Short on time and motivation?
Short on time and motivation? Learn how to keep fit and strong the smart way.
For me, training smart means getting the maximum results in minimum time and of course enjoying it along the way. That’s why I’m such a fan of High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) workouts. The flexibility, variety and short time that it takes to keep my body fit and strong with HIIT really suits my busy lifestyle.
The big advantage to HIIT workouts is they can be modified to suit people of all fitness levels and with people with special conditions, so this training works very well for many of my clients too. Whether you like cycling, walking, swimming, swimming, elliptical cross training, or group exercise classes you can incorporate HIIT into your exercise and see the results.
So why choose HIIT over continuous endurance workouts?
HIIT workouts provide similar fitness benefits as continuous endurance workouts, but in shorter periods of time and this is a real plus for most of us who are trying to find time to fit in exercise. HIIT workouts tend to burn more calories than traditional workouts, especially after the workout. So you are burning calories long after you have finished you HIIT session! As well as a great calorie burner HIIT has been shown to improve both aerobic and anaerobic fitness, reduce blood pressure, improve cardiovascular health, improve insulin sensitivity & cholesterol profiles, effectively burn abdominal fat and reduce body weight while maintaining muscle mass.
So what does a 20-minute home HIIT workout look like?
I am going to show you a great way to get fit quick with no equipment and no gym needed! After a warm up and stretch, pick four bodyweight exercises (ideally one upper body, one for lower body, one for the core and one cardio blast) and write them down on a piece of paper. Set a timer for two intervals (e.g. 40 seconds and 10 seconds). Set your number of rounds (e.g. 20 would mean repeating these four exercises five times).
Here’s an example:
- Press ups
- Squats
- Plank
- Jumping Jacks
One round of my workout looks like this:
- Press ups 40 seconds
- Rest 10 seconds
- Squats 40 seconds
- Rest 10 seoncds
- Plank 40 seconds
- Rest 10 seconds
- Jumping Jacks 40 seconds
- Rest 10 seconds
Total 200 seconds (3 minutes 20 seconds) I complete this set of four exercises five times =1000 seconds = Just over 16 minutes!
Cool down and stretch well.