Aerobic exercises have a lot of advantages. Weight loss, increased bone density, muscle toning, improved mood and of course improved cardiovascular health and reduced blood cholesterol are just a few of its benefits. However, a good number of aerobic exercises have a high impact on weight-bearing joints like the hips, knees and ankles. These exercises may not be ideal for the elderly, people with arthritis and obese people who want to ease into an active lifestyle.

If you are looking for aerobic exercises with less impact on your joint health, check out these five joint-friendly aerobic exercises that are mild on your joint but tough on those fat cells.

Brisk Walking – Brisk walking not only burns calories and tones your muscle, but it is also great for the knees. Like every other aerobic activity, brisk walking increases blood flow to your cartilages, providing enough nutrients to keep it flexible and pliant. Also, movements around the joints increase synovial production. Synovial fluid keeps your joints lubricated and increases your joints’ range of motion. As a low impact exercise, brisk walking puts minimal stress on your knees and ankles. What’s even more, moderate brisk walking is recommended for people with osteoarthritis. Brisk walking requires no equipment, extra gear, and can be done anywhere that has an even terrain.

Swimming -Swimming is a total body workout. It torches calories, and conditions the muscles and joints making them strong and flexible. Swimming is one of the top calorie consuming aerobics but has a low impact on your joints. Buoyancy in water means the water relieves your joints of the stress of weight-bearing. But don’t be fooled, swimming is a deep conditioning exercise. It may be mild on your joints, but it works your muscles hard.

Cycling – Cycling is not just a fat-burning, heart-pumping aerobic, it also stimulates synovial fluid production round your joints, lubricating and protecting them from the effects of wear and tear. Cycling can be done in varying amounts of mild, moderate or high intensities. It also strengthens the glutes, quadriceps and other muscles of the lower limbs that keep the hip and knees stable.

Boxing – Do you need a new form of low impact aerobic exercise? Why not join a boxing class? Boxing is a low impact exercise that trains your coordination, speed and footwork. As an aerobic exercise, it torches calories, strengthens and conditions your back, glutes, arms and core. It does all this with minimal weight on your hips, knees and ankles. It also gets your heart rate up and improves your cardiovascular health.

Hula Hooping – Think hula hooping is just for kids? Think again. When done correctly, hula hooping gets your blood pumping, releases tension in the muscles of the hip and lower back and strengthens your core muscles too. As an aerobic exercise, hula hooping has minimal weight on the hips with almost no impact on the knees and ankles.

In conclusion, there are good options for joint-friendly aerobic exercises for joint health conscious. There is really no reason why you shouldn’t get your heart racing.