Kickstarting your day with a healthy dose of exercise works wonders for your mind, body, and soul. It helps rev up your metabolism, melt calories, and set yourself up for healthy habits the rest of the day. If you’re in the market to upgrade your a.m. workout routine, we have five stellar low-impact morning exercises for weight loss to help you slim down.
On the one hand, choosing a low-impact cardio workout at the beginning of your day will increase your heart rate, boost your metabolism, and get you sweating in the best of ways. On the other hand, “Strength-based low-impact exercises will also lift your heart rate,” explains April Gatlin, senior master coach for STRIDE Fitness. “You may not sweat as much as you do during cardio, but strength exercises help build lean muscle, which can improve your metabolism and support weight loss. [Combining] both cardio and strength exercises in the morning is the best way to promote fat burning at the start of the day and get that ‘afterburn’ effect.”
Let’s explore what experts have to say about the best low-impact morning exercises for weight loss.
The Exercises
- Walking
- Barre
- Dynamic Strength Exercises
Walking
Walking is an excellent, low-impact physical activity to do first thing in the morning if you want to slim down.
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“Simply lace up your shoes and put one foot in front of the other,” Gatlin instructs. “Adding in some hills on the treadmill or outside can increase your burn as well. Anywhere from 15 to 30 minutes (or more) can lift your heart rate and kickstart your energy for the day.”
Indoor Cycling
Another productive way to get in your cardio? Indoor cycling!
“Indoor cycling is one of the most effective low-impact exercises to do for weight loss, especially in the morning, to jump-start your metabolism,” says Emma Belluomo, ISSA CPT and instructor for CycleBar. “I’d recommend anywhere from 30-45 minutes to raise your heart rate, work up a good sweat, and support your weight loss goals.”
Belluomo also suggests incorporating interval work by increasing the speed or resistance. This will bump up your heart rate and keep the ride engaging.
Barre
If you haven’t tried Barre before, get ready to be hooked. If you seek a fun, low-impact way to support your weight-loss goals, perform a 30—to 60-minute Barre workout in the morning.
“Barre uniquely blends ballet-inspired movements, yoga, and Pilates for a high-intensity yet low-impact workout,” explains Michelle Ditto, VP of training and technique for Pure Barre. “Along with weight management, Barre strengthens muscles and enhances flexibility, boosts endurance, increases range of motion and improves balance and posture.”
Dynamic Strength Exercises
Performing a circuit of a few dynamic strength exercises can boost your metabolism while sculpting lean muscle, both of which support weight loss.
Steve Stonehouse, NASM-CPT and director of education for Body Fit Training, suggests including exercises like squat to overhead press, pushup to renegade row, and deadlift to upright row into your morning fitness routine.
“[These] exercises recruit lots of major muscles and add up to a full-body workout,” Stonehouse tells us.
