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15-Minute All Standing At Home Cardio Workout (2,000 Steps)

By: Lindsey Bomgren, CPT | September 5, 2023

Get 2,000 steps and burn fat with this all standing at home cardio workout. 18 of the best low impact but high intensity standing cardio exercises to do at home using just your bodyweight. The best cardio to lose weight, get your heart pumping, and get your daily steps in at home.

Jump To Workout

Raise your heart rate, burn calories and get your steps in with this all standing at home cardio workout.

Getting your daily steps in is one of the most underrated forms of exercise. It’s so beneficial for heart health and overall fitness – and requires no equipment, no jumping, and no expensive gym membership.

You loved our Beginner Weight Loss Workout, where we cranked out 1,500 steps in 15 minutes. Today’s workout increases the intensity – I personally tracked over 2,000 steps on my Garmin.

I strive for 8-10K steps a day (a goal we set in our 3-2-8 Workout Challenge). I love alternating walking on the treadmill, jogging outdoors, and at-home cardio workouts like this one to get my steps in at home.

two women performing a standing knee drive as part of at home cardio workout for weight loss

At Home Cardio Workout FAQs

What Is A Good Cardio Exercise To Do At Home?

Some of the most effective cardio workouts at home require zero equipment. Examples include power walking, lateral shuffles, squats and lunge variations. If high impact exercises feel okay for you, you can also add in burpees, jump rope, jumping jacks, mountain climbers, and squat jumps.

How Often Should A Beginner Do Cardio?

I recommend starting with 20-30 minute workouts, 3 days a week. For a beginner, that may look like adding two days of strength training and one low impact aerobic exercise workout to their beginner fitness routine.

Which Cardio Burns the Most Fat?

High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT Workouts) burn the most fat per minute of working out. You can perform High Impact HIIT Workouts, or Low Impact HIIT Cardio workouts. Eating in a calorie deficit and increasing your resting metabolic rate (total number of calories burned when the body is at rest) can also contribute to fat loss.

Why Is Cardio Beneficial?

Cardiovascular exercise, or “cardio,” is beneficial for both physical and mental health. Physically, cardio can improve overall heart health, making the heart more efficient at pumping blood, lowering blood pressure and risk of heart disease. It also is a natural form of stress relief and produces endorphins, which can boost your mood.

Two women performing a knee drive exercise as part of best at home cardio workout

15-Minute At Home Cardio Workout

Get your steps in, burn calories and raise your heart rate with this standing workout: 15-Minute At Home Cardio Workout.

18 of the best bodyweight cardio exercises, targeting the entire body. This low impact workout will get your heart pumping, improve cardiovascular fitness, and boost your mood in 15 minutes.

Add a cardio workout like this one to your exercise routine 1-2 times a week.

Workout Equipment:

No equipment, just your bodyweight.

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woman performing a low lunge with her arm driving forward as part of standing cardio workout at home

Workout Instructions:

Follow along with the guided All Standing Cardio Workout on YouTube, led by certified personal trainer Lindsey Bomgren. 

Your Workout Looks Like This:

  • 18 Standing Cardio Exercises At Home
  • Timed Intervals (40 seconds work, 10 seconds rest)
  • No Repeats (Perform each exercise once)
5 Easy Cardio Exercises for Beginners (Get 2,000 Steps At Home!)

Workout Outline

  1. Single Leg Side and Back Runners (Right)
  2. Standing Hamstring Curls
  3. Single Leg Side and Back Runners (Left)
  4. Double Side to Side Step Touch
  5. Alternating Knee Slams
  6. Two Jabs and Two Taps
  7. Two Jumping Jacks and Two Front Kicks
  8. Lateral Lunge and Knee Drive (Right)
  9. Three-Count Knee Drives
  10. Lateral Lunge and Knee Drive (Left)
  11. Skaters
  12. Four Jump Rope and V-Walk
  13. Side-to-Side Slam and Tap
  14. Four Fast Feet and Lateral Push
  15. Three High Knee Front Runs (Right)
  16. Lateral Shuffle
  17. Three High Knee Front Runs (Left)
  18. Two Lateral Squat Walks and Crunch
Woman performing lateral lunge as part of at home cardio workout

