Six Metabolism-Boosting Exercises You Can Do at Home

You don’t need state-of-the-art equipment or a gym membership to get your heart pounding and sweat soaking your clothes. There are several fantastic exercises that require no equipment and can be performed in very small spaces. Here are six of my favourite metabolism-boosting cardio exercises that can be performed anywhere. They’re ideal for HIIT workouts or traditional circuits.

Prone leg drives

This exercise is often called mountain climbers. Start in a push-up position with straight arms, then one at a time bring a knee forward so that it is under your tummy. You are, essentially, performing high knee running on the spot, but in a prone position supporting your weight with your arms. Like high knees, you can make this easier by marching instead of running (this takes out the ground impact too), or you can make it harder by sprinting as fast as you can. Keep your torso still, and let your legs do all of the work. This is fantastic exercise to perform as part of a cardio circuit, or a HIIT session. As a bonus, it’s a great core exercise too.

Star jumps

Does training get any more old-school than this? Star jumps are a great and easily scalable exercise that will get the heart rate up with no equipment required. The hardest version involves standing with feet close together and hands touching your toes, you then jump so that you are shaped like a star in the air (arms and legs out) before returning to the original position. Due to the large amount of hinging at the hips and the abduction of the legs, it’s a great plyometric (jumping) butt exercise. To make this exercise easier, you can start in the same position (feet together and hands touching toes) but then you jump and land in the star position (so your feet are apart but touching the ground, and arms spread). You then jump back to the narrow and crouched position. Lastly, if this is still too hard, perform a jumping jack. For this variation, you never crouch down to touch your toes, instead, you jump from a narrow foot position with your hand by your side, to a wide foot position with your hands wide. Give it a go! Sometimes the old ones are the best.

Burpees

Talking of old school, who hasn’t done a burpee before? This is a classic exercise that requires no equipment and will definitely get the heart pumping. Begin standing, then transition into a push-up position (with straight arms) by jumping your legs back as your hands come down to support your weight. For a basic burpee, next, you just need to return to the standing position by jumping your feet towards your hand as you stand up. You can make the exercise easier by stepping into and out of the push-up position instead of jumping, If you want to make the exercise harder, add a push-up when you are on your hands and feet, and add a jump when you’re standing.

Reverse burpees

We’ve all heard of a burpee, but have you ever tried a reverse burpee? This exercise is super simple and only has two rules; you start from the standing position and end up lying on your back on the floor. Then repeat. You can do this however is most appropriate for you. Some people will do a ninja-like flip off the ground, others will need to roll over to one side to find a safe and strong position to stand back up (if you choose this method, just make sure you alternate the side you favour when pushing up for balance). Does exercise get any more functional than this? Can you safely and quickly stand up off the floor? I love this exercise. Give it a go and you might be surprised at how hard it is. Just like the prone leg drives and star jumps, this exercise is great as part of a cardio circuit or HIIT session and is easily scalable to make it easier or harder.

Squat thrusts

If you thought burpee was an unpleasant name for an exercise, how about squat thrust? This is another very traditional exercise that’s been common, particularly in military and circuit training for decades. You begin in the push-up position with straight arms and legs, and your body straight from ears to ankles. From here, you jump your feet towards your hands, and you then jump back to the original position. It’s that simple! As with the burpee, if this exercise is too tricky, try stepping forward and backwards instead of jumping. If you want to make the exercise harder, make sure you jump your legs far enough forward that the elbows are beside the knees, and perform the repetitions at a higher tempo.

Kick sits

After several very traditional bodyweight exercises, here’s a more modern exercise that is equally as good! Like with the squat thrust and leg drives, begin with hands and feet on the ground. However, make sure your feet are much closer to your hands. This requires your legs to be bent and your bum to be high in the air. Ideally, your hands and feet should be positioned on the corners of an imaginary square. From here, raise your left arm to the sky as you feed your right foot through the gap between your left foot and right hand. Your body will twist as you straighten your right leg and place your right buttock on the ground. Now return to the original position and do the same thing on the opposite side. Then repeat until knackered!

Give these exercises a go next time you need to work out from home. They’re guaranteed to get you panting and sweating!

Tom Berry is a personal trainer in Exeter who specialises in mobile training, running coaching and sprint training. Since 2011, he has conducted tens of thousands of sessions in New Zealand and the UK.