How to set up cardio circuit with machines at home

Cardio can be defined as any exercise that gets your heart rate and breathing rate up. If you’re huffing and puffing, you’re doing cardio. This broad definition means that a lot of exercises fall under the cardio umbrella.

Many, like sprints, burpees, high knees and jumping jacks, don’t require any training equipment. But if you like your cardio to be a little more accessible, more comfortable, and more focused on specific areas, it’s wise to invest in purpose-built cardio machines for your home gym, which you can use to build a fun circuit designed to help you reach your fitness goals faster.

In this guide we’ll learn the whats and whys of creating a cardio circuit at home, and how to build one that gets you where you want to go.

What is circuit training?

Circuit training is a form of exercise that sees you move through a number of different types of workout, usually five to 10 stations, with limited rest in between. If you’ve ever done an F45 or CrossFit class, you’ve done circuit training.

There are a number of things that make circuit training an ultra-effective and ever more popular form of exercise. This anaerobic exercise is designed to keep you near your heart rate limit longer (80-95% of your max), which can help you lose weight, add muscle tone and increase performance faster. What’s more, the ‘afterburn effect’ means that you actually continue to burn as much as 15% more calories after high-intensity circuit training.

Circuit training is also an effective way to keep exercise fresh and fun. You never spend too long doing too much of one thing, and you can change your circuit whenever you choose, particularly in your home gym, where you’ll enjoy total control over your workout.

The best machines for a cardio circuit at home

Are you thinking of creating a cardio machine circuit at home? You’ll need to arm yourself with the right equipment. A few cardio machines that you should consider investing in include:

A treadmill: The treadmill is the world’s most popular gym machine for a reason. Running is the most human of exercises, and a treadmill lets us go for a jog no matter where we are or what the weather is doing. And if you choose an innovative machine like the Matrix TF30, you can even replicate running through nature via an augmented reality screen!

A bike: Exercise bikes offer endless cardio intensity minus the heavy impacts that come from  other workouts like running. Choose from spin bikes, upright bikes, recumbent bikes or air/assault bikes, the last of which is particularly good for circuit training. 

A rowing machine: Rowing machines offer the ultimate full-body cardio workout. They engage every major muscle group, and can offer as relaxed or as intense a workout as you want.

A cross-trainer/elliptical: Another full-body machine, cross-trainers and ellipticals, like the Matrix E30 suspension elliptical and A30 ascent trainer, engage arms and legs in a truly smooth and natural motion that minimises wear and tear on sore bones, muscles and joints.

A stepper/climber: Steppers and climbers are terrific for toning the lower body. The Matrix C50 ClimbMill offers 25 levels of resistance, and the interchangeable range of consoles lets you tailor your workout to your tastes.

A ski erg: Another full-body cardio workout, you can hit the slopes from the comfort of your home gym with a ski erg, which replicates the action of propelling yourself through the powder with ski poles.

How to build a cardio workout circuit at home

When you create a cardio circuit at home, you enjoy total control over what that circuit looks like. But if you aren’t a personal trainer or fitness professional, you might not know where to start.

There are a few key considerations when building a cardio workout circuit at home:

Goals: What do you hope to achieve with your circuit? Do you want to lose weight? Build muscle mass and tone? Increase power, speed or endurance?

Equipment: What machines and fitness equipment do you own?

• Personal preferences: What types of exercise do you enjoy? Fun is a critical factor if you are going to stick to your circuit for the long haul.

Once you’ve clarified each of these considerations in your mind, you can begin to build out your circuit. A good place to start is a half hour circuit featuring six different stations, chosen based on your fitness goals and preferences, where you’ll spend five minutes at each. Over time you might find yourself wanting to work out longer than that.

If you don’t have six different exercise machines, you can insert bodyweight exercises into your circuit, like sprints, lunges, mountain climbers and push-ups.

Construct your circuit so it hits different areas of your body at different times: avoid doing two similar exercises in a row. Give yourself a short rest – a minute or less – in between each station, and consider finishing your circuit with 60 seconds of max effort cardio, which puts a nice cherry on top of your workout.

Ultimately your home cardio machine circuit will be a very personal thing – you should begin by doing the exercises you're comfortable with for as long as you’re comfortable, then slowly build up the length, intensity and diversity of your circuit over time.

GymQuip: your home cardio experts

Home to Australia’s largest fitness showroom, at GymQuip we’ve supplied home fitness enthusiasts with high quality cardio equipment, the Matrix Fitness range, for over 30 years.

No matter what your fitness goals might be, we’re here to offer all the advice and support you might need to build the ultimate cardio workout circuit at home. Come on in and check out our incredible range of cardio equipment, much of which is ready to test on our showroom floor.

Not in Canberra? Not a problem! We deliver our products Australia-wide, backed by a generous shipping and returns policy. Our entire range is also covered by our famous price match guarantee: if you find an item cheaper elsewhere, we’ll beat that price.

Get in touch with our friendly team today.