You've had a shocker of a day; the boss (be it the office-based kind or the pint-sized slave driver at home) has broken your spirit and the last thing you want to do is the hardcore session your trainer has promised will be waiting for you at 7pm tonight...
... Then, your PT texts with two options: you can bust out an hour's cardio-resistance training OR you can do a warm up, followed by just over four minutes of something called 'Tabata' before winding down.
"Err.. no brainer" I hear you say. Ta quicker, Tabata! (Sorry, couldn't resist.)
Taking its name from its pioneer, Professor Izumi Tabata, this training method claims to improve your fitness after a four minute session at the same rate as an hour's jogging. And, if you commit to four of these sessions per week, you can expect to see a significant increase in your aerobic (and anaerobic) capacity.
So what does a Tabata programme look like?
Well, the short answer is MENTAL. This is no mercy, bust-a-gut, training that requires you to push a lot harder when you think you've already reached your limit.
So, if you're travelling home on the Tube and fancy jumping off for a cheeky wee Tabata, try this for size:
Squat jump/split lunge switch for 20 seconds
10 second rest
Single burpies into four fast press ups for 20 seconds
10 second rest
Jumping Jacks for 20 seconds
10 second rest
Mountain climber 'sprints' for 20 seconds
And then, just when you think you might combust, repeat.
This may sound like a fair trade for the hour's heavy training session you were expecting to endure but working as hard as you possibly can, is tougher than you think. You need to have a reasonably high level of fitness and some sturdy mental resolve if you're going to maintain your max by the time you reach those pesky mountain climbers... And, don't forget, then you're doing it all again!
That is not to say a helping of Tabata cannot be a good thing; I'm a big advocate of mixing things up and a cheeky bit of HIIT can go a long way. But my advice would be to get fit before you go fast - that way, you really can have maximum impact and start seeing big changes in the time it takes for an ad break to finish. Now that really does sound tempting..!
