Tabata: The Most Diabolically Effective Training Ever Conceived By Man

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Just thumbed through the latest Muscle and Fitness magazine and was re-inspired about one of my favourite ways of training – the Tabata Interval Method. It’s been a while since I tried it, so now I’m back on and am once again forcefully reminded of what extreme muscle soreness is all about. If you’re stuck in a rut, this “kick in the groin” type of routine will definitely wake you up.

It’s really the title that caught my eye: 20/10: A Pain Odyssey. It’s not for the faint of heart, let me tell you. It can make a grown man cry, (not that I was doing so, harrumph). But you WILL endure a lot of pain if you push yourself.

Here’s a quote I love from their article:

“Tabata Interval training is so far out of the three-sets-of-ten-reps box, it doesn’t even speak the same language.“

So, as the author states, “your days of resting longer than actually lifting are history, if you try this routine. You will actually be doing the opposite and will lift for twice as long as you break.”

Therefore you’ll:

1. Do as many reps as possible for twenty seconds,
2. Rest for ten seconds
3. Repeat seven more times!
4. Move on to the next exercise

Simple right? Eight sets of “as many reps as you can get done,” followed with a brief ten second rest. But don’t forget, this isn’t “eight sets of eight.” Try “as many reps as you can get in during the twenty seconds, followed by ten seconds rest.

You will not be throwing up large poundages. Typically, you’ll be using “50%-75% of what you’d use for a typical set of 8-12 reps, depending on the exercise. The best options for the Tabata Method are exercises that use a large number of muscles. Use the “lowest rep number” of any of the eight sets as your measurement to compare workout to workout. If you go too heavy, that last set may be 2-3 reps. If you go too light, you might get around 15 reps or more.

And by the way, those ten seconds go by fast. Don’t even think about getting a drink, looking in the mirror, or talking to the cutie on the bike. Ten second is ten seconds! No cheating! Besides, if you do it right, six seconds should be used for grimacing in pain – wohoo!

So why should you do this workout? The Tabata program might be the single best “fat burning workout” that I know, not to mention the increase in VO₂max. It’s not long, but it keeps you sweating, breathing hard and teaches the mental focus needed to help reach your goals.

Let me tell you, after a week on this baby, you will know all about a new “alien” muscle language. It’s one of extreme lactic acid buildup, agonizing bouts of soreness, and days of uncomfortable movement due to sore muscles.

Besides burning off tons of bodyfat, what can this type of training do for you?

• Improve your cardio-vascular function (aerobic endurance)
• Improve your anaerobic endurance
• Improve your muscular endurance
• Make you strong and fit and look fantastic

You got it right! It increases both aerobic (endurance) capacity and anerobic (quick power) output – two things that don’t typically go hand in hand. How’s that for a training method – yeah baby, yeah!

I think this type of routine is extremely beneficial because it includes 2-4 exercises per bodypart, unlike traditional Tabata training, which is usually one exercise per major muscle group. Once finished eight sets of a given exercise, you will then rest 2-3 minutes before repeating the same painful journey into the next exercise.

I took this excellent workout from a blog called “Healthhabits“. This guy (a Personal Trainer from Toronto, Canada) has some great advice on this type of training. Well worth a read -  go check it out. Anyways, here it is:

Workout # 1

1. Vertical Push Movement
2. Horizontal Pull Movement
3. Quadriceps Dominant Movement
4. Core Stabilization – focus on Spinal Flexion & Extension
5. Vertical Push Movement – optional
6. Horizontal Pull Movement – optional
7. Quadriceps Dominant Movement – optional

• Feel free to re-arrange the order of Exercises 1, 2 and 3. It doesn’t really make a difference.
• Sets 5 to 7 are for advanced athletes only. Remember, intensity is the key to Tabata success. Don’t try and pace yourself in order to add another set. Go full out on each set. Believe me, 4 sets of full intensity Tabatas should be enough to have you soaking wet with sweat and bordering on nausea.

