The 4 Minute Workout – Tabata Intervals
Why is it hard to get in shape? Why is it even harder to stay in shape? Well, if you are a family man like me, your day begins with preparing the children for kindergarten and yourself for work. Exercise is pretty much out of the question in the morning, at least on weekdays, simply because there’s no time. Sure, I could get out of bed an hour earlier at 4:40 am, but I’m pretty sure it’s a habit I’ll eventually break.
The next opportunity to exercise occurs after you have picked up the kids from kindergarten around 5:30 p.m. You can get some exercise every other day. On the other hand, it is not so easy to take care of the children and at the same time prepare dinner. It would be great if my wife could do that while I cook. Correct.
After dinner there is a window of about 45 minutes before it is time for the kids to go to bed. I think this time is well spent playing with them. If it’s my wife’s turn to put them to bed, then I can do my exercise. I finish at about 9:00 pm That leaves about a kid-free hour with my wife to get the marriage blossoming before it’s time to go to bed. Right now we are both pretty exhausted and just want to relax in front of the TV. not ideal.
Under these circumstances it it is it’s actually quite difficult to form and maintain a good exercise habit. Is there any way to avoid this? Yes! Let’s see the solution:
The exercise to save the marriage is called Tabata intervals. It can be done with almost any exercise or combination thereof, but I’ll just show you what I do. After you’ve done any warm-up you’d like for two minutes, do the following:
- Do 20 seconds of maximum intensity high knee jumps.
- rest 10 seconds
- Do 20 seconds of maximum intensity burpees
- rest 10 seconds
- Do 20 seconds of maximum intensity mountaineering
- rest 10 seconds
- Do 20 seconds of max intensity jumping lunges.
- rest 10 seconds
- Repeat 1-8 one more time
- Are you ready. Go take a shower. Then spend some time with your partner.
This 4 minute workout is quite challenging and will definitely get your heart pumping and your sweat flowing. Don’t be fooled by how short a time you work!
There is a scientific study that supports the effects of the Tabata protocol. It was performed in 1997 by Dr. Izumi Tabata and his research colleagues at the National Institute of Fitness and Sports in Tokyo, Japan. I’ll omit the details of the study and go straight to the conclusion:
Four minutes of Tabata intervals can do more to increase aerobic and anaerobic capacity than an hour of resistance training!
The tabata diet can be incorporated into your day no matter how busy you are. So, what are you waiting for? Try it! Best of luck!
Remember to consult a doctor before beginning any exercise or diet program.