Let’s face it, some of us are really sick of doing our standard traditional cardio routine on a regular basis. It seems like they are running like hamsters on the infinite path to nowhere, ie the treadmill just doesn’t seem to work. Sure, you could take your mind off the tedious task by plugging in your ipod or watching one of the big-screen TVs your gym might have next to the treadmills.

However, the truth is that if you can watch TV or even hold a conversation while doing your cardio, you are not working hard enough. While I’m certainly not totally against regular cardio practices like jogging or biking, this article hopes to show you some alternatives that will get your blood pumping and get you breathless.

Take, for example, a movement that is most commonly performed with dumbbells, barbells, or kettlebells called the clean and press (often abbreviated to C&P). You lift the barbell/dumbbell off the floor to your shoulders, then push the weight toward the ceiling so your arm is straight over your head. Reverse the action to lose weight. You may be reading this thinking it sounds more like a weight training exercise than a cardio one, but I’m sure after just 10-15 reps with a fairly challenging weight, you’ll definitely have a racing heart rate and shortness of breath. .

This exercise alone is much more effective in the long run than running for 40 minutes on a treadmill to lose weight. Also try one-arm dumbbell snatches to feel the benefits. Your body gets a great workout and your mind has something to focus on. Really focus while doing these exercises and you may even find that your attention span and work capacity can improve as well.

For the busier types, why not try doing five minutes of intense, energetic exercise? For example, five minutes of lunges, push-ups, squats with little to no rest between sets. Five minutes is all it takes and if you don’t feel like you’ve just finished running by the end of these, then you couldn’t have been working hard enough.

Try these exercises the next time you don’t feel like jogging, switching up your exercise program routinely will do you a lot of good.