Workout # 2

1. Vertical Pull Movement
2. Horizontal Push Movement
3. Hamstrings/Glute Dominant Movement
4. Core Stabilization – focus on Rotation and Lateral Flexion
5. Vertical Pull Movement – optional
6. Horizontal Push Movement – optional
7. Hamstring/Glute Dominant Movement – optional

• Feel free to re-arrange the order of Exercises 1, 2 and 3. It doesn’t really make a difference.
• Sets 5 to 7 are for advanced athletes only. Remember, intensity is the key to Tabata success. Don’t try and pace yourself in order to add another set. Go full out on each set. Believe me, 4 sets of full intensity Tabatas should be enough to have you soaking wet with sweat and bordering on nausea.

Vertical Push Movement

• 1 Arm Overhead Press
• 1 Arm or 2 Arm Push Presses
• 1 Arm Grappler Presses
• Side Presses
• Thrusters – 1 Arm or 2

Horizontal Pull Movement

• 1 Arm Standing Cable Row or Band Row
• Body-weight Row – use an adjustable power rack or Smith machine. This allows you to modify the angle of pull and the percentage of body-weight. Also, change your grips from set to set – width, underhand, overhand
• 1 Arm or 2 Arm Seated Rows – I prefer the standing rows because of their high demand for stabilization, but the seated version is pretty good as well
• Avoid any bent-over movements – Your lower back will fail long before the rest of you

Quadriceps Dominant Movement

• Front Squats – Dumbbells or Barbell
• Body-weight or Weighted Vest Squats – 1 Leg or 2
• Overhead Squats – 1 Arm or 2, 1 Leg or 2
• Quad Dominant Lunges – Lunge forward onto the ball of your foot AND keep your step short and allow the knee to travel past your toes…I know, I know, everyone says not to lunge this way, but it really hits the quads. BTW, take a look at how far your knee travels past your toes as you climb a flight of stairs…ooooh scary stuff.
• Bench Step-Ups
• Bulgarian Lunge/Squat

Core Stabilization – focus on Spinal Flexion & Extension

• Standing Cable or Band Crunch
• The Ab Wheel
• Leg raises/Knee-Ups / Crunches (various) - I would skip these exercises – you will fatigue quickly and you will probably have to cheat to complete all 8 sets

Vertical Pull Movement

• Chin-Ups/Pull-Ups – Palms facing you, palms facing away, neutral grip, towel grip, offset grip , assisted
• Pulldowns – 1 Arm or 2, different grips, kneeling, seated, standing
• Hanging Snatch or Hanging Clean – 1 Arm or 2, dumbbell, barbell, kettlebell

Horizontal Push Movement

• Push-Ups – like the Body-weight Row, use a Smith machine to adjust angles and body-weight resistance. Also, adjust hand placement (width, overhand, underhand) from set to set. Trust me, switching grips will increase the number of reps you will be able to perform
• 1 Arm Standing Cable Press or Band Presses
• Stay away from any standard bench press type exercise. The lactic acid will hit way too soon. You will never get a good Tabata workout…trust me. The cable/band exercise is the best choice. Even the push-ups allow you to use your legs and core to help perform the lift. You need these extra muscles to take some of the load

Hamstring/Glute Dominant Movement

• 1 Leg Deadlifts
• Glute – Ham Raise
• Hip Extensions – Band or Body-weight
• Pull-throughs – Band or cable

Core Stabilization – focus on Rotation and Lateral Flexion

• Wood-chops - play around with different angles
• Barbell Russian Twist
• Tornado ball or
  
• Windshield Wipers – Bent Leg or Straight Leg

.

Your 2009 Resolution: High Intensity Training For Optimal Results

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As a personal trainer, I know that many people will make a New Year’s Resolutions to take on a fitness program. Good for you. However, if you are like most who train, you will fall into a rut fairly quickly with the same daily workout. What do I mean by that? Go to your local gym and watch how others cycle mile after mile on the stationary bike until they reach a certain calorie count or jog day after day to achieve a certain distance. After a few months, your body will adapt to this type of steady state training and refuse to cooperate further.

