5 Calorie-Burning Exercises

So you want to burn calories and get fit but you don't want to spend all day doing so. Here are 5 fun exercises which help you shed the pounds - fast.

1. Skipping rope
It's cheap, you can do it anywhere - skipping role burns up to a whopping 740 calories an hour. Hop to it!

2. Swimming
An hour of laps burns 700 calories and tones legs, arms, bottoms and creates a firm tummy. It's summer, so what are you waiting for?

3. Jogging
Consider this: one-hour of jogging sheds 590 calories. So you're not the jogging type? Get into the brilliant Couch to 5K program which gets even the laziest person up and running - and loving it.

4. Zumba
It seems everyone is into Zumba these days, doesn't it? And for good reason - the Latin-inspired dance workout tones the body, gets the heart rate up and burns around 500 calories an hour.

5. Aerobics
Do it at the gym, or do it in your living room to a DVD - aerobics burns the fat, fast. That 90's favourite, step aerobics, is the best of all, and you can pick up a step block for around $30.

These are average numbers for a woman weighing 75kg. Remember, any exercise is good exercise. Even going for a brisk one-hour walk will burn 260 calories!

Do you do any of these exercises? What is your favourite way of getting fit?