12 Minute HIIT Kettlebell or Weight Routine
Equipment
interval timer or clock with second hand
box for box jumps
kettlebell
sandbag, weighted vest, or dumbbells
Sets. For the intervals in this workout, you’ll be performing high intensity exercises for 30 seconds with 10 minute rest periods in between. Once you’ve completed all the intervals once, you’ll repeat them for a total of 3 cycles.
Interval 1 – Box Jumps – Do as many box jumps as you can for 30 seconds and then rest for 10 seconds.
Interval 2 – Kettlebell swings – Stand with wide legs and hold your kettlebell with both hands. Start with the kettlebell between your legs and swing it directly overhead. Return to the starting position. Repeat as many times as you can for 30 seconds. Rest for 10 seconds.
Interval 3 – Elevated pushups – Get in a pushup position with your feet elevated on your box so that they’re elevated above your shoulders. Perform as many full pushups as you can for 30 seconds. Rest for 10 seconds.
Interval 4 – Side lunges – Perform lunges alternating on your left and right sides for 30 seconds. Rest for 10 seconds.
Interval 5 – Sit-ups – Perform as many full sit-ups as you can for 30 seconds. Rest for 10 seconds.
Beginner Cycling HIIT Routine
Equipment
road or stationary bike
5 minute warm up. This is a time for you to allow your muscles and joints to warm up preventing injury. At this point cycle with low-medium resistance on your bike and don’t worry about speed – use a low level of energy. Intervals . As a beginner, keep the resistance low on your bike until you’re more familiar with this routine. The interval suggestions below may be very challenging. If you can’t complete all of them, do the best you can and increase your intervals a little at a time.
A high intensity interval is a time when you’re pedaling as fast as you can with as much energy as you have. The actual speed will vary depending on your current level of fitness.
These are the recommended intervals:
30 seconds high intensity, 2 minutes low intensity (repeat 5 times)
40 seconds high intensity, 2 minutes low intensity (repeat 5 times)
30 seconds high intensity, 1 minute low intensity (repeat 5 times)
5 Minute Cool Down. A cool down allows you to get your heart rate back to normal and allows your muscles to have some recovery time as well. Cycle with low energy for five minutes.
Stretch. Any workout should be followed by a stretching routine. For cycling your lower body is most engaged. It’s important so stretch your calves, quads, hamstrings, glutes, and don’t forget about your ankles and feet.
HIIT Routine for Killer Abs
Equipment
None
Intervals. Each of these intervals needs to be performed for 45 seconds with as much speed and energy as you can give. Following the speed interval, rest for 15 seconds.
Interval 1 – Bicycle Crunches. Lie on your back without letting your feet touch the ground. Place your hands at the side of your head with bent elbows. Bring your right knee to your chest while twisting your left elbow to touch your knee (keeping your left leg parallel to your body without touching the floor). Then switch legs and twist the other direction. Repeat this for 45 seconds and then rest for 15 seconds.
Interval 2 – Jumping Jacks. Perform jumping jacks as fast as you can for 45 seconds and then rest for 15 seconds.
Interval 3 – Flutter Kicks. Lie on your back and place your hands to the side of your head or place them below your buttocks. Lift your right leg into the air while keeping your left leg down, but not touching the floor. Lower your right leg and lift your left leg. Repeat this for 45 seconds. Rest for 15 seconds.
Interval 4 – Squat Knee Lift Combo. Stand with your feet hip width apart and your arms at your sides. Lower your body into a squat and raise your arms in front of you. Stand up from the squat and raise your right knee. Return to a stand and repeat the squat then raise your left knee. Repeat this combination for 45 seconds and rest for 15 seconds.
Interval 5 – Mountain Climbers. Get into a plank position on the floor with your arms straight in front of you and your back straight. Keep your legs shoulder width apart. Bring your right knee toward your chest. Straighten your right knee while bringing in your left knee. Repeat for 45 seconds and rest for 15.
Full Body HIIT Workout
Equipment
dumbbells – no need to be very heavy
Box or step for box jumps – you can also use a stair if you don’t have one or can’t jump to knee height
jump rope
timer for intervals – a clock with a second hand will work
Intervals. You’ll be performing 5 intervals that you’ll repeat for a total of three times to get a full body workout in just 30 minutes.
Interval 1 – Lunges. You’ll perform lunges as fast as you can for 1 minute. Follow with 1 minute of active recovery while jumping rope.
Interval 2 – Box Jumps. Perform box jumps as fast as you can for 1 minute. Follow with 1 minute of active recovery by jogging in place.
Interval 3 – Pushups. Perform pushups as fast as you can for 1 minute. Follow with 1 minute of jumping rope.
Interval 4 – Uppercuts. Uppercuts are performed by standing in a squat position while holding your dumbbells at your side. With your right hand punch up across your body to the left side. Repeat with the other hand. Follow 1 minute of this with 1 minute of jogging in place.