The truth is that many may be spending enough time working out each week, but they are not working out efficiently. For starters, the most efficient workout is NOT the typical steady state cardio training at 60 – 70% of your max heart rate. Neither is it the most healthy. Many scientists now believe long steady state cardio can degenerate joints, reduce immune function, cause muscle wasting, and induce a pro-inflammatory response in the body, potentially leading to potentially chronic diseases.

On top of that, long cardio sessions can be quite boring and time consuming, to the point where you enjoy leaving the gym more than coming. A love/hate relationship with your fitness program is not a long term success formula. It creates a situation where it is difficult to maintain and follow a regimented routine of low intensity workouts tied to the calorie counter on your machine. What matters most is not how many calories you actually burn doing your workout, but rather training to get your body to burn more calories while actually away from the gym.

So, what works best then? The ultimate method for burning off that unwanted body fat is short bouts of high intensity training. Studies indicate that high intensity aerobic training can be up to 50% more efficient than low intensity exercise. It speeds up the metabolism to the point that the fat burning effects can be maintained long after the workout has terminated.

Although effort wise these type of workouts are highly challenging, time wise they are not. If you can perform three to four 20 minute sessions per week’ gradually increasing the intensity of the effort over specified timed intervals, then you will have good success.

First, select the particular form of cardio you enjoy, but which you should vary periodically. Then you need to work out a personal intensity index for that exercise. Use a scale from 1 to 10 where 5 may be considered light for you and 10 is an all-out effort. This intensity is solely based on your perception. An experienced sprinter may take training to level 10 but if you haven’t run in years, this is not a good level for you as it will produce a symphony of muscle ache. Adjust it to your present fitness level and challenge yourself within your limits.

So, a beginner high intensity interval training session on the stationary bike, for example, would look like this:

Perform a 3-4 minutes warm-up at a low setting. Then use the following guidelines:

• Interval 1 – pedal at level 6, with a fairly high RPM for 1 minute
• Interval 2 – pedal at level 2 for 1.5 minutes
• Interval 3 – pedal at level 8 with a fairly high RPM for 1 minute
• Interval 4 – pedal at level 2 for 1.5 minutes

Repeat those 4 intervals 4 times for a 20-minute workout. Obviously you need to adjust the RPM based on your current level of fitness.

A much more intense training level would look like this:

• Begin with a 2 minute warm-up.

• Jump to level 6 for 1 minute.Increase intensity to level 7 for 1 minute.

• Increase intensity to level 8 for 1 minute.

• Increase intensity to level 9 for 1 minute

• Drop down to level 6 for 1 minute

• Repeat the process again twice

• After the third interval and at beginning of the last (19th) minute, kick it up a notch to level 10 for an all out 1 minute assault.

• Drop down to level 5 for a cool-down

That’s it – you’re finished. Make sure you bring a towel because you will need it at this time!

Of course, continued intensity must be monitored on paper by continually adjusting either the time levels or RPM levels. These make a huge difference.

So as I have shown, high intensity interval training is a quick and efficient method for losing body fat. It is more efficient than steady state cardio and takes less time to perform – an overall win-win situation. Remember to follow a healthy (not calorie or nutrient restricted) diet and always check with your physician before embarking on a new exercise regimen.

The Famous 20 Minute (Have It All) Exercise Session

Editors Comment: There are a lot of fancy exercise systems available today, and it seems the prices keep rising, along with the zen-like oceans of fancy rhetoric and half-page pull quotes. However, the best systems are still the most simple. The article below gives a great workout by Bryce Lane

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The Famous 20 Minute (Have It All) Exercise Session

The basics

I have thougth many times about one workout that could give you “it all” or as close to it as possible. A simple, short, to the point workout where you would get stronger in a very practical sense, increase your work capacity and conditioning level and add bulk if you eat like you mean business. A no-nonsense workout that could take you from dweeb to superhuman for the price of blood, sweat and twenty minutes of your TeeVee time a few days a week. I got the basic idea for this from an article by Charles Staley called “Escalating density training” which was more about bodybuilding. This is a great deal more general and is aimed at people who want “the big picture”, and the bigger the better.

