Challenge Of The Week: Tabata

 

Most of us live a busy live and there are a lot of individuals who simply claim that they don't have
time to exercise or to go to the gym for a long session workouts  The good news is that you don't need to long session  workout to burn some serious fat. All you need is four minutes.

This type of workout is a different form of High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) called Tabata. Tabata was discovered by Japanese scientist Dr. Izumi Tabata from the National Institute of Fitness and Sports in Tokyo. He found that high intensity training improved VO2 max (or your maximal oxygen consumption)  by about 14%, while anaerobic capacity improved by 28%. These effects will help you shed those extra pounds of fat, while also building lean muscle.

How To

The basis of Tabata workout is four minutes of HIIT.This form of HIIT is likely to be one of the longest four minutes you've ever endured. The structure of the program is as follows:

• Push yourself hard as can for 20 seconds
• Rest for 10 seconds
• Do/Complete eight sets

Tabata can be done with a number of different exercises. The idea is to use an exercise that gets the whole body involved, or at least the major muscle groups. Tabata can be done with dumbbells, barbells,  kettlebells or just your bodyweight.

Example of Tabata Workout:

High Knees / Jump Rope
Mountain Climbers
Jumping Lunges
Burpees

Note: Exercise for 20 seconds at maximum intensity.
Rest for 10 seconds.
Move on to the next exercise.
Repeat twice, giving you a total workout time of 4 minutes