Interval 5 – Overhead Press. Stand in a quarter squat holding your dumbbells at your shoulder level. Press them both overhead. Then return to the starting position. Repeat this action for 1 minute and follow up with 1 minute of jumping rope.
Kettlebell HIIT Routine
Equipment
kettlebell that’s appropriate for your current strength and fitness levels.
Intervals. Each of these intervals will be performed for 30 minutes with a 30 second period rest immediately following.
Interval 1 – Kettlebell Swing. For this interval you’ll stand with your legs apart holding the kettlebell with both hands between your legs. You’ll bend your knees slightly and raise the kettlebell overhead. Then lower it to the starting position. Do this as many times as you can for 30 seconds. Then rest for 30 seconds.
Interval 2 – Trace the Figure 8. Stand with your legs wide apart and place a kettlebell on the floor between your legs. Pick up the kettlebell with your right hand and pass it to your left hand between your legs. Bring your left hand around and pas sit to your right hand between your legs. Continue this as fast as you can for 30 seconds. Then rest for 30 seconds.
Interval 3 – Clean and Press. Stand with your feet shoulder width apart holding the kettlebell with one hand at your side. You’ll bring the kettlebell up to your shoulder by bending your elbow and then raise it overhead. Bring it back down to the starting position. Repeat for 30 seconds. The rest for 30 seconds. You’ll then need to repeat this interval on the other side for 30 seconds and rest for 30 seconds.
Medicine Ball HIIT Routine
Equipment
Medicine ball suitable for your level of fitness. Don’t know. Start with a 2kg medicine ball: 4.4 lbs.
Intervals. When it comes to medicine ball intervals, you want to vary the activity with each interval to get a total body workout rather than repeating the same interval over and over again on just one muscle group. After each interval, recover with at least one minute of walking or light jogging. To lengthen your workout you can increase your recovery periods to up to five minutes.
Interval 1 – Medicine Ball Toss. Toss the medicine ball about one foot into the air and catch it. Repeat for 30 seconds as fast as you can.
Interval 2 – Medicine Ball Burpees. Hold the medicine ball, squat and place the ball on the ground directly in front of you, jump back with your les into a plank position while holding the ball, jump back into a squat, the stand up and jump holding your arms straight up while holding the ball. Repeat for 30 seconds as fast as you can.
Interval 3 – Lunges. Hold the medicine ball above your head and lunge forward with your left foot. Bring the medicine ball down towards your right foot. Place the ball back above your head and lunge with your right foot then bring the medicine ball down toward your left foot. Repeat for 30 seconds as fast as you can.
Interval 4 – Medicine Ball Push Ups. Begin in a typical plank position as you would for any push up. Then place medicine ball under one of your hands and bend your elbow so that your body stays aligned. Lower your body to perform push-ups. Repeat for 30 seconds with right hand on medicine ball. After recovery period repeat again using the left hand on the medicine ball.
Running Track HIIT Routine for Beginners
Equipment
Indoor or outdoor track
High Intensity Intervals: Once you’ve warmed up, you’ll begin adding high intensity intervals.
Beginner Intervals: Sprint for 30 seconds, then walk or jog for 5 minutes (repeat 5 times)
Intermediate to Advanced Intervals: This entire routine will take approximately 30 minutes. If this routine seems easy for you, you can vary the cycle to add more intervals.
For example:
Sprint for 30 seconds, then jog for 2 minutes at an easy pace (repeat 5 times)
Sprint for 30 seconds, then jog for 3 minutes at an easy pace (repeat 5 times)
Sprint for 30 seconds, then jog for 3 minutes at an easy pace (repeat 5 times)
You can add to the workout by repeating the cycles more than 5 times or by decreasing the recovery time in between intervals. However, you should always allow for 90 second recoveries between intervals.
Running HIIT Routine for the Treadmill
Equipment
Treadmill
Warm Up. Begin with a warm up by jogging for 2 minutes. If you’re more of a jogger than a runner, go ahead and walk for the first few minutes.
Intervals. This is a suggested interval workout using both incline and speed changes. But adjust it if you need to use one or the other – and feel free to lower the speeds if you find that they’re too challenging for you.
Interval – Run at 10 MPH for 30 seconds at an incline of 2. Then rest for 30 seconds by stepping to the side of the belt. Repeat for 4 minutes.
Active Recovery – Run at 6 MPH for 2 minutes at an incline of 1.
Repeat this cycle three times. The second time raise the incline to 3. The third time keep the incline at 2.
Cool Down. Cool down by jogging or walking for 2-5 minutes. The goal is to get your heart rate as close to resting as possible. Altogether this workout lasts 25 minutes. If you want to run longer you can repeat the cycles to extend your time. You can also make the workout shorter by only doing 2 of the complete cycles.
This will give you a quick workout that also delivers results. High intensity interval training has been shown to be very effective and help participants to be able to run faster for longer. And if you’re trying to lose weight while holding on to lean muscle tissue you’ll find that HIIT is an excellent method for doing so.