Here’s how it works. For twenty minutes you do as many reps as you can of your chosen compound exercise, squats, deadlifts, power cleans or snatches, clean & presses etc. You do this twice a week. You use the same weight throught the twenty minutes. About 75-80% of your gym-maximun in good clean form is fine to start. Begin with something you can easily do and add as you can.

Do sets of twos, threes or even fives or tens, your choice, mix it up if you need to. Do a set and when you are able to focus again, then do another. When you can get the right number of reps in that twenty minutes then up the weight 5-10% next time and work up again. I like 10% jumps since I tend to do better with a bigger drop in volume and more of a challenge with the weight. However if you like the more gradual approach then by all means, use it.

I try to shoot for fifty in that twenty minutes since that number both keeps up my heart rate and breathing and makes it possible for me to use heavy weight in the 75-85% range. However the number you choose could just as well be anywhere between 20 (anything less than this isn’t really doing much) and 100 reps (higher than this and the weight may be too small). If you can do 100 reps with 1.5 x bodyweight in 20 min. in the squat then you are one very conditioned individual with plenty of useful strength as well. That’s something to shoot for; or 50 reps 2 x bodyweight in 20 min. in the squat or 50 reps x bodyweight in the barbell clean and press are other worthy goals. I’m sure you can see the idea.

Here are a few exercise combinations you might consider:

My Favorite:

Mon/Thur.– Barbell Clean & press-20min

Tues/Fri– OL Squat -20min

Another:

Mon/Thur–Deadlift–20min

Tues/Fri–Dips + chins supersetted-20min. (there are many combinations to do this way)

Or:

Mon/Thurs–DB Clean & Press–20min

Tues/Fri–DB Farmers walk–20min (intervals of as long as you can go instead of reps)

For odd object fanatics

Mon/thur–Barrel or sandbag clean & press–20 min.

Tues/fri–heavy object carry for distance–20min (intervals of as long as you can go instead of reps)

Or:

Mon/thurs–Rock or barrel lift –20min

Tue/Fri–Sandbag curl& press, Farmers walk each 20min. (if you are very-very serious)

You get the idea. Use compound exercises that will get your heart and lungs going along with everything else. If you want to do an assistance exercise or two, do them afterwards and not too many of them. For most of you that won’t be much of a problem for obvious reasons. I like doing rockovers (tilt up barbell then support in balance with one hand) and curls. When you are finished, lay down, get your breath back and go have a carton of milk, a protein drink, or eat a nice big meal. You just earned it.

At the same time you have done many lifts with a high percentage of your max, you have gotten your heart and lungs working “overtime-plus”, you have done a great deal of “work” in the mechanical sense, and you have only used twenty minutes to do the whole job.

If you start by doing 30 reps with say 300# in the squat and after a couple of sessions you get fifty, You are of course stronger, you have increased your conditioning and work capacity and if you eat enough decent food you will likely increase your muscle mass also. You can pretty much forget about all the complicated set/rep and weekly schemes and simply concentrate on doing more work in your alloted time. When you reach fifty reps or your chosen number, then you increase the weight and work up again.

Helpers

Is it really that simple? For the most part, yes. However not everything is so smooth sometimes, you will have staleness and reverses eventually. Here are a few little detours to make sure your progress continues.

The first is to take a week off from the regular work and do only heavy singles. Go in and work up to one to three reasonably heavy singles in your chosen lifts, You can do this every day or every other day. I like every day, but some people don’t get along well with that and should go every other day or monday/wed/friday. Some of you may find it useful to do three weeks of the regular twenty minute sets and then on the last week of the four, do the singles, find out how much stronger you are now and get a little bit of a rest before you go full out again.

