6 Strategies to Enhance Your Endurance Without Running a Single Mile

“Go running” is usually the first response you hear when you ask someone for ways to improve your endurance or lose weight.

However, let’s be honest, running is one of the most dreadful exercises that you can do. Running involves repetitive motions, which can get boring really quickly and cause overuse injuries.

The good news is that there are several endurance-boosting activities that you can do besides running to achieve peak physical conditioning.

Furthermore, using various activities allows you to fine-tune your workouts to maximize your gains and avoid plateaus.

In this article, I’ll take you over the six best running alternatives for improving your overall endurance and stamina. I recommend picking the one that best fits your lifestyle and sticking with it for the long term. You can also combine two to three activities to ensure variability and consistent progress.

Strategy 1: Bodyweight Training

Doing the right bodyweight exercises can allow you to improve your endurance significantly without ever needing to lace up your running shoes.

High-intensity interval training (HIIT) is my go-to bodyweight training protocol for building muscular and cardiovascular strength and endurance. (1)

HIIT workouts involve alternating between periods of high-intensity and low-intensity training. Transitioning between demanding exercises keeps your heart rate elevated, helping maximize calorie expenditure. It also strains the cardiovascular system, improving your endurance.

Circuit HIIT workouts are a godsend for people who want to improve their overall endurance but cannot spend 30 to 60 minutes daily on low-intensity steady state (LISS) training.

Best Bodyweight Exercises For Building Endurance

Here are the most effective movements that should be a part of your endurance-boosting training regime:

• Burpees: This full-body exercise is an absolute killer as it combines a squat, push-up, and jump. Burpees work your legs, core, chest, and shoulders.
• Mountain Climbers: It mimics the running motion and engages the core, shoulders, and legs. However, I wouldn’t recommend this exercise to folks who want to avoid lower-body joint strain.
• Jump Squats: Plyometric movements like jump squats are excellent for building explosive strength and working your quads, glutes, and hamstrings.
• Planks: Holding the same position for an extended period can help strengthen the core and boost overall stability and endurance.

Here is how to put it all together to maximize your endurance and stamina gains:

Exercise	Reps/Time
Burpees	10 reps
Mountain Climbers	30 seconds
Jump Squats	12 reps
Planks	30 seconds
Push-Ups	AMRAP

Perform three to four rounds of this circuit with a one-minute rest between each round.

Strategy 2: Cross-Training

Cross-training involves alternating between different workouts to constantly challenge your muscles to ensure consistent progress. It also reduces the risk of overuse injuries by reducing specific joint stress.

These are some of the most popular cross-training routines:

• Yoga: It can help build strength, balance, and flexibility, which can contribute to building endurance.
• Pilates: An incredibly effective way to build core strength and stability. It also directly and indirectly contributes to building endurance.
• Dancing: If ‘exercising’ is not your thing, you can opt for dancing classes. Whether it’s salsa, hip-hop, or ballroom, every dance form can help improve your endurance.
• Martial Arts: Karate, taekwondo, and judo are all incredibly demanding and challenge your physiological and psychological strength and endurance.

The ideal cross-training regime will depend on your current fitness level and training objectives. I recommend seeking a personal trainer’s help to design a suitable regime that fits your lifestyle.

Learn to listen to your body. Stop an exercise if something feels weird or uncomfortable. Focus on your recovery, and feel free to take an additional day off if you are feeling overly fatigued. It is your body telling you that it needs longer to recover optimally.

Going too hard without proper recuperation hampers your performance and significantly increases injury risk.

Strategy 3: Walking

Contrary to what most people think, walking workouts can also help improve your endurance. However, you might need to modify your walks to get the best results.

Here are four ways that you can achieve this:

Employ Brisk Walks

When I say walking workouts, I mean walking at a pace that makes it challenging to hold a normal conversation. You should feel your heart racing and lungs working in overdrive during your brisk walks.

Incline Walks For More Intensity

I have my advanced clients choose between uphill walks or stairs to ensure their muscles are working harder. Sticking to low-intensity workouts for an extended period can lead to training plateaus.

Switch Up Your Speed

Switching between a fast and a slow pace is one of the best ways to challenge your cardiovascular system and build endurance. The slower pace allows your body just enough time to recover and go full-send in the next circuit.

Explore Different Walking Styles

Exaggerated arm movements burn more calories than normal arm action. Furthermore, walking on uneven terrain results in greater lower body muscle recruitment compared to walking on a sidewalk.

The best part about walking workouts is that they are incredibly simple. Start with a 10-minute session and increase the time and intensity as you gain more experience.

Strategy 4: Swimming

Swimming is my go-to cardio recommendation for people dealing with joint issues that cannot handle the repetitive impact involved in running.

Swimming has several things going for itself. First, it is a full-body exercise that trains every muscle group, from the legs to the arms. Plus, water offers the perfect resistance to spike your heart rate and improve your endurance without overly taxing your muscles and joints.