Prefer to Watch On YouTube?

youtube icon Standing Cardio

5 Standing Cardio Exercises At Home

Standing Hamstring Curls

Targets: Quads, glutes, hamstrings, core, back, chest and shoulders.

two women performing standing hamstring curls as part of at home cardio workout

How To Do Standing Hamstring Curls

  1. Start standing, feet under hips, core engaged, and a slight bend in both knees.
  2. Transfer your weight to your right foot, while at the same time bending your left knee to kick your left heel back towards your glutes.
  3. Quickly switch to the left leg, stepping out with your left foot while kicking the right heel back towards your glutes. Try to make the motion as fluid as possible, smoothly alternating between legs.

Double Side-to-Side Step Touch

Targets: Hip flexors, quads, outer glutes, hamstrings, calves, shoulders, and back.

two women performing double side to side taps as example of best cardio to lose weight

How To Do A Side-to-Side Step Touch

  1. Start standing in an athletic stance, feet hip width apart and knees slightly bent. Hold your arms just under shoulder height, slight bend in the elbows.
  2. Side step to the right with your right foot, then step your left foot across to join your right. As you step to the right, open the arms wide overhead to raise your heart rate. Pull the arms in as the left foot taps.
  3. Repeat, performing two lateral step-touches to the right side.
  4. Tap the left foot on the floor and then immediately step back to the left, following with your right to tap. Perform two lateral step-touches to the left side.
  5. Repeat this process, alternating two lateral steps to the right with two lateral steps to the left.

Skaters

Targets: Legs, glutes (outer gluteus medius), hips, calves, quads and core (for stability and balance).

two women performing the skater exercise as part of low impact at home cardio workout

How To Do Skaters

  1. Start standing in an athletic stance, feet hip width apart, knees slightly bent, core engaged.
  2. Push off your right foot to bound laterally to the left, landing in a loaded skater position on your left foot. Left knee bent, right leg tracking behind your left foot in a skater position.
  3. Then, drive off your planted left foot to bound laterally back to the right. Landing softly on your right foot. Right knee bent, left leg tracking behind your right foot in a skater position.
  4. Repeat, alternating the skaters on each leg.

Two Jabs and Two Taps

Targets:  Legs, glutes, quads, hamstrings, arms, shoulders, back, biceps and core.

two women performing lateral steps and punches as part of at home cardio workout

How To Do Two Jabs and Two Taps

  1. Start standing, feet shoulder-width apart, knees slightly bent, core engaged. Bring hands or knuckles up to “defend” your face in a guard position.
  2. Step out to the side with your right foot, performing a tap out to the right. As you step out with your right foot, perform a “jab” with your right fist, quickly punching your right arm directly in front of you.
  3. Repeat twice, performing two jabs and two lateral taps with the right arm and right leg.
  4. Then, return to starting position and alternate sides, this time stepping out with your left foot and performing two jabs with your left arm.
  5. Repeat, alternating two jabs and two taps on each side of the body.

Two Lateral Squat Walks and Standing Crunch

Targets: Rectus abdominis, transverse abdominal muscles and obliques.

two women performing a lateral squat walk and standing crunch as part of at home cardio workout

How To Do Two Lateral Squat Walks and Standing Crunches

  1. Start standing feet hip width apart, knees slightly bent. Place your hands behind your head and think about pressing your head into your fingertips, elbows pointing straight out to the sides.
  2. Leading with your left knee, step out towards the left, lowering your hips down into a squat.
  3. Press through your heels to stand tall, then repeat; performing another squat as you move laterally to the left.
  4. Then, pull the right knee up towards your chest as you simultaneously pull your left elbow down to meet the right knee. Touch the left elbow to right knee if possible, performing a standing crunch.
  5. Return to starting position, then repeat on the opposite side; stepping out with your right leg and performing two lateral squat walks to the right.
  6. Then, bring your left knee up towards your chest, bringing your right elbow to meet it, performing a standing crunch on the left side.

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