Another approach is suppose you simply can’t get past 300# x40 in your twenty minutes of squatting? You can keep hammering away or you can increase the weight to 325# or 330#, then work up to thirty with that, then drop back to the 300#’s and get the fifty much easier. You can also take all the time you like to get the correct number of reps and then aim for decreasing the time it takes you to do them till you get down under 20min.

Yet another is for if you are more interested in the conditioning aspect or tend to run out of breath quicker than you might like. You drop the weight a bit and work towards doing many more reps than fifty. Use that as a starting point and shoot for the moon. Work up to one hundred reps if you can. If you can do that with anything over 1.5x bodyweight then there is not much in nature, sports, work or life that will wear you out.

One more idea is to pick a similar exercise and change to that one for awhile. It should be very similar though. Switching from full squats to leg presses, isn’t going to be a big help, but changing from squats to, front squats or deadlifts would be fine. You will still be getting plenty of work, that’s for sure!

One way to arrange a program using a couple of these strategies is:

Three weeks:

Mon/Thurs –BB Clean & Press–20min

Tues/Fri–OL Squats–20 min

One week

M,W,F,–BB Clean & press–work up to near max single

T,Th, Sat,–OL Squat–work up to near max singl

Three weeks

Mon/thur–Bench press–20min

Tues/Fri– Deadlift, trap bar Deadlift or high pull–20min

One week

Mon/thur–Bench press– work up to near max single

Tues/Fri– Deadlift, trap bar Deadlift or high pull– work up to near max single

And so on in a two month repeating cycle. There are other ways using these ideas also that you can easily imagine on your own.

This is “the whole enchilada” so to say. I could make this a much longer article but it really is this simple. You can get stronger, better conditioned, and even bigger in twenty minutes a day, four days a week. If there is a better deal out there, buy it, then write me!

Source: www.ironsports.tv

The HIIT Revolution For Fat Burning Success

Editors Comment: The following is one of those great articles which are a pleasure to read. It was written by Troy M. Anderson, the owner of Integrated Evolution, LLC, of Tempe, Arizona. Troy is often referred to as “the McGyver of coaching” for his unique ability to build effective fitness programs using only the most basic equipment.

This article highlights the variety of HIIT programs available and provides several examples reaching into the realm of enhanced performance, to help you get both lean and functional.

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The HIIT Revolution For Fat Burning Success

by Troy M. Anderson

Many people seem to think that each of the top-level coaches in the industry swear only by their own systems, and anyone who disagrees with them be damned. While this may be true on some levels, there is one area of training upon which damn near everyone agrees.

Chad Waterbury has a specific program about it in his book, Berardi and Thibaudeau have both written excellent articles on the topic, and barely a spare moment goes by without hearing Cosgrove blab on and on about it. Hell, even TC re-published an article he wrote on the topic. What is this topic that seems to have everyone nodding in agreement? It’s High Intensity Interval Training, otherwise known as HIIT.

Some of you may be thinking that if all these guys have shared their knowledge on the topic, what could I possibly have to share that would be worthwhile to read? Well, stick with me with for another paragraph and I’ll let you know exactly what you can expect to get out of it.

The goal of this article is to share some where-the-rubber-meets-the-road tips on how to set up a HIIT program that suits you best, whether you’re a confused newbie or a seasoned veteran who’s tired of running sprints. So, what’s all the hype about?

A Burn of EPOC proportions

If you haven’t heard of or read all of Alwyn Cosgrove’s research articles on how superior HIIT is for fat loss, let me get you up to speed. When done correctly, HIIT will produce something called EPOC (Excess Post-Exercise Oxygen Consumption).

What exactly does this mean to you? It means that when you get done with a session you should be out of breath, sweating profusely, and a little weak in the legs. And you can wipe that smirk off your face: I am notdescribing a ‘workout’ with Mindi and Cindi from the Ol’ Bump and Grind Club.

