Tabata – it’s the new word on the fitness grapevine and it’s certainly making waves. A system of short, high-intensity intervals developed by Japanese professor Dr Izumi Tabata to improve the training and fitness of Olympic speed skaters. The method is behind it is timing – everything is based on 20 seconds of work followed by a 10 second rest, then repeated between six and eight times. The total workout comes in at around 4 minutes, but don’t be fooled by the time – this is 4 minutes of hard work at your absolute maximum effort. The small intervals force the body to keep moving before it recovers from the previous set of exercises. At some point between rounds six and eight, the body reaches its maximum oxygen intake so you’ll find that your muscles begin to shake and your lungs begin to burn around this point. But the best bit is that the aerobic and anaerobic pathways fires up the afterburn effect so you’ll be burning calories long after you finish your workout. This exercise strategy is certainly more of a formula than a set workout, but the options for Tabata are almost endless – it’s a really flexible way of exercising. Whatever you enjoy doing, you can make up the workout from that – from push-ups to swimming, the intervals can be created from anything. These are some of the best ones to really get your heart rate up and improve your muscle tone.
Burpees
Start standing, then crouch to a low squat with your hands on the floor. Kick your feet back to a plank, then down into the bottom of a push-up. Push off the ground and quickly return to the squat position, then jump as high as possible before squatting down again and jumping back into the next push-up.
Jump Squat
Begin with your feet hip-width apart, toes pointing forward, then sit back into a squat. Drive your whole body up through the heels, shifting your weight onto the balls of your feet as you lift off. Make sure that you land on the balls of the feet and immediately bend your knees into a full squat.
Lunge Jump
Start by standing with your feet together and then lunge the right foot forward, bending the knee about 90 degrees and keeping your torso vertical. Jump straight up and then switch legs while you’re in the air, ensuring that you lunge with the left foot forward.
Dumbbell Front Squat
Hold a dumbbell at the centre of your chest and do a basic front squat. Place your feet a little wider than shoulder-width apart, with your hips stacked over your knees, knees over ankles. Inhale and unlock your hips, bringing them back as the knees begin to bend, keeping your chest and shoulders upright. Continue until your hips are slightly less than 90 degrees from the ground, and then on the way back up, engage the core and drive through the heels until you’ve returned to standing.
Kettlebell Swing
Standing up straight with your feet slightly wider than hip-distance apart, then grab hold of the kettlebell with both hands – keep your palms face down and your arms in front of your body. Keep your knees slightly bent and drive the hips and bell back, but remember that it’s not a squat so the knees shouldn’t bend that much. In one fluid motion, explosively drive the hips forward while swinging the kettlebell, engaging the glutes and core.
