these exercises.

One: Jumping Jacks

• Start in a standing position, with your legs together and arms at your side.
• Jump to a position with your hand going overhead and your legs spread wide.
• Return to the starting position.
• Workout for 50 seconds straight
• Rest for 10 seconds

Benefits: Jumping jacks target major muscle groups and are beneficial for the whole body. They improve cardiovascular fitness and allow for cardiovascular conditioning.

Two: High Knee Raises

• Stand straight with your feet apart, preferably hip-width apart.
• Lift your left knee to your chest.
• Switch and lift your right knee to your chest.
• Continue the movement at a sprinting pace for 50 seconds.
• Rest for 10 seconds before the best exercise.

Benefits: This cardio-intensive exercise works your hamstrings, calves, glutes, and hip flexors. They improve balance and endurance in your body by building muscle strength.

Three: Shuffle Wood Chop

• For a starting position, place your feet outside shoulder width and bend your knees. Keep your chest up and back straight.
• Turn your toes out slightly, and position your knees in line with your feet. Make sure that you keep your weight over your heels.
• Lock your arms together and bring them on the outside of your right thigh, while you rotate your torso as much as you can.
• Place your weight on the right leg.
• Pull in your abs and embrace the core.
• Lift your arms to your diagonally upright across the body to your left shoulder
• While you do so, stand up and rotate your torso. Shift your weight to the left leg.
• Reverse the movement and return to the original position

As the name suggests, imagine that you are cutting wood vigorously and that your hands are the axe. Repeat the motion for 50 seconds, and rest for 10 seconds before the next exercise.

Tip: While you perform wood chops, keep your feet firmly planted on the ground and your hands locked together.

Benefits: The Shuffle Wood Chop works your gluteus medius and gluteus minimus, as well as the thigh and calf muscles. It helps stabilize your body, especially your core. It engages the muscles that help you twist at the waist.

Four: Jabs And Uppercuts

Jabs

• Start in a staggered stance with one leg extended slightly forward
• Protect your face with both fists (for the complete experience)
• Extend your arm out in a cross-motion while you allow your shoulder to follow through
• Retract and repeat
• Continue for 25 seconds

Uppercuts

• To start, stand with feet hip-distance apart while keeping your hips and knees straight
• Make fists with both hands and lift your arms, with your hands facing your body and chin height
• Bend your elbows at a 90-degree angle, with shoulder-width apart
• Lower your body to a slight squat position and rotate your torso
• Lower your right hand down to chest height
• Powerfully scoop/cut the arm under and up and to the left
• Continue to scoop and lift as you rotate your body left
• Stop when you reach a standing position facing slightly left and your fist is at chin height
• Repeat the movement to the right with the left arm
• Continue with alternating arms for 50 seconds
• Rest before the next exercise.

Benefits: Jabs work your side and front shoulders, as well as the upper chest. Uppercuts activate the biceps and the deltoid muscles which shape the shoulder. These workout movements focus on upper body movement and engage the full body, thus providing you with strength.

Five: Knee To Elbow

• Stand your feet shoulder-width apart
• Bend your arms while placing your hands behind your head
• Bring up your right knee while you simultaneously bring down your left elbow
• Move each knee to the opposite elbow.
• Squeeze your abs while you do so
• Repeat the movement for 50 seconds, and rest for 10 seconds before the next exercise

Benefits: This workout works the lower and upper abs and the transverse abdominis. It is the perfect no-equipment exercise for cardio and strength training. It helps lose weight and works your ab muscles.

Six: Scissor Jumps

• With a slight bend in your knees, stand with your feet shoulder-width apart
• Maintain a strong grip on the floor while your arms remain long by your sides, with a slight bend in your elbows. Lower into a lunge position, with your knee directly over your big toe. You should be balancing on the ball of your foot with your heel off the ground.
• Push your front foot into the ground while simultaneously swinging your arms forward
• Quickly switch the position of your leg by bringing your back leg forward
• Land from your workout position in the position of a lunge
• Continue to jump with alternating sides
• Workout for 50 seconds and rest for 10 seconds before the next workout

Benefits: Scissor jumps build endurance and strength while working your glutes, hamstrings, and quads. It works your core to maintain balance and coordination throughout the body.

Seven: Plyo Side Squat

• Stand tall with your feet together and shoulders back.
• Step to the side with your left side, bend your knees and lower into a squat
• Bring your arms in front of your body
• Push off the floor with both feet and jump up while swinging your arms behind you
• Land and immediately take the squat position
• Repeat for alternate sides
• Continue for 50 seconds

Benefits: Plyo side squats work your glutes, hamstrings, and calves. This HIIT cardio workout helps build your power and strength.

The Bottom Line

For this HIIT and Cardio workout to work in your favor, you must keep the right form throughout the session. Divide the workouts into circuits, with 60 seconds of rest between each circuit.

Go as hard as you can for the duration of the workout, and make sure that you do not skip the rest part. You can repeat this workout three to four times a week.

Also, Read 6 Best Outdoor Exercises For Adults To Live A Healthy Life Now