As you get better at swimming, I encourage you to practice different styles and strokes. Each technique comes with its unique sets of challenges and trains your muscles in different ways.

Finally, contrary to what most people think, swimming is not just a summer-only activity. Many sports clubs these days offer temperature-controlled pools that allow you to complete your workouts in soothing water.

Tips for Beginners

Here are some tips that will help you get started and make the most of this sport:

• Master your breathing: Breathing correctly is half the battle in swimming. Dedicate a significant amount of time practicing your breathing (exhaling fully into the water and inhaling quickly when your face is above the surface).
• Find the right pool: Look for a pool that best suits your needs. If you’re not too comfortable in water, start in a pool that is not too deep or cold. Also, sign up for swimming classes with other learners at a similar level.
• Focus on form: Swimming with the incorrect technique increases the drag, which will make you work harder in the water. Prioritizing form will ensure optimal efficiency and maximize endurance gains.

Strategy 5: Cycling

Cycling is another excellent joint-friendly exercise that is perfect for trainers of varying experience levels. Furthermore, you can perform this exercise indoors and outdoors, ensuring that you never skip a workout, even during poor weather.

Cycling is a versatile training form that allows you to control your workout intensity. You can choose to cruise on flat terrain, take on challenging hills, or max out the resistance on a stationary bike until you find the sweet spot.

Some of my personal training clients opt for cycling as their rest day active recovery workout as it allows them to explore their neighborhood and complete small chores without the hassle of car parking.

In my opinion, the biggest drawback of cycling is that it is a lower-body exercise and offers limited upper-body engagement. Nonetheless, it helps you build overall endurance.

Dissecting Indoor and Outdoor Cycling

Many people are confused between the two types of cycling workouts. This section should help you make the right choice:

• Outdoor Cycling: Research shows that exercising outdoors can improve mood and lower the risk of mental health issues like depression. However, you will also have to deal with traffic, weather conditions, and safety issues. (2)
• Indoor Cycling: Training in a controlled environment reduces the risk of missing workouts because of things that are out of your control. Stationary bikes also allow you to adjust the resistance, which can help you meet your performance goals.

The right choice for you will depend on your preferences and training objectives. You can also include both in your training regime to ensure you are getting the best bang for your cycling buck!

Choosing the Right Gear

Read this if you’re looking to invest in a bike or riding gear:

Bike Gear and Fit

A road or a hybrid bike is a good option if you’re primarily interested in endurance training. The former is designed to thrive on pavements, while the latter offers a more comfortable ride on various terrains.

Furthermore, avoid riding a road bike that is too big or small, as it can throw off your balance, increasing the risk of injury.

I recommend testing out a bike in person before pulling out your wallet.

Cycling Gear

Don’t overlook the importance of a good helmet, knee and elbow guards, and moisture-wicking clothes. I also suggest getting a pair of high-quality shorts to make the rides more comfortable.

Strategy 6: Rowing

Only a few exercises have changed the endurance game like rowing. Make no mistake, you don’t need to go out to a lake to row. You can do it indoors using a Row Erg machine that is a staple in most gyms.

Rowing is a full-body workout that allows you to build strength and endurance across multiple muscle groups simultaneously. Furthermore, since your feet never leave the footboards, it doesn’t strain the lower body joints.

This high-intensity full-body workout not only magnifies your calorie expenditure but also boosts your metabolic rate, helping you burn calories throughout the day.

Air, magnetic, water, and hydraulic piston rowers are the four types of Row Ergs, and you must pick the ones that best fit your training requirements and budget.

You can pick between a distance row or an interval training workout, depending on your goals. In the first case, aim for 2,000 meters at a moderate pace and gradually increase the distance. In the second instance, alternate between 30 seconds of high and low-intensity rowing to maximize your results.

Conclusion

Swimming, cycling, bodyweight exercises, rowing, walking, and cross-training are all incredibly effective ways to achieve your fitness goals. Design a training regime that suits your lifestyle, current fitness levels, and goals, and stick to it for at least eight to 12 weeks.

Gradually increase the training demands, and the gains will follow.

If you have any questions about the six strategies explained in this article or need help implementing them into your routine, post them in the comments below, and I’ll be happy to help!

References:

1. Bramwell RC, Streetman AE, Besenyi GM. The Effect of Outdoor and Indoor Group Exercise Classes on Psychological Stress in College Students: A Pilot Study with Randomization. Int J Exerc Sci. 2023 Aug 1;16(5):1012-1024. PMID: 37650002; PMCID: PMC10464750.
2. Martin-Smith, R., Cox, A., Buchan, D. S., Baker, J. S., Grace, F., & Sculthorpe, N. (2020). High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) Improves Cardiorespiratory Fitness (CRF) in Healthy, Overweight and Obese Adolescents: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Controlled Studies. International journal of environmental research and public health, 17(8), 2955. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17082955

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