Two birds with one stone

Not only will you be incinerating all that unwanted fat, but you’ll also have the chance to build slabs of muscle on your glutes and hamstrings at the same time.

Efficiency

An intense, focused session of HIIT training should take about 30 minutes including your rest intervals and will have you burning fat for the rest of the day. That’s efficiency in my book.

Even with this impressive list of benefits there are still plenty of people who don’t utilize this type of training in their programs. Many of them are of the Baggypantis stringtanktopius variety.

Normally, this type of training wouldn’t be a problem. Unfortunately, these dangerous animals have been known to promote the use and “superiority” of slow, steady-state cardio to the world of fitness competitors, urging them to perform upwards of 3 hours a day. Isn’t that like a part-time job?

Along with the urban legend of steady-state cardio as the be-all and end-all of fat-loss and physique-shaping exercises, here are a few other obstacles that might keep people from adding HIIT to their programs:

Sprinting. This is the most commonly prescribed drill to use for performing HIIT. Sprinting is a significant problem because you probably never learned the proper way to sprint, unless you come from an athletic background. That night you ran from the police during a frat party when you were 19? Sorry, doesn’t count.

Solution: You sprint. More specifically, you perform Hill Sprints. Because of the incline of the hill, you will immediately fall into good running form using high knee drive and elbow drive. Most people will automatically fall into this correct running pattern, which is facilitated by the necessity of climbing the hill.

Mentally daunting to perform. Make no bones about it. HIIT is hard. As a matter of fact, it’s so daunting that it becomes very easy to talk one’s self out of an HIIT training. Trust me. I’ve been there and done that.

Solution: Find a training partner. If you’re currently training, odds are you already have a training partner. If you don’t, I’d bet money there is someone you know who would like to be doing some HIIT but doesn’t want to do it on his/her own. Not only will a training partner ensure that you actually perform HIIT training, but you’ll likely increase the intensity of your session by challenging each other to go faster.

Can’t go outside and run? I find it a little hard to believe that there are actually people who can’t go outside to train. It is more likely that some individuals would just rather stay inside. Of course, during certain times of the year, there are places you really can’t go outside.

Solution: I have developed a couple of programs for cranking up your indoor HIIT session without being stuck performing sprint intervals on a recumbent bike or banging away on a treadmill. I discuss these programs later in this article.

Need a change of pace. I’m sure there are some hardened veterans out there who’ve let their programs slip for no other reason than they’re just bored with lining up, sprinting in a straight line, and repeating.

Solution: Along with the new indoor programs detailed below, you’ll also find a few new outdoor training programs guaranteed to break the monotony of straight line sprints.

HIIT Warm-Up

Before we get to the programming portion, we do need to warm up. A warm-up is absolutely critical because of the intensity involved when performing HIIT. It’s not uncommon for individuals to experience some sort of major soft tissue injury because they improperly warmed up. This leaves a bad taste in their mouth about HIIT training. Case in point, at a recent dinner with my wife and another couple, I was the only one who hadn’t had either a major soft tissue injury while sprinting or experienced one of the other obstacles listed above.

Below is a warm-up session that I have effectively used to keep my clients and athletes injury-free during their HIIT sessions. You’ll need a course that is 10-20 yards in length. All drills are to be performed at one (1) repetition for a round trip.

Drill 1 – High Knee
Drill 2 – Butt Kicker
Drill 3 – Lateral Shuffle
Drill 4 – Carioca
Drill 5 – High Skip
Drill 6 – Gorilla Walks

HIIT Programs for Indoor/At-Home Enthusiasts

There are plenty of unconventional pieces of equipment that one can use to build a really effective and fresh HIIT training. Equipment like kettlebells, sleds, sandbags, etc. are very good tools for this type of training. That said, I am going to limit the scope of the programs in this article to only include exercises and items that the average trainee will be able to do or have available at a moment’s notice. We’ll save all the really cool things that you can do with the above not-so-conventional implements for another article

These first few programs are designed for those who want to dust off their pieces of home fitness equipment (a.k.a. the treadmill or recumbent bike) or would like to perform intervals at their commercial gym.

