Fitness

The Toughest Workout I’ve Ever Done… In 4 Minutes!

Yes, 4 minutes and I found myself dripping in sweat, gasping for air, and pretty much throwing out the white flag.

Meet Tabata. This is going to be your new best friend that you love to hate. Tabata is a form of high intensity interval training that originates from Japan. It takes just 4 minutes to complete, but rest assured, you are working to your absolute max and will see results.

Depending on what you fitness goals are (fat loss, muscle endurance, strength gains, etc.) you will pick several exercises and work at maximum intensity for 20 seconds with 10 seconds of rest between each for a total of 4 minutes.

Here’s a sample of a Tabata workout that I have used myself:

Squats w/ 15 lb. dumbbells
Push Ups on toes
Squats w/ 15 lb. dumbbells
Assisted Pull Ups
Push Ups on toes
Assisted Pull Ups
Medicine ball slams
Tuck Jumps (jump and lift knees upward into chest, land in squat position)

Do you have 4 minutes to spare? 20 seconds all out! 10 seconds of recovery in between for 8 rounds.

The benefits to this type of high intensity training go beyond just the fact that it is over in 4 minutes. Tabata helps to improve both our aerobic and anaerobic threshold, offering a fast, efficient and convenient way to improve our cardiovascular endurance. This can be done anywhere and, being just 4 minutes, at any time.

Here’s a sample Tabata workout using nothing other than your own body weight. No weights or fancy gadgets, just you and your timer!

Push Ups
Bodyweight squats
Push Ups
Alternating jump lunges
Bodyweight squats
Alternating jump lunges
Mountain Climbers (in plank position, draw 1 knee into chest. Alternate at fastest pace possible)
High Knees (run in place, lifting knees above hips)

Now remember, you are going at your absolute highest intensity on every exercise for every second. It is strongly suggested that you take the time to properly warm up prior and cool down after when doing Tabata training. And, just like every other form of exercise, this should be one of many types of exercise that you incorporate into your routine. The more variety we have, the more results we’ll keep seeing.