35-Minute Low Impact Cardio At Home (No Equipment + No Repeats)

Raise your heart rate and burn calories with minimal stress or impact on your joints! There are over 20 cardio exercises at home in this Low Impact Cardio Workout. No equipment, no jumping and no repeats — a great cardio workout for bad knees and weight loss.

Low impact cardio at home, no equipment needed!

If you’ve done one of my low impact workouts before, you know: low impact does NOT mean low intensity. This is high intensity interval training in a low impact way.

A great cardio workout for fitness beginners, pregnancy, and bad knees.

This no equipment cardio workout consists of 22 cardio exercises for beginners.

Low Impact Cardio At Home FAQs

What Is Low Impact Cardio?

Low impact cardio is a form of exercise that raises your heart rate while minimizing impact on your joints. Some examples include walking, cycling, yoga, ellipticals, swimming, water aerobics and low impact exercises (like the 20 cardio exercise you’ll find in this workout below).

What Are The Benefits Of Low Impact Cardio?

Low impact cardio workouts improve heart health, reduce risk of heart disease, burn calories, build muscle and release stress all while being gentle on your knees, hips and ankles. Low impact workouts are great for all seasons of life.

Can You Lose Weight Doing Low Impact Cardio?

Low impact exercise is still a very effective way to lose body fat. Your calorie burn will vary based on your personal intensity level and energy output.

Low Impact Cardio At Home

Sweat anytime, anywhere with this fun and effective no repeats, low impact cardio workout!

Do these low impact cardio exercises at home or in a gym. There’s no equipment needed, bodyweight cardio exercises only.

And it’s all timed intervals, which means you move at your pace.

This cardio at home workout is great for burning calories as well as increasing endurance, bone density, and cardiovascular fitness.

Workout Equipment:

No equipment, bodyweight only.

Workout Instructions:

Follow along with the guided Low-Impact Cardio Workout on YouTube led by certified personal trainer Lindsey Bomgren. 

The guided video includes form cues, exercise modifications and motivation along the way.

Your Cardio Workout Looks Like This:

• 6 Circuits (30 second break between circuits)
• Timed Intervals (45 seconds per cardio exercise, followed by 15 seconds of rest)
• No Repeats (you only do each exercise one time)

Low Impact Cardio At Home Workout Outline

CIRCUIT ONE
1. High Knee Skips
2. Swing Air Squats
3. Lateral Lunge and 2 High Knees, R
4. Lateral Lunge and 2 High Knees, L

CIRCUIT TWO
1. Launcher Plank and Shoulder Taps
2. Plank Lunge Up to Front Kick, R
3. Kneeling Plyo Push Ups
4. Plank Lunge Up to Front Kick, L

CIRCUIT THREE
1. Lateral Heisman Runner
2. Runner Squats
3. Lateral Shuffle and Chop
4. Squat and Ski Runner

CIRCUIT FOUR
1. Jab, Cross, 4 Speedbags, R
2. Alternating Step Back Lunge and Knee Drive
3. Jab, Cross, 4 Speedbags, L
4. Squat and Inner Heel Tap

CIRCUIT FIVE
1. Walking Burpees
2. 8 Mountain Climbers and 8 High Knees
3. Tricep Dip and Reverse Plank Knee Pull
4. 45-Degree Jumping Jacks

CIRCUIT SIX
1. Squat Jack and Jumping Jack
2. Lateral Shuffle

7 Low Impact Cardio Exercises At Home

High Knee Skips

Targets: Legs and lower body muscles — glutes, quads, hamstrings, calves and hip flexors. The arms, shoulders and core are also engaged.

High knees are a great cardiovascular warm up exercise.

How To Do High Knee Skips

1. Start standing in an athletic position, feet under hips, both hands raised in the air above your head.
2. Perform a high knee “skip” as you drive your right knee up, aiming to get your right thigh parallel to your right hip (90 degree bend in right knee).
3. As you drive your right knee up, bring your left hand down to tap your right knee.
4. Return your right foot to the ground and repeat on the opposite side; driving your left knee up and tapping it with your right hand.

