Is Tabata Training Right for You?

Sometimes life seems like an endless juggling act, trying to meet the demands of family, work, and — oh, yeah — taking care of yourself. Wouldn’t it be nice if you could get in a good workout in just a few minutes? With Tabata or high-intensity interval training (HIIT), that just might be possible.

What Is Tabata Training?

Tabata training is a type of HIIT workout that compresses your workout time to as little as four minutes. With Tabata, you work out at maximum intensity for 20 seconds and rest for 10, completing this cycle eight times.

HIIT is a general term used for workouts made up of short periods of intense exercises alternated with short recovery periods. The typical HIIT workout lasts 10 to 30 minutes. For instance, a lunge workout would consist of performing as many lunges as quickly as possible for 30 to 90 seconds, then standing or walking for 30 to 90 seconds. The pattern is repeated for 10 to 20 minutes.

Either HIIT or Tabata can be done with various activities you already like to do, including sprinting, cycling, rowing or lunges.

Origins of Tabata Training

Japanese professor Dr. Izumi Tabata developed the workout in Tokyo to train Olympic speed skaters. Dr. Tabata performed a research study on the most effective way to build strength and endurance. One group of athletes did moderate intensity level workouts for one hour, five days a week. Another did high-intensity workouts that lasted four minutes and 20 seconds. After six weeks, the second group showed improvement in their aerobic (cardiovascular) and anaerobic (muscle) systems, while the first group only made progress in their aerobic system. The second group also experienced a more significant boost in their metabolisms.

How Does it Work?

The intensity of a Tabata workout puts your body in an anaerobic state — a condition where you work so hard it can’t deliver oxygen to your muscles fast enough. In this state, your body begins to use energy stored in the form of carbohydrates, protein and fat. Anaerobic workouts improve muscle strength and burn more fat than aerobic exercise. The short downtime between exercises prevents your body from fully recovering, which improves endurance over time.

One study showed that people who performed a 20-minute Tabata session improved their cardiorespiratory endurance and burned calories at a higher rate than ordinary exercise. Other research showed that it also decreases depression and anxiety and releases stress.

Other benefits of Tabata include the following:

• Boosts metabolism
• Builds lean muscle mass
• Raises heart rate

What Does a Tabata Workout Look Like?

Choose one or several exercises that will elevate your heart rate quickly and that you like to do. Some popular ones include running, jumping jacks, pushups, kettlebell swings, Russian twists and reverse lunges. Any that work a major muscle group are OK.

As with all workouts, begin with a warmup that stretches all major muscle groups.

Sample workout:

• Perform reverse lunges as quickly as you can for 20 seconds.
• Rest for 10 seconds.
• Repeat eight times.
• Rest for one minute if you are going to do multiple cycles.

If you do multiple cycles, you might choose exercises that work different muscle groups for a complete workout. For instance, if your first cycle was pushups, your second might be kettlebell swings or jumping jacks.

Be sure to rest at least one or two days between sessions, and perform sessions no more than three times per week. After such an intense workout, your body needs plenty of recovery time.

Who Can Do Tabata?

HIIT and Tabata can be adjusted to most fitness levels. Once you feel you can work at a higher intensity, increase slowly.

• Perform no more than five or six rounds of each exercise.
• Rest 20 to 30 seconds between each round.
• Limit yourself to one or two exercises per session.
• Work out once or twice a week with rest days in between.
• Stop if you develop pain or discomfort.
• Consult a trainer to ensure you are performing exercises correctly to prevent injury.

Tabata is a terrific way to get an intense workout in a brief time. It can help you improve endurance and speed and is great if you want to add variety to your exercise program.

It’s best to consult your health care provider before starting any new activity, but if you get the go-ahead, be sure to start slowly and build gradually.