When you think about cardio, you generally think about exercises that target the legs.
You know the score: jumping jacks, tuck jumps, squats… all performed to some dodgy music, wearing headbands and holding 2kg dumbbells.
But what if I told you you could train cardio during a chest workout? Sure it sounds odd but there’s no reason you can’t and if you’re looking to tone up that chest, this can be an excellent strategy to add to your routine.
Why Chest and Cardio Go Well Together
Despite them not seeming like obvious bedfellows, chest workouts and cardio can actually make a lot of sense together. Why? Because the press up is a fantastic exercise you can perform explosively and which also trains the abs. If you want to get ripped, doing lots of explosive press ups is actually a very good way to accomplish that.
But we’re going to get a little more advanced than just ‘lots of press ups’.
So what does a chest cardio workout look like?
Fat Burning While Working the Chest
Dive Bomber Push Ups
The dive bomber push up is a push up that starts off like a press up but with your arms straight out in front of you and your buttocks pointing up in the air behind you. Your body should be angled towards the floor diagonally
Jump Lunge Burpees
This is basically two exercises tied together. The jump lunge is a movement where you start in a lunge position, then jump up in the air, swap legs and land in the opposite lunge position. This is an excellent explosive move for your legs and will get your heart beating.
Following this though, you’re next going to drop down into press up position, perform a press up and then jump back up. Now you’re involving pretty much the whole body and getting the chest in there.
Up and Over Step Lunges
Okay so this one doesn’t involve the chest but it’s a great one to throw in to keep the heart rate up. Stand with one foot on a bench and the other on the floor, then quickly step up and offer the other side. Perform quickly and it will look like you’re quickly running left and right onto either side of the bench.
Knee to Elbow Planks
The plank is a great isometric hold for the abs and chest. Now you’re going to bring your knee up on one side to get the movement in there and to work the obliques as well. Repeat both sides.
Sliding Mountain Climbers
Mountain climbers are another isometric hold for the chest but with the arms a little straighter. Normally you jump your legs forward as with the jumping lunge but in this case you’re going to slide them forward and back. How? One way to do this is by standing on cloths and performing the movement on a shiny floor. This way you can get some real speed going to really up your BPM!
