LIFESTYLE: Get beach ready with these HIIT workout tips

Last week’s article focused on how proper nutrition is the biggest factor in losing weight. This week I have some High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) exercises to help you burn some more calories and build some lean muscle. By building muscle, you get toned shapely legs and arms. It also boosts your metabolism, meaning you are burning calories even when you are doing nothing!

So what is HIIT training? HIIT training is short bouts of intense exercises. It is designed to ramp up your heart rate but is very demanding so is not safe for beginners. If you have been exercising for a while and need to shake up your routine, why not give the exercises below a try?

HIIT 1

This is a simple running HIIT interval that can be performed on a treadmill or while running in a park. It’s important that you do a good warm up, so depending on your fitness, a few kilometres or a few minutes of steady running should do the trick. After this, your aim will be to sprint for 10-20 seconds and recover for 30-60 secs, repeat for 3-10 rounds. Start on the lower end of the scale and progress as you get fitter.

HIIT 2

This circuit is performed with no equipment and can be done at home or in the local park, weather permitting! All exercises should be completed for 30 seconds with 15 seconds rest. Do 3 rounds of this circuit to get started.

1. Jumping jacks

2. Mountain climbers

3. High knees

4. Squats

5. Side shuffles

6. Jab, cross, kick – this exercise works your arms and includes some abs as well with the kick.

HIIT 3

This is slightly more advanced for those who have been working out for a while and are looking for a challenge. There are more explosive moves and some single leg exercises, so be careful if you have balance issues! In the beginning set your timer for 30 seconds work with 15 seconds rest and repeat the rounds.

1. Push-ups

2. Squat jumps

3. Side hops or lateral lunges

4. Reverse lunges

5. Burpees

As you get fitter you can extend the work intervals on these circuits or add in extra rounds but remember to keep the rest short. These exercises are all designed to be done with little or no equipment and in under 20 minutes! Why not give them a try this week?