Today I'm featuring a High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) workout. These types of workouts have become very popular recently mainly because they can burn more calories in a shorter amount of time.
The work is done in short bursts--in this video they are 20 seconds--doing a high intensity move that really can't be done for much longer, then resting for a period of 10 seconds. The exercise is then either repeated again or several times, or a series of exercises are done one after the other and then the entire series is repeated one or more times.
Here, the individual exercises are repeated three times and then the entire workout is repeated again. It is a 20 minute workout with a warm up, but no cool down and stretch--so do that separately.
This workout focuses on abs and obliques, but it is also very cardio since it moves from one exercise to another with only 10 seconds of rest, so you will be burning a lot of calories as well.
These workouts are intense as the name implies. If you need to take a longer rest in between exercises, take it, and as always, if you need to modify, please modify. Your heart rate is meant to get higher than in a regular cardio class; just remember, if your heart rate gets too high, don't just stop, walk around and let it come down and then continue on.
Just a couple of safety issues:
Flutter Kicks: If your neck gets too fatigued, do not put your hands behind your head. Instead, put your head down on the floor and make the kicks smaller (don't bring the leg so close to the ground). If you feel any back pain while doing this exercise, adjust your legs the same way--make the movement smaller.
Bicycles: Keep your elbows back. Lead with your chest and shoulders--this will stop you from pulling on your neck.
Russian Twist: As he states in the video, you can modify by putting your feet down on the floor.
