Wednesday, November 19, 2014

Weekly Workout: 20 minute Tabata Workout

No excuse not to do this weekly workout! It may be short, but it is one of the more intense workouts you can do. It's High Intensity Interval Training and it will work your whole body! The workout is simple and each set is just 4 minutes. You will do 5 sets for a total of 20 minutes. For those of you who are unfamiliar with Tabata, it is essentially this routine (you will do 5 of these sets):

  • Workout hard for 20 seconds
  • Rest for 10 seconds
  • Complete eight rounds
For more information on Tabata, see this website: What is Tabata Training. High intensity Interval Training has been shown to substantially increase both the aerobic and anaerobic systems. 
Sprints!
The Workout:
Warm up for 2 miles. Choose a hill, it can be steep or not, but choose a hill that is not too technical since you will be sprinting up it at your highest intensity possible for the first set of reps. For more ideas on great Tabata exercises, see 11 Butt Kicking Tabata Exercises. The list below is designed specifically for runners. It's tough, I'm not gonna lie! Remember the point is to do as many reps as possible in the 20 seconds and to fully rest for 10. For running, you sprint as fast as you can. 

Beginners: Please do this very mindfully your first few times. If you are not used to High Intensity Interval Training, you could injure yourself. Better to back off and increase intensity as your body gets used to it! If you are under 30 miles of running a week, please just do 8-12 minutes of this workout, instead of 20 minutes. So you will choose 2-3 of the sets instead of all 5. 

What you need: 
Timer/stop watch/or interval timing

Set 1 (4min) SPRINTS, hills
  • Sprint up the hill for 20 seconds
  • Rest for 10 seconds
  • Complete 8 rounds for a total of 4 minutes
Set 2 (4min) PUSHUPS
  • Pushups 20 seconds, again as high intensity as possible (as many reps as possible)
  • Rest for 10 seconds
  • Complete 8 rounds for a total of 4 minutes
Set 3 (4 min) SPRINTS, flat
  • Sprint on flat for 20 seconds
  • Rest for 10 seconds
  • Complete 8 rounds for a total of 4 minutes
Set 4 (4 min) SQUATS
  • Squats for 20 seconds, again as many reps as possible
  • Rest for 10 seconds
  • Complete 8 rounds for a total of 4 minutes
Set 5 (4 min) BURPEES (how to do a burpee)
  • As many burpees as possible for 20 seconds
  • Rest for 10 seconds
  • Complete 8 rounds for a total of 4 minutes
You're done! Now do a 1 mile easy cool down. 

Overachievers Challenge: If you've been doing the overachievers challenge, then you did 2 days of clean eating last week and a yoga class, congrats! I'm impressed! This week, keep the 2 days of clean eating and add another yoga class, yep that's 2 yoga classes. Also try to do 1-2 of the other weekly challenges as your quality runs. 

3 comments:

  1. The PadreNovember 23, 2014 at 9:56 PM

    I wasn't ready for this. Thought I would be able to pull this off but the burpees burned out the cardiovascular system. Honestly, I totally half a$$ed the third set, like a fish out of water.

    ReplyDelete
  2. AnonymousNovember 27, 2014 at 3:31 PM

    It's been a while since I ouked from running. Cool, thanks.

    ReplyDelete
  3. ElizaJuly 16, 2015 at 1:19 AM

    Thanks for your nice post. Tabata training is an awesome addition to any routine. Tabata intervals, like other HIIT methods, are also anabolic and help to increase or maintain lean muscle mass where sometimes longer duration cardio can have the opposite effect. Excellent way to go that extra mile with fitness levels! http://www.ahealthdiary.com/2015/07/what-is-tabata-training.html

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