Similarities and Differences of Cardio X an Tae Bo

Cardio X and Tae Bo are two types of cardio exercise that you can do in the comfort of your own home. Both exercise routines are beneficial for your heart and get your blood flowing. While Cardio X and Tae Bo are similar, they also have several differences. Before you begin your new workout regimen, check with your doctor as a precautionary measure.
CARDIO X
While doing a Cardio X workout, you will not stick to the same routine. Cardio X combines yoga, plyometrics or jump training, kickboxing and core exercises. The combination forces you to use all muscle groups, toning and building muscle strength all over your body. During a single workout, you will incorporate moves from each of these exercise types. Cardio X routines start with a small amount of cardio to warm up and then transition into yoga moves. High-intensity cardio moves occur at the end of the routine. The entire workout lasts about 45 minutes.
TAE BO
Tae Bo was created by Billy Blanks, a former competitive karate champion and black belt. This type of high-intensity cardio routine combines martial arts moves along with kickboxing. Tao Bo routines incorporate hip-hop dancing, tae kwon do, ballet and boxing moves to use all muscle groups. From the get-go, your heart will get pumping and you will be active throughout the entire routine. Some Tae Bo routines last for up to an hour.
SIMILARITIES
Both Cardio X and Tae Bo allow you to purchase DVDs so you can exercise in your own home. This gives you the freedom to go at your own pace, without feeling intimidated by others in a group setting. Cardio X and Tae Bo videos use stretching for warm-ups before exercise and also for cooling down. Additionally, while Tae Bo focuses primarily on martial arts moves, Cardio X also incorporates some kickboxing into the routine. Both routines are fun and high energy, making you more likely to stick to the programs.
DIFFERENCES
You may burn more calories by doing Tae Bo, depending on how much effort you exert while exercising. At a weight of 150 pounds, you can burn more than 500 calories in a 45-minute vigorous martial arts routine, according to Cigna, a health care provider. Cardio X combines several yoga moves, which are beneficial for toning but may not get your heart pumping as much. During a 45-minute Cardio X routine with yoga and kickboxing moves, you may burn anywhere from 300 to 400 calories, depending on weight. Tae Bo is a strict cardio regimen, boosting your heart rhythm and keeping it elevated. You can do Tae Bo as your main workout routine. Cardio X is meant to supplement other types of exercise and should not be your only exercise regimen.

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Building Body Imaging and Fitness Through Cardio Workouts

Aerobic exercise, also called cardio, raises your heart rate to maximize blood flow in your body. The Mayo Clinic recommends getting between 30 and 60 minutes of moderate to intense aerobic exercise five days per week to reap its health benefits. With a range of activities from walking to kickboxing, choose an aerobic activity that you enjoy and switch things up to keep your interest and motivation high.
Weight Control
Your body must burn more calories than you consume in order to lose weight. Regular aerobic activity, along with a healthy diet, can increase your calorie deficit, allowing you to drop excess pounds or maintain a healthy body weight.
Increased Stamina
During your cardio workout, your breath quickens and your heart rate speeds up to increase the amount of oxygen in your bloodstream. Regular cardio conditions your heart, lungs and blood vessels to become more efficient at transporting oxygen to your muscles. Just as you can lift a little more weight each week as your muscles get stronger, you will be able to work out for longer with reduced fatigue as you strengthen your heart and lungs.
Improved Self-Image
According to a study in the Journal of Health Psychology, the act of working out improves overall satisfaction with your body. Even if participants had not yet met their fitness goals, the study reports, they felt the same level of body satisfaction as those who had. Additionally, aerobic exercise can ease depression, reduce anxiety and aid in relaxation.
Reduce Your Health Risk
Regular cardio activity can lower cholesterol and blood pressure while reducing your risk of developing conditions such as Type 2 diabetes, heart disease, obesity and some cancers. Walking, jogging and other weight-bearing exercises build up bone strength, reducing your risk of osteoporosis.
Live Longer
Individuals who walk the equivalent of 30 minutes per day significantly reduce their risk of premature death, says Dr. Steven Blair in a study he conducted with the Institute for Aerobics Research. According to the Mayo Clinic, three 30-minute aerobic sessions per week can slow cognitive decline in elderly adults. Not only can cardio help you to live longer, it helps you live with a better quality of life for longer.

