Ask any of my clients what is Tabata training and you'll see a face full of dread, slightly weepy eyes and a vein in their forehead pulsing.
Tabata protocol as detailed below:
- warm up
- 20 hard seconds work
- 10 seconds rest
- repeat 7 more times
Easy I hear you mutter, invented by Dr. Izumi Tabata and his team at the National make of Fitness and Sports in Tokyo and it's now commonly used by many bodybuilders, Olympic lifters and gym goers alike in order to strip away body fat.
The effects of Tabata are increased calorie utilization through the day and more importantly, an increased rate of fat burning in the hours after training. Tabata uses both anaerobic and aerobic training systems. This is certainly hard work and 10 times good than using a Crosstrainer for 30+ Mins (slow and steady).
Tabata works well with all body exercises keeping the same load and choosing exercises that won't over stress the body, a deadlift for example wouldn't be a great exercise to use due to bad form during the fin al rounds and grip might also be a factor.
So to start make your mind up your chosen exercise, I have listed some you could use which I have used with my clients. Then accomplish as many reps as possible for the 20 seconds and rest for 10 seconds only. You then repeat this cycle for 7 more times. 4 minutes in total.
Easiest to hardest exercises
- Star jumps
- Rowing Machine
- Squat jumps
- Skipping
- Gliding plates running
- Squats thrusts
- Squat Presses
- Boxing bag (hard and fast)
- Burpees
When to use Tabata always near the end of a workout it's tough and should be very demanding so if you're short on time then you'll love them, I get clients to use distinct exercises for each workout and using the progression tips below.
Progressions You could start to play with the whole of rounds and active time. Maybe adding a extra round each week and construction up to 10-12 rounds, then using active time once you've reached your target whole of rounds, 30secs instead of 20sec and reducing the rounds back down until you can make 10-12 again using 30sec.
Enjoy