Note: Most of these programs will require that you grab a dumbbell or two and take a hike over to the cardio equipment. I can’t imagine most gyms being huge sticklers about this. However, if this is the case, and although it might be a pain, I’d recommend that you pause your piece of equipment, walk over to the dumbbell area, perform your high intensity training and then walk back. Actually, I’m pretty sure you will appreciate the extra time to rest as you walk back to your cardio equipment.

Indoor Litivinovs — Yeah, I stole this idea from the genius named Dan John. This one is a beauty because of its simplicity.

Equipment:

1) Interval — 1 moderately heavy dumbbell
2) Cardio — Treadmill

Intervals:

Perform a work interval of two-hand dumbbell swings by grasping the dumbbell by its head and performing swings. The goal here, as it is for each of the work intervals described below, is to perform as many swings (or snatches or thrusters or whatever) as you possibly can before moving to your rest interval.

Perform your rest interval by walking on the treadmill.

Vertical Power Interval — This is another treadmill-dumbbell variation.

Equipment:

1) Interval — 1 moderately heavy dumbbell
2) Cardio — Treadmill

Intervals:

Perform a work interval of dumbbell snatches. Since this is a unilateral exercise, I recommend alternating your snatching arm for each interval.

Perform your rest interval on the treadmill by doing steep incline walking.

Note: If you’re a beginner, a 6-8% incline would be most appropriate. If you are advanced, use a 10-15% incline. I do not recommend jogging or running during this set of intervals. Walk at a pace of approximately 3.0 to 4.5 mph.

Total Body Blast Off — This combination utilizes a recumbent bike and a set of dumbbells.

Equipment:

1) Interval — 1 pair light to medium dumbbells
2) Cardio — Recumbent Bike

Intervals:

Perform a work interval of dumbbell thrusters. Thrusters are performed by holding the dumbbells at shoulder level and performing a squat that continues directly into an overhead press, immediately reverses direction back into a squat, and repeats.

Then perform your rest interval on the recumbent bike peddling at a rate and resistance that you perceive to be between a 5 and 7 on an RPE scale of 1-10, with 10 being most difficult.

Bare Minimum Circuit — This combination utilizes an elliptical and just your bodyweight. Logistically this may be be the easiest combination to perform in a very busy gym.

Equipment:

1) Interval — Your body
2) Cardio — Elliptical Machine

Intervals:

Perform a work interval of bodyweight squat thrust and jumps. Squat thrust and jumps are performed by completing a normal squat thrust, then exploding from the bottom position into a fully extended jump with arms reaching high overhead.

You’ll then absorb your landing with a partial squat and continue directly into the next repetition of the squat thrust. Then repeat.

Perform your rest interval on the elliptical at a rate and resistance that you perceive to be between a 5 and 7 on an RPE scale of 1-10, with 10 being most difficult.

Below is a basic progression chart. The two variables that are being progressively adjusted are the rest-to-work ratio and the total ratio. Both are being incrementally adjusted to ensure that you continue to develop higher levels of fitness as well as maintain appropriate levels of disturbance to ensure that you don’t plateau with your fat-loss goals.

Quick Notes:

Remember the first two letters in HIIT stand for High Intensity. This means that your work intervals need to be all-out. In other words, you need to perform as many reps as possible.

As you progress from beginner to advanced, you may need to adjust the intensity of your rest intervals. What as a beginner was an appropriate amount of rest may be too much rest as you become more advanced. In that case, simply increase the intensity of your rest interval (e.g., steeper incline on treadmill, higher level of rate and resistance on bike).

Generally speaking, at the completion of your “rest interval,” you should feel almost recovered.