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4 Cardio Dance Workouts That Really Work

If you are just not that into step or spin class and you feel like a hamster in a wheel on the treadmill, perhaps aerobic dancing is the best cardio workout choice for you. Cardio dance refers to classes like Jazzercise, Zumba, Cardio-Funk or any other group exercise class that encourages you to get your groove on. Basic dance steps like the grapevine, cha cha and pony are not only fun to do, but do them for one continuous hour and you will burn about 400 calories.
Pony It Up
The pony is a classic dance move made popular in the 1960s, but it still remains front and center in many aerobics class. Start with feet together, hop to the right foot and lift your left foot up, quickly place left toe on the floor and shift back to the right as in step ball change or step toe step. The count is 1-2-3, 4-5-6, or right left right, left right left. The arms can alternate reaching overhead or for more of a '60s groove, do the swim by alternating reaching arms in front as in the crawl swim stroke. To pony hip-hop style, open the legs wider and gyrate your torso by arching your back and then collapsing your chest forward while you pump your palms to the front of your chest.
Grapevine With A Three-Turn
The grapevine is a low-impact, old-school dance move that is a standard in aerobics classes. A favorite dance move for back-up singers---think Gladys Knight and the Pips---the three-turn combined with the grapevine makes for a little funkier step. To perform the grapevine, start with feet together. Take one step to the right, then cross your left foot in front of your right. Next, step right foot to the right again, then close your left foot to a toe touch. The step is an eight-count step. When you are learning, it might be helpful to say the cues out loud, as in "step, cross, step, touch." After your four-count touch to the right, perform a three-turn to the left. Step down left with your left foot, turn to the back with your right foot, turn back to the front with your left foot then touch your right toe. Cues for the three-turn are "step, turn, step, touch."
Caliente Cha Cha
If you are a fan of watching Latin dancing, then you are quite familiar with the cha cha step. The cha cha is to salsa as the grapevine is to jazz. This Latin basic moves front and back as opposed to the grapevine, which moves side to side. The step is composed of two slow steps, three quick steps, two slow steps, three quick steps. Start with both feet together. Step to the front with your right foot slowly, shift weight or rock back to left foot slowly, bring your right foot back behind your left foot and do a quick right left right step, or step ball change. Step left foot backwards, shift weight back to the right foot and quick left right left or cha cha cha. If you want to say it out loud, the steps are right, left, cha cha cha, left, right, cha cha cha. Put on some salsa music and get your Latin on.
Charleston
The Charleston step gave Swing that extra kick in to the '20s but has managed to endure through the decades and is still a standard step found in cardio dance classes today. To perform this step, step forward on your right foot and kick your left foot to the front. Step back with your left foot and touch behind you with your right toe. The choreography cue is step, kick, step touch. Perform several kicks with the right foot as lead and then switch to the left foot as the lead step.

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Cardio Exercises Effective for Fat Loss

Strength-training exercises such as weightlifting build muscles, which burn more calories for energy than body fat. However, if you want to tackle that body fat directly, vigorous cardiovascular exercise is the way to go. You don't need a lot of equipment and it's fairly easy to find fun activities that force your body to burn off calories. Check with your health care professional to make sure you're healthy enough for a vigorous cardio workout. If you are, it's best not to limit yourself to one activity. Variety can keep you motivated to turn fitness into a lifestyle.
Heart Rate and Cardio Exercise
Effective fat-burning cardio involves raising your heart rate so that it's beating 70 to 80 percent of your maximum heart rate. You can calculate your maximum heart rate a number of ways, but for a simple -- though rough -- estimate, subtract your age from 220. The sum is the approximate number of times your heart is capable of beating per minute. As you challenge your heart with cardio exercise, stop periodically and take your pulse for 10 seconds, then multiply the number by 6 to get your beats per minute. If it's below 60 percent of your maximum heart rate, try to increase your intensity.
Child's Play
Get your inner child involved in your cardio workout routine. If it's been ages since you put on a pair of roller-skates or inline blades, give it a whirl. Inline skating burns 913 calories per hour for a typical 160-pound person, according to MayoClinic.com. What you lose in calories burned you may make up for in fun.
Hit the Road
Depending on how you moderate your diet and the pace you maintain, brisk walking can help you burn off fat. A brisk 30-minute walk each day could burn 1/3 lb. per week -- weight loss that could be significant if you do it consistently and cut calories from your daily diet. This may be a good option if you've been sedentary a long time. Building your pace gradually, over time, you may reach a point where you're comfortable running. Running 8 mph for an hour burns an average of 986 calories for a 160-lb. person.
Sports
As you look for cardio exercises you're motivated to do alone, mix up your routine by participating in sports activities that challenge your heart and lungs. A casual game of racquetball with a buddy could burn over 500 calories an hour if you weigh 160 lbs. or more. Basketball, flag football, softball and baseball also make for fun calorie-burning activities.

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