Losing calories is undeniably more difficult than gaining them. Although, when asked what exercise burns the most calories in 30 minutes, the best answer is running. But we will discuss a few more exercises that will help you get rid of the extra calories faster because we know not everyone likes to run. Apart from running, jumping rope, HIIT workouts, and swimming are some effective calorie-burning workouts. You can perform any of these exercises or a combination of them depending on your preferences and level of fitness.
The number of calories you burn in a workout depends on many factors including the amount of time you have spent doing the exercise, speed, intensity, and your body weight and height. In general, the more your weight is, the more calories you will burn during the workout. If you are interested in knowing your exact number of calories burnt, you should do your workouts with a personal trainer as they will be able to determine the exact individual calorie burn.
Best calorie-burning exercises in 30 minutes
On a time crunch
There are many exercises you can do to burn calories even though you have less time. The key is to perform high-intensity workouts that rapidly increase your heart rate. The most popular way to achieve this is by performing HIIT or High-intensity interval training. This training has short bursts of exercise performed at more than 70% of your aerobic capacity.
One method of doing HIIT is to alternate between 30-second speed and 1-minute rest intervals. If you perform high-intensity workouts, you will burn a lot of calories in 30 minutes or even less than that. When you are on a time crunch, you can perform these exercises.
1. High-knee running
High-knee running is a vigorous cardio workout. It strengthens your lower body while increasing your heart rate. It is a useful workout to burn calories in a short time when performed with high intensity. It burns about 240 to 355.5 calories in 30 minutes.
High-knee running is running in place while lifting your knees as high as you can. While doing that, make sure that you engage your upper body as well by pumping your arms up and down.
2. Butt kicks
Like high-knee running, butt kicks are also a cardio workout. It burns around 240 to 355.5 calories in 30 minutes. When performed at high intensity, it can quickly burn calories in 30 minutes. As the name suggests, you have to kick your butt by lifting one heel towards the butt and then repeat it with the other heel. Alternate your heels while pumping your arms up and down.
3. Mountain climbers
Mountain climber is also a cardio workout but at the same time uses your entire body. So it can also be considered a full-body workout. Since it is a full-body workout, you will burn a lot of calories in a short time. It burns about 240 to 355.5 calories in 30 minutes.
The exercise is performed by getting into a plank position first and placing your shoulders over your hands. Next, engage your core muscles and lift one of your knees towards your chest. Return to the plank position and repeat with the other knee. Keep alternating your knees quickly for your heart rate to increase faster.
4. Swimming
Swimming is gentle on your joints hence, is known as a low-impact workout. It burns your calories while improving your muscle strength, and providing other major benefits like improving blood flow, lung, and heart capacity. If you swim for 30 minutes, it will burn as many calories as it would do with 30 minutes of jogging. It burns about 198 to 294 calories in 30 minutes.
As it is a low-impact workout, it will be less stressful on your body and joints hence, will be an appropriate exercise if you are experiencing some joint problems or if your mobility is limited. If you want to increase the number of calories that are burnt, consider doing laps or water aerobics during swimming.
5. Stationary bicycling
If you have a stationary bicycle, then what more do you need? Perform a vigorous cardio workout by trying intervals of high-intensity cycling to burn a significant number of calories in just 30 minutes. It burns about 210 to 311 calories in 30 minutes. So, it’s an important one in the list of what exercise burns the most calories in 30 minutes.
Warm-up your muscles first for about 5 minutes and then alternate between 1-minute speed and 2-minute recovery intervals. On a scale from 0 to 10, for a vigorous cardio workout, your speed intervals should be 7 to 9, and recovery intervals should 5 to 6.
6. Sprints
Generally, running is the best calorie-burning exercise and the best answer to what exercise burns the most calories in 30 minutes. However, if you don’t have enough time to go out for a run, then sprints got your back. Shorten your workout into high-intensity sprints for your body to rapidly burn calories to fuel your workout. Sprinting burns about 240 to 355.5 calories in 30 minutes. The best warm-up exercises before sprinting are jumping jacks or high-knee running, whichever suits you.
At home
If you are unable to go to the gym, you can still perform high-calorie burning exercises at home. The HIIT bodyweight workouts we have mentioned above can also be done at home. Simple workouts like high-knee running, butt kicks, mountain climbers do not require much space so can be easily done anywhere. However, if you want to do something more than HIIT workouts, then we have a few more workouts that are excellent for burning calories.
1. Walking
Walking is the simplest and easiest way to burn calories at home. It is also ideal if you are in the recovery phase after an injury. You can walk around your house or in your backyard, whatever is convenient for you. Walking burns about 3.1 to 4.6 calories in a minute and if you perform your house chores while walking then you will burn even more calories in a minute.
2. Running
Running is the best workout if you want to burn calories. Moreover, it improves flexibility and increases endurance. Running does not require any equipment, so you can run anywhere at any time however if you don’t have enough space to run then you can try the other workouts we have listed. Running burns about 10.8 to 16 calories in a minute and the faster you run, the more quickly you will lose weight and burn calories in a minute.
3. Aerobic dance
Calorie-burning exercises are not confined to running and high-intensity training. If you are a dancer or you like to dance, you can do a high-energy dance workout at home to burn calories as you go along. Dancing is a cardio exercise that is done for recreational purposes. It’s a fun way to increase your heart rate and burn calories. Aerobic dance burns about 6.6 to 9.8 calories in a minute. You can try popular dance workouts like Zumba or Bokwa If you want to lose weight.
4. Jumping jacks
Jumping jacks are a cardio workout that increases your heart rate while also offering a full-body workout. Jumping jacks can be done in a limited space as well so it is easy to do them at home. All you have to do is stand with your feet together and arms at your side. Then jump with your legs shoulder-width apart while lifting your arms over your head. Repeat as fast as you can because it’s an important one in the list of what exercise burns the most calories in 30 minutes.
Jumping jacks burn about 8 to 11.8 calories in a minute. They can be a part of your warmup, HIIT workout, or even your general routine depending on the intensity you perform these at.
5. Jumping rope
Jumping rope is a cardio workout that also strengthens your lower legs. It raises your heart rate and burns calories while making your lower legs stronger. It burns about 7.6 to 9.8 calories in a minute. Moreover, jumping ropes are compact hence, easy to store so they are a great choice for people who do not have much space at home.
Conclusion
Considering all the workouts we have listed above, and the number of calories they burn in 30 minutes, running is the best solution for what exercise burns the most calories in 30 minutes. However, some other excellent options may include stationary bicycling, jogging, and swimming.
HIIT workouts are said to be great workouts to burn calories. This is because not only your body burns calories during the workout, amazingly, it continues to burns calories for up to 24 hours after the workout.