Wanna Tabata ?

So you wanna Tabata?
(Yes this is a play on that super annoying wanna chibatta Wendy's commercial) 

Well,  here is the "skinny" on what the hell that even means. 
The class... not the sandwich. 

Tabata is a high intensity interval workout, much like HIIT.  The big difference is the time and repeats.  HIIT classes I have taken, use two exercises back to back, at 30 second intervals,  repeated for a total of three intervals .  Tabata intervals are 20 seconds of work, followed by 10 seconds of rest, repeated for a total of 8 intervals.  

Tabata is said to be a combination of Cross Fit and Circuit Training and was developed by Dr. Izumi Tabata, a Japanese researcher and physician.  

"Tabata training will raise your metabolism and heart rate immediately. Since you are performing these exercises at a very high intensity, your body will have to work much harder to keep it up. This will cause your heart to pump fast and your metabolism to jump, which you want if you are planning on losing fat. Your metabolism will stay at that high not only during the workout, but after the workout as well. This means that your body will be burning fat for hours after".  Information is from this article- for more details click here!

Like I said in my last post, I have a new groupon to a different gym (I actually tried a few classes last year so not a NEW gym) and have been really enjoying trying new classes.  Boot Camp was treacherous- laugh about that here , but I really liked the interval training (HIIT and Tabata) After trying both, I can personally say I like HIIT better because well, I like the 3 sets opposed to 8.  Liz, Hannah, Tori and I attended the 5:15 Friday Tibata class and while we enjoyed it, the 8 sets of something just got really monotonous (and hard to count).  After we finished the 8 set we would do a 30 second ab exercise before starting the next set of 8.  It just made the class feel longer after I was used to the 30 second 3 set deal with HIIT.   

  

I like to wear something like capris.  There is a lot of bopping around and capris make it easier and more comfortable than shorts when the weather is still a little springy.  I also wore a tank top with a long sleeve shirt over it.  It has been chilly in Connecticut this week.  That shirt always comes off right after the warm up. 

Here are some of the moves from our workout at the Fitness Factory:

 Not in the exact order... it was 5:15 am and I forgot....(and I am sure I forgot a few moves!) 

Try this Tabata style workout at home and tell me what you think!

Warm up:  Step run or jump rope.

Plank (30 seconds) 

Weighted straddle run, Squat with shoulder press

(20 seconds straddle run, 10 second rest, 20 second squat with shoulder press, 10 second rest, repeat 7 more times) 

Push ups (30 seconds) 

Tricep Push Ups (30 seconds) 

Diamond Push Ups, Walking Plank

(20 seconds push ups, 10 second rest, 20 second walking plank, 10 second rest, repeat 7 more times) 

Bicycle Crunches (30 seconds)

Mountain climbers, Burpees

(20 seconds mountain climbers, 10 second rest, 20 burpees, 10 second rest, repeat 7 more times) 

Russian Twists 

Straddle jumps, wide weighted squat

(20 seconds straddle jumps, 10 second rest, 20 wide weighted squat, 10 second rest, repeat 7 more times).

It was hard, and there were times I struggled, but that's what a good class does.  It also helped that I had three of my amazing friends with me and we didn't feel bad taking things a little slower than the serious tabata members in the front row.  Get it Girl(s).

The hardest exercises for me were the burpees (already knew that..), mountain climbers, and push ups.  But what's nice, is I know what moves I should practice on my own to get stronger for class.  After class today we were all a little sore and a lot exhausted, and our conversations sort of went like this...

Working out with friends makes all the difference.  So beg yours to join you too.

We will all be very sore tomorrow. I promise that. 

Have you tried HIIT and Tabata?
Which do you prefer?