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Cardio Kickboxing Workout

An at-home kickboxing workout blending cardio and strength while burning calories. Try this 30-minute routine, best for beginners.

It's official: Kickboxing has left the ring and entered the living room.

At-home kickboxing workouts pack a punch — literally — and come designed to support both physical and mental well-being. This kickboxing session's high-energy combo of martial arts meets aerobic movements sharpens your mind, boosts endurance and coordination, and packages together explosive full-body conditioning. No punching bag, no problem.

The following cardio-based kickboxing integrates moves from Tonal's kickboxing programming. It's a workout type better suited beginners new to this training style. But it includes more advanced modifications as you gain experience. It clocks in at ~30 minutes and is a great way to spice up your fitness routine easily at home.

30-40 minutes Minute Duration

Cardio, Full-Body Conditioning Program

~150-275 Calories Burned

10 Different Exercises

Recommended 3x/Week

Contents
  1. Kickboxing Workout: Example Routine
    1. Warm-up & Cool-Down
    2. Estimated Calories Burned
    3. Recommended Number of workouts
    2.
  2. Muscle Groups Targeted
  3. Equipment Used for Kickboxing Workout
  4. Who This Workout is Best For
  5. Answers to FAQs about Kickboxing Workout
  6. Concluding words on Kickboxing Workout

Kickboxing Workout: Example Routine

Duration: 30-40 minutes (with warm-up and cool down)
Format: 3 rounds of 10 exercises | 40 seconds on, 20 seconds off | 1-minute rest between rounds.


Kickboxing Workout

  1. Jab-Cross Combo
  2. Alternating Front Kicks
  3. Hook + Squat
  4. Alternating Side Kicks
  5. Plank Shoulder Tap
  6. Uppercut Shuffle
  7. Alternating Reverse Lunge with Knee Strike
  8. Right Cross Punch
  9. Left Cross Punch
  10. Air Shadowboxing Finisher

Warm-up & Cool-Down

A proper kickboxing warm-up should raise your heart rate, plus prime your joints and get you feeling lighter on your feet. All this is essential to perform kickboxing's explosive movements.

Warm-Up (5 Minutes)

  • Light jump rope or simulated skips (1 min)
  • Shoulder rolls (1 min)
  • Arm swings (1 minute)
  • Leg swings (30 secs each)
  • Torso rotations (30 sec)
  • Shallow squats (30 sec)



Cool Down (5 minutes)

  • Standing quad stretch (1 min)
  • Seated hamstring stretch (1 min)
  • Shoulder stretch across the chest (1 min)
  • Spinal twists (1 min)
  • Deep breathing with arm reach (1 min)

Estimated Calories Burned

  • Women 120-150 lbs: 150-190 calories
  • Women 150-180+ lbs: 175-225 calories
  • Men 150-180 lbs: 200-250 calories
  • Men 180-210+ lbs: 225-275+ calories

    To intensify this at-home cardio kickboxing workout, try wearing light wrist or ankle weights. Advanced participants can also add plyometric jumps between combos for even more full-body intensity.

Recommended Number of workouts

For steady results, perform this kickboxing workout 3x/week, allowing rest days for muscle recovery.

  • Beginners may start with 2x sessions/week, focusing on form and footwork
  • Those with more training experience can pair the kickboxing routine with resistance or strength workouts, alternating days between each.


Adjust this 30-minute session based on your body's cues and recovery needs. Consistency always wins over perfection.

Muscle Groups Targeted

Kickboxing’s blend of rotational core work and lower-body power makes it a great full-body training method. You’ll feel your arms and legs burn from repetitive striking and jabbing, while your abs stabilize every movement — the foundation of power meets conditioning and balance in this dynamic at-home routine.

Major muscle groups:

  • Core and abdominals
  • Shoulders
  • Arms
  • Chest
  • Legs and glutes

Individual muscles:

  • Deltoids
  • Triceps
  • Quadriceps
  • Hamstrings
  • Obliques

Equipment Used for Kickboxing Workout

This kickboxing workout is specifically designed for at-home exercise. No punching bag, boxing gloves, or gym setup required. You’ll need just an open space, a mat, and your own body weight.

For added variety or challenge, consider including:

  • Light dumbbells or wrist weights (for increased punching resistance during jabs, crosses, etc.)
  • Ankle weights (for leg kicks)
  • Resistance bands (during Alternating Reverse Lunge with Knee Strike)

Who This Workout is Most Effective For

This kickboxing workout is best for:

  • Beginners seeking a fun, empowering entry into full-body fitness.
  • Anyone craving a cardio-heavy workout that doesn’t feel repetitive.
  • Busy professionals or caretakers who want an effective 30-minute sweat session.
  • People aiming to reduce stress or boost confidence through a workout routine.
  • Those looking to blend endurance, conditioning, and head-to-toe explosive training.
  • People who enjoy the focus and control elements to kickboxing's movements.

Answers to FAQs about Kickboxing Workout

Yes! A kickboxing workout engages multiple major muscle groups and combines aerobic conditioning for a full-body cardio routine. Many of its staple, best beginner-friendly kickboxing movements (jabs, crosses, knee kicks, etc.) will elevate your heart rate and make you breathe faster, while challenging both your body and mind.

Kickboxing also improves agility, coordination, and balance. Even 30-minute sessions (with an appropriate warm-up and cool down) can get your heart-rate pumping.

Kickboxing is a fantastic cardio workout helpful for burning calories. It mixes high-intensity intervals and activates many large muscle groups.

However, it's important to remember the core mechanics behind weight loss comes down to calorie intake vs. total calorie expenditure. Many different workout styles or fitness programs can be incorporated into a weight loss-focused plan helping you burn more calories than you consume (in a safe, sustainable way).

Weight loss ultimately depends on that caloric relationship over time, not just on doing some intense kickboxing workouts and expecting to shed pounds.

Like with most exercise, the only real drawback to kickboxing comes from practicing poor form, or from doing the same exact movements so often you begin to fatigue your muscles.

It's best for beginners to focus on good kickboxing technique across punch styles, footwork, and core rotations. This builds a solid foundation where you're less likely to overstrain areas like your lower back or shoulders.

With proper warm-ups, gradual progression, and taking proper recovery days, kickboxing can be a safe and rewarding way to practice a healthier lifestyle.

Kickboxing integrates both. Its explosive punches and kicks help promote cardiovascular endurance and improve cardiorespiratory health, while the resistance aspect inherent to its strikes can support muscle power.

Think of it as a solid way to blend conditioning both muscles and heart health. It can help develop power, precision, and stamina all together.

Concluding words on Kickboxing Workout

Every move in this beginner-minded kickboxing workout was chosen with care based on Tonal's boxing program library. It's meant to build coordination, control, and cardio endurance from the ground up, from quick jab-cross combos that fire up the upper body to controlled kicks and lunges targeting stability.

That intentional mix of cardio and explosive training can condition your entire body in an efficient window. As the music fades and your heart continues pounding, you'll remember why kickboxing makes you feel so unstoppable: you earned every strike.

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