A HIIT workout you can do anywhere, any time, without equipment
By Jessica Clark, Personal Trainer & Coach, Relentless Training Systems Austin, Texas
Looking for a quick dose of happiness? A surefire way to feel good is to get your body moving, blood pumping, and endorphins flowing with high intensity interval training (HIIT). Train this way a few times per week to experience improved athletic capacity, cardiovascular conditioning, and fat burning in less time than more traditional lower-intensity cardio sessions.
Take on this quick, hard-hitting workout for total body conditioning in less than 20 minutes:
Every minute on the minute for 5 minutes complete the following movements in each round. The sooner your complete the repetitions, the more rest you will receive each minute. The goal is to go fast and recover before the next minute begins. Rest for 2 minutes in between rounds.
Round 1: 25 Jumping Squats
Start with feet hip-width apart (slightly wider than shoulder-width apart). Sit back and down, as if to sit in a chair, keeping the weight in the heels (you should be able to wiggle your toes) and driving the knees out. Lower yourself to where you hip crease is just below your knees. Pressing through your hells, drive your hips to full extension, jumping the feet 1-2 inches off the ground extending the arms overhead. Land softly with the knees and immediately sink into the next squat. Once you reach 25, rest for the remainder of the minute.
Rest 2 Minutes
Round 2: 20 Situps
Lying on your back with bent knees arms overhead, raise your shoulders and chest off the ground to meet your thighs. Using your arms to help propel you forward and exhale as you sit up, inhale as you sit down. Once you reach 20, rest for the remainder of the minute.
Rest 2 Minutes
Round 3: 15 Plyo Pushups
Starting in a plank position, on hands and toes, placing your hands just outside of the chest at the bottom, lower yourself to the ground, leading with the chest. As soon as the chest and thighs touch the ground, push yourself up off the ground back to full arm-extension with enough force to jump your hands 1-2 inches off the ground. Land soft on the hands and immediately drop into the bottom of the next pushup. Keep a tight core with abs contracted throughout the movement. Pushups can be scaled to the knees if needed.
Need more help? Watch DailyHap.com founder Lyssa Myska Allen demonstrate the moves!
Image via Bougie Photography