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Forget running — this 20-minute low-impact workout boosts your metabolism and builds cardio fitness

AnyFans 2025-10-09

By Nick Harris-Fry

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You don’t need any equipment for the workout, but if you have one of the best yoga mats at home, it’s worth rolling out to provide better grip.

Watch MadFit’s 20-minute low-impact workout

20 min Fat Burning Workout for TOTAL BEGINNERS (Achievable, No Equipment) – YouTube

During the workout, you’ll be working for 40 seconds with each exercise, and then recovering for 20 seconds. However, this will be active recovery where you aim to keep moving in some way, so your heart rate stays high.
This also means that if you find any of the exercises too tough to complete the full 40 seconds, then try to keep moving on the spot rather than stopping for a complete break. If you can keep moving for the full 20 minutes, it will make the session a lot more effective in terms of boosting your fitness and burning calories.
For the exercises themselves, you are doing sets of two moves, doing two rounds of both before moving on to the next set of two exercises.

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All of the moves in the workout are low-impact exercises done from a standing position, making it a very accessible session for all fitness levels. You’ll be doing moves like walking jacks, standing high knees, and unweighted squats.
While this is a session aimed at beginners, it’s a workout that anyone can tackle and benefit from. If you’d like to make it more challenging, you can do the same moves while holding a light pair of dumbbells.
You can also progress by doing a longer workout, like this 30-minute low-impact workout that challenges the whole body.
Everyone can benefit from adding low-impact training into their weekly schedule, and because it’s not so hard on your joints in particular, you can do more training safely. Low-impact does not mean easy, though, so make sure you’re prepared to still work hard.
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Nick Harris-Fry

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Senior Writer

Nick Harris-Fry is an experienced health and fitness journalist, writing professionally since 2012. He spent nine years working on the Coach magazine and website before moving to the fitness team at Tom’s Guide in 2024. Nick is a keen runner and also the founder of YouTube channel The Run Testers, which specialises in reviewing running shoes, watches, headphones and other gear.

Nick ran his first marathon in 2016 after six weeks of training for a magazine feature and subsequently became obsessed with the sport. He now has PBs of 2hr 27min for the marathon and 15min 30sec for 5K, and has run 13 marathons in total, as well as a 50-mile ultramarathon. Nick is also a qualified Run Leader in the UK.

Nick is an established expert in the health and fitness area and along with writing for many publications, including Live Science, Expert Reviews, Wareable, Coach and Get Sweat Go, he has been quoted on The Guardian and The Independent.

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