For those who are uninitiated, cardio workouts are actually the types of exercises that are rigorous in nature. They are termed so because they are instrumental in raising an individual's heart rate and keep it that way for a substantial period of time. The term cardio relates to the word cardiovascular which in turn refers to the heart and circulatory system of our body.

Some of the typical workouts that fall in the category of cardio workouts are jogging, rapid walking, swimming and skipping to name a few. At times they are also referred to as aerobic exercises.

Cardio workouts are greatly beneficial for weight loss as they help in burning more calories than what one intakes through the day or rather the previous day. To lose weight it is essential to use up more calories than what we have consumed by eating food.

Some experts feel slow and steady is the best way to benefit from cardio workouts for weight loss. They claim that slow and steady cardio workouts burn the fat better and thus one loses weight better and faster. They prefer doing cardio work outs for long durations, ideally for an hour or so. Such experts also believe that cardio workouts intensify the metabolism of the body which helps in feeling energetic and sleep better. One who feels energetic and sleeps well will obviously look better too. They also claim that slow and steady cardio workouts also help in preserving body joints.

Then, there are advocates of intense cardio workouts. These experts recommend cardio work outs for limited periods of 25-30 minutes. They include different cardio workouts in their daily regimen and intermittently keep changing them leaving a short duration of rest between two types of cardio workouts.

They claim that cardio workouts when done this way help in burning more calories and help in reducing weight faster.

Dr. Jonathan Myers of American Heart Association says regular exercises help in not just reducing body weight but also in lowering blood pressure and bad cholesterol while increasing good cholesterol, insulin sensitivity and exercise tolerance.

Some other experts claim regular cardio workouts not just help in weight loss but also in strengthening the heart and the lungs as well as increasing lung capacity.

Another big advantage of cardio workouts is that they are great stress busters.

While doing various cardio workouts a thirty minute personal training may burn different amounts of calories. For example; brisk walking may burn 180 calories, running - 300, bicycling - nearly 300 or more and swimming may help you in burning 400 calories in the same amount of time. If you are adventurous then rowing may burn nearly 330 calories for you while rock climbing can help you burn approximately 350 calories in 30 minutes.

But remember, doing cardio workouts occasionally won't help you in losing weight. Regular cardio workouts are a must for weight loss.

If you do regular cardio workouts yet continue eating junk food or lead an unhealthy lifestyle it won't help much either.

The best way to gain highest advantage from cardio workouts for weight loss therefore is to follow a regular workout regime while eating a healthy diet and leading a healthy lifestyle.