Cardio Workouts for Absolute Beginners

• RPE Level 3: You are comfortable but you are breathing harder than when not exercising.
• RPE Level 4: You are now beginning to sweat a little, but you can still carry on a full conversation without any noticeable effort.
• RPE Level 5: You are now less comfortable, you are sweating more but you can still talk easily.
• RPE Level 6: Now talking is more difficult, you are a little breathless.

Walking and Biking Beginner Cardio Workout Routines

The workouts below are shown on a treadmill and a stationary bike, but they can actually be done on any cardio machine or outside. Both are designed to ease you back into cardio training. Do the walk outside, if you like, or use a real bike instead of a stationary bike if you have one.

The key is to pick a workout and make a plan to stick with that workout at least three days a week. If you can do it every day, that's even better. Try working out at the same time each day so you get into that habit. It may be tough at first but, over time, your mind and body get used to it.

Keep going and, at some point, your mind will just know when it's time to workout. Momentum and discipline are a big part of sticking to an exercise program.

• Perform this workout at least two to three times a week, resting between workouts if needed.
• To progress each week, add two or more minutes to each workout until you can workout continuously for 30 minutes.

Basic Cardio Endurance Workout

Once you have built up your time with the beginner workouts, you are ready for a 35-minute cardio endurance workout. This basic endurance workout is designed to keep you at a moderate intensity while changing your settings to keep the workout a little more interesting.

You'll be switching between a level 5 and 6 on the perceived exertion chart. The difference between the two is subtle, but level 6 takes you just a bit more out of your comfort zone. Pay attention to how you feel to notice the difference. 

This workout can be done using any cardio machine—treadmill, elliptical, rowing machine, stationary cycle, spinning cycle, ski machine, etc. You can do it outside with a brisk walk, run, bicycle, rowing, skiing, or swimming. 

Simply maintain a steady pace for as long as you can, increasing intensity slightly every five minutes until cool down. You can increase intensity in several ways. First, increase your speed, which is easily done on most equipment or with outdoor exercise. You could also add incline, which is easier to do on a treadmill, while outdoors you will need to find a hill to tackle. Other machines allow you to alter the resistance so you have to put in more effort, such as with a stationary cycle, rowing machine, or elliptical.

When and How Often to Do the Endurance Workout

This workout is one that satisfies the minimum daily recommendation for moderate-intensity physical activity for good health and to reduce health risks. Once you are able to do this workout without strain, you can do it daily. If you encounter muscle aches the day or two after this workout, you may want to do it only on alternate days to allow your muscles to become accustomed to the effort.

Using the Endurance Workout for Weight Loss

You can extend the workout to 60 minutes to burn more calories for weight loss, but you should do this incrementally.

• Add another round of five minutes of RPE 6 and five minutes of RPE 5 for a 45-minute workout first, doing this for one workout.
• Do the workout for a week at this level before adding another five minutes RPE 6 and five minutes RPE 5 to total 65 minutes.

A Word From Perfect Bella

Congratulations for getting started with exercise. While even 10 minutes can seem like a lot at first, most people find that they can progress steadily and build up their exercise time. If you stick with it consistently, in a few weeks you should be able to meet the suggested amount of exercise everyone needs to reduce health risks and build fitness.