Swing Air Squats

Targets: Legs, thighs, hamstrings, quadriceps, glutes, calves and core.

Adding and arm swing increases the cardio endurance; the bigger the arm swing the higher your heart rate will climb.

How To Do Swing Squats

1. Start in an athletic position, feet just outside of hips, toes pointing forward or slightly out, slight bend in your knees.
2. Sit your hips back, lowering down into a squat, sweeping your arms back behind your hips as you sit back.
3. Then, explosively drive through your legs to stand up as you swing your arms overhead.
4. As you stand, you have the option to add a calf raise; lifting your heels off the ground as you fully extend your hips and arms.

Lateral Lunge and Two High Knees

Targets: Legs, glutes, quads, hamstrings, hip abductors, hip flexors, calves and core.

How To Do A Lateral Lunge and Two High Knees

1. Start standing, feet under hips, core engaged.
2. Take a large step out towards your right, keeping your left foot in place. Sit your hips back. Think of performing a single leg squat on your right leg (left leg remains straight).
3. Then, drive off your right foot to return to the starting position, with your right knee in line with your right hip.
4. Perform 2 high knees, driving first your left, then your right knee up towards your chest.

Lateral Shuffle and Chop

Targets: Calves, glutes, hamstrings, hip flexors, shoulders, arms, back and core.

This side-to-side movement increases coordination and agility while raising your heart rate.

How To Do A Lateral Shuffle and Chop

1. Start in an athletic stance, feet hip-width and knees bent. Clasp your hands together.
2. Perform two large shuffles to the right side of your mat. On the final shuffle, rotate your torso as you “chop” your hands crossbody. Think about the driving power coming from your hips and core.
3. Note, toes follow hips and hands to the right.
4. Then, perform two large shuffles to your left. On the final shuffle, rotate your torso, turning to face the left as you chop your hands crossbody.

Modification: Follow Lindsey on the right, performing a “push” with your palm instead of a chop if core rotation does not feel good for you.

Jab, Cross and 4 Speedbags

Targets: Arms, shoulders, back, biceps, triceps, calves and core.

How To Do A Jab, Cross and 4 Speedbags

1. Start standing, feet shoulder-width apart, knees bent, core engaged. Open your hips to the left so your left foot is forward and right leg is back. Bring hands or knuckles up to “defend” your face in a guard position.
2. With your left arm, “jab” forward towards the front of the room. Pull your left arm back to your defensive position.
3. Then, perform a “cross” punch with your right arm, using the power in your hips to drive your right arm across your body towards the front of the room. Pull your right arm back into defensive position.
4. Then imagine you’re hitting a “speedbag” with arms overhead for a 4-count. Make small circular motions with your fists as you “hit” your imaginary boxing bag.

45-Degree Jacks

Targets: Outer glutes, hips, calves, shoulders, obliques and core.

How To Do 45-Degree Jacks

1. Start standing, feet under hips and core engaged, arms at your side.
2. Step your left foot up and out towards the left front corner of your space (45 degrees). As you step forward, “jack” your arms overhead. The bigger the arms, the higher the heart rate.
3. Pull your leg back to center as you return your arms to your sides.
4. Then, step your right foot up and out towards the right front corner of your space (45 degrees), jacking your arms overhead.

Lateral Shuffles

Targets: Calves, glutes, quads, hamstrings, hip abductors and core.

How To Do Lateral Shuffles

1. Start in an athletic stance, feet hip-width and knees bent.
2. Perform two large shuffles to the right side of your mat. On the final shuffle, bend your knees, bringing your left hand down to tap the mat.
3. Then, perform two large shuffles to your left. On the final shuffle, tap down towards the mat with your right hand.

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