An anywhere HIIT workout routine
HIIT – High Intensity Interval Training Plyometric Workout – In the Gym, at Home, at Work or even Outdoors!
Don’t have time to spend hours in the gym, or are you spending hours training and not seeing results? The common belief is the longer the workout, the better the results. That couldn`t be further from the truth. It`s about working smarter and more efficiently during a shorter window of time. Whether you are bound for time as a working professional or a full time parent, the perfect solution to attaining your weight and fat loss goals is using HIIT Workouts. HIIT- High Intensity interval training involves alternating bursts of all-out intensity (90-100%) with lower intensity intervals/minimal rest periods (10 to 20 seconds). It is proven to be the most effective way to boost metabolism and reduce body fat. All you need is 20-30 minutes a day!
Another great benefit with HIIT training is the flexibility to do them at home, outdoors, at work or the gym. It’s a `no excuses` workout ready to suit your lifestyle. Another great advantage is you can do these workouts with your own portable gym equipment. The key is to just get your body moving at maximum output. Anything plyometric (exercises based around having muscles exert maximum force in short intervals) will get the job done – accelerating your heart rate and increasing your speed and power. This can include lunges, squat thrusts, jumping jacks or burpees – all exercises that require no equipment whatsoever.
Here is a sample HIIT routine, although it is a total body workout, it focuses on glutes, legs and shoulders.
HIIT Schedule
5- 6 days of HIIT training a week focusing on 1-2 body parts a day
Daily HIIT Plyometric Training with a daily focus on:
Monday : Legs/Glutes
Tuesday: Shoulders
Wednesday: Arms/Core
Thursday: Total Body
Friday: Legs/Shoulders
Diet tips for HIIT training
This varies around the concept of flexible dieting that is the appropriate break down of macronutrients: Proteins, Carbohydrates, Fats generally around a 40% Proteins/40% Carbohydrates/20% Fat split) This allows for “flexibility” to enjoy a variety of healthier foods without feeling deprived. Lean proteins such as chicken, fish and egg whites are combined with green vegetables and low glycemic carbohydrates with a little room for a fun healthy treat at the end of the day!
Mobile Gym in a Bag – What will you need
Skipping rope (weighted or regular)
Kettleballs
Resistance Bands (mini and lateral)
Dumbbells (can be replaced with the resistance bands)
Gym Boss or Tabata Interval Timer or similar
Anywhere HIIT Routine
This is a timed workout and therefore for maximum results make sure you have a timer for each workout either on your phone or separate to stay on track.
Difficulty can be increased by the number of rounds you do between 2-4 as well as adding extra HIIT exercises such as skipping in between each interval. Gauge based on your fitness level. If you are a beginner start off with 1-2 rounds at maximum effort and safely increase your intensity.
Set your Tabata timer for 40 seconds work – 10-15 seconds rest.
Do the sequence 2-4 times. At the end of each full set of exercises take a 2 minute rest. Ensure your heart rate does not decrease entirely. The key is to keep your heart rate up elevated throughout the entire workout.
1. Skipping
Start A: Using a skipping rope start with your rope handles in front elbows by your side.
Action B: Skip ensuring you are turning the rope from your wrists in a small circular motion, elbows close to your sides, feet are close to the floor. Jumping variations include on the spot, shuffle step, knees high and side to side 2 feet lateral shuffle.
Expert Tip: Using the wrists (not you’re your arms) to turn the rope will allow you to have greater speed as you want to skip as fast and hard as you can to reach your maximum exertion. Keep your feet close to the floor. If you are advanced you can try a double