Barlates: 18-Min Seated Cardio Workout | Low Impact Fat Burning, Beginner & Joint-Friendly

I don’t need chair workouts, but my dad does so I have been searching for them on YouTube and creating a playlist for him. Since I’m a follower and fan of Linda @ Barlates it jumped out at me that she has been posting quite a few chair workouts lately, which kind of surprised me. I decided to give one a try.

Having now done this workout, it is definitely not appropriate for my father or anyone with a serious disability. A little background: my father is in his late 80s and over the past year he has suffered 2 serious illnesses that landed him in the hospital. Previous to these two illnesses he got around with a walker but I had to get a medical alert for him because he was falling a lot. Now he is max assist for everything; he is never alone anymore. My mom is also in her 80s and stands under 5 feet, so she is of little assistance to him for transfers. Luckily my husband and I live close because we have to go over there several times a day to move him around. He gets physical and occupational therapy several times a week in home but does not seem to be making any progress. His mind is slipping, too, so getting him to do his exercises when the PT/OT isn’t there forcing him him is a challenge.

Back to the review–this workout is not appropriate at all for someone in his condition. For one, you need some balance and core strength. My father has to be belted into his wheelchair or he will fall out. And you actually need some strength. Some of the exercises burned out my shoulders and legs! So what is a workout like this by Linda @ Barlates good for? Someone who already exercises but has injured themselves in a way that keeps them from standing. But in order to do this workout without some form of modification (that Linda does not provide), you need use of all 4 limbs. That actually applies to me sometimes! I have metal in my feet. Most days I am fine and can do things like I did before a drunk driver hit me head on. But then some weekends I am on my feet a lot and the pain in the evening and the next day is crippling. So a workout like this would be great for me since my feet are what cripple me at times like that; the rest of my body works fine.

As this is a cardio workout, you would hope for some calorie burn. According to my Apple watch I burned 117 calories and never left zone 1 of my heart rate. So no major calorie burn but everyone is different. I did feel it in my shoulders, hip flexors and quads. And if you need a zero impact workout but you are not limited in arm and leg movement and you have enough core strength to stay upright sitting on the edge of a chair for almost 20 minutes, then this is the workout for you.

Each exercise is done for 45 seconds with no rest/recoveries. There is a timer in the upper right hand corner of the screen counting down each interval. There is another timer in the lower right hand corner of the screen counting down total workout time.

18 Min Seated Cardio Workout is 18:41 minutes; 45 second intro. Equipment: chair.

1. Sit on edge of chair, alternate tapping legs out to side, alternate raising arms overhead with jumping jack arms
2. March legs with running man arms
3. Alternate lifting legs straight in front of you, elbows are bent at 90 degrees, straighten arms and reach them toward foot when lifting leg
4. Hands are behind head, tap one leg out to side, tap it in, tap it out to side again then bring knee in as a knee raise, torso and elbow twist toward knee each time it taps in (or knee raises)
5. Repeat #4 on other leg
6. Tap one leg out and in to side, alternate pushing arms straight in front of w/ palms flat
7. Alternate taping legs out to side with chest fly arms
8. Repeat #6 on other leg, arms change to alternating pushing them overhead
9. Alternating heel digs to the front, arms push behind you tricep kickback-style
10. March legs, arms are raised to shoulder level, alternate bending elbows bringing one arm to chest and the other out to side
11. 3 marches + one knee raise
12. Reach both arms out to one side and extend one leg out to other side, pull knee in while pulling arms down to knees
13. March legs, extend arms straight in front of you and do scissor arms opening and closing them to sides
14. Repeat #12 on other side of body
15. Step legs out wide then narrow, punch arms 2x overhead then 2x down to sides
16. March legs, wave arms overhead then in front of you
17. Sit with legs wide, alternate raising legs so that you can tap your insoles with opposite hand
18. With one leg do a heel dig then tap the foot back, swing arms side to side
19. Raise and lower heels, arms do bicep curls into overhead press
20. Arms are bent in front of you, rotate torso 3x doing a knee raise on the 3rd rotation, you will automatically alternate legs
21. Repeat #18 on other leg
22. 2 knee raises same leg while also doing 2 alternating front punches, alternate legs
23. March legs in and out fast, while doing running man arms

For more info on Barlates and other (free) streaming workouts I’ve sampled and reviewed, check out my Streaming page.