Tabata Training: Elevate Your Fitness Level

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Tabata Training: Elevate Your Fitness Level

Posted by Samantha Clayton, AFAA, ISSA – Vice President, Worldwide Sports Performance and Fitness

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Try a total body challenge.

Adding Tabata training to your current fitness routine is a great approach towards improving your overall fitness level and pushing your fitness to the extreme.

The Tabata mode of training requires that you work out at an elevated intensity level. The reason many people fall in love with this style of training is because it helps you to get maximum training results with minimal time commitment in the gym. This favorable timing makes Tabata a go-to favorite for those with a busy schedule.

Tabata training consists of a set protocol of High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT). A Tabata routine requires you to alternate intense bouts of exercise with periods of rest. The exercise timing is 20 seconds of hard work, followed by 10 seconds of rest, repeated continually for eight full sets of the chosen exercises. A traditional Tabata routine is made up of four exercises in total, which makes your workout time a mere four minutes in length.

Four minutes, although incredibly intense, is not enough for many people and often leaves you wanting to spend more time exercising. It’s possible to piece together three or four Tabatas with a rest in between each complete set in order to make the entire workout time closer to 20 minutes. I’ve witnessed this format in a class setting, and it allows you to do a core, leg, upper-body and cardio Tabata for an extreme total body challenge.

The intense nature of Tabata training means that it’s not recommended for beginners. Participants need to be injury-free, healthy and already exercising at an intermediate or advanced level before attempting to take on high-intensity formats. Tabata was originally designed for one Tabata to be performed per training session, so I’ve provided my personal favorite leg- and glute-focused routine below.

Leg and Glute Blast Tabata

Exercise 1: Squat – 20 seconds

Rest: 10 seconds

Exercise 2: Right leg reverse lunge to knee drive – 20 seconds

Rest: 10 seconds

Exercise 3: Left leg reverse lunge to knee drive – 20 seconds

Exercise 4: Alternating lateral lunge – 20 seconds

Samantha Clayton, AFAA, ISSA – Vice President, Worldwide Sports Performance and Fitness
Samantha Clayton is responsible for all activities relating to exercise and fitness education for Independent Herbalife Members and employees. Through in-person training sessions, educational tools and materials, and her blog (www.discovergoodfitness.com), she ensures that the important role of exercise as part of a healthy, active life is understood by all. She also helps create, organize and promote employee fitness programs and activities as an integral part of the company’s corporate wellness program. A native of Liverpool, England, Samantha initially worked as a consultant for Herbalife for two years and led the Herbalife24-Fit program, the company’s first comprehensive fitness training program and DVD series. Before joining the corporate ranks, Samantha was a professional athlete. She represented Great Britain in the 2000 Sydney Olympics in both the 200m and the 4x100m relay events. Prior to the Olympics, she won two medals in the Olympic AAA trials – a silver medal for the 200m and a bronze for the 100m – as well as a silver medal in the 4x100m relay during the European Junior Championships in 1997. Her personal records include 11.40 seconds in the 100m and 23.02 seconds in the 200m. Samantha is a personal trainer and group exercise coach through the American Fitness and Aerobics Association (AFAA) and International Sport Science Association (ISSA).