HIIT Programs for Outdoor Enthusiasts

The following program is a simple outdoor running program. This is a High, Medium, and Low intensity running program I have used with my clients that has produced overall running fitness as well as assisting with aesthetic goals. Be sure to use the same warm-up sequence as above for this program.

General Guidelines

Day 1 — 100 meter sprints. These should be all-out sprints leaving nothing extra in the tank. This is the high intensity running day.

Day 2 – 400 meter sprints. Although these are termed sprints and you will be attempting to sprint, your speed will be significantly slower due to the added distance. This is the medium intensity running day.

Day 3 — 800 meter runs. Again, these runs will be a bit slower. However, the goal here is actually to add a little distance, thus working on general endurance. This is the low intensity running day.

This program has been designed with the intent of utilizing your local track. If you don’t have a track close by, you could use a soccer field. Each session should last approximately 35-45 minutes depending on how closely you stick to the rest interval protocols.

Lastly, I’d strongly recommend you give yourself at least one day of rest in between your high intensity running day and any kind of intense resistance training session that places a lot of demand on your lower body. This way you won’t have to compromise performance.

The last HIIT training in my bag of tricks is strictly for those who are a little on the masochistic side or want to do HIIT-type training but just don’t have enough time to commit to one of the more in-depth programs. For those of you who fit that description, welcome to Tabata hell! I’m sure many of you have heard of this protocol and maybe a few of you have even tried it out. If you have, you realize that I’m not joking about the “hell” part.

Tabata Protocol Background

The Tabata protocol is a conditioning protocol developed and studied by a Japanese researcher named, of all things, Dr. Tabata. He found that performing 20 seconds of max effort or 100% work level followed by 10 seconds of medium to low level work performed for a 4 minute work cycle was an extremely productive method for increasing both aerobic and anaerobic fitness. Now, before you go gangbusters with Tabata, understand that this may very well be the toughest 4 minutes you ever spend in your life. Okay, you’ve been warned.

There are a couple of drills I prefer for Tabata. They are similar in that they both hammer the legs, especially the posterior chain.

Drill 1 — This drill is for all of you who either cannot run because of orthopedic health or simply prefer not to run. Pick a medium weight kettlebell or dumbbell and perform two-hand swings for the entire Tabata protocol.

Drill 2 — This is about as simple as it gets. Find a space where you can measure off approximately 100 meters/yards. Again, soccer fields and tracks work very well. Once you have your spot, you’ll sprint during the 20 second work intervals and jog/walk during the 10 second rest intervals. When you reach one end of your 100 meters, just turn around and go back the other direction. It just doesn’t get much simpler than that.

Below I’ve sketched out exactly what the Tabata protocol looks like on paper, and how exactly you will need to set up your stop watch. This is probably the best damn 4 minutes of HIIT out there. Good Luck.

Work Interval #1 — 20 sec
Rest Interval #1 — 10 sec

Work Interval #2 — 20 sec
Rest Interval #2 — 10 sec

Work Interval #3 — 20 sec
Rest Interval #3 — 10 sec

Work Interval #4 — 20 sec
Rest Interval #4 — 10 sec

Work Interval #5 — 20 sec
Rest Interval #5 — 10 sec

Work Interval #6 — 20 sec
Rest Interval #6 — 10 sec

Work Interval #7 — 20 sec
Rest Interval #7 — 10 sec

Work Interval #8 — 20 sec
Rest Interval #8 — 10 sec

My whole goal in writing this article is to highlight the variety of HIIT programs available and to provide several programs that have worked successfully for my clients in both the realm of enhanced performance and aesthetic results. After all, doesn’t everyone desire to be both lean and functional?

Whether you are an athlete, bodybuilder, or someone who just wants to look good ‘nekkid,’ HIIT training should be a staple in your overall training plan. Hopefully, this article was able to shed a little more light on the importance of this aspect of training and show exactly how one should go about programming this type of training into an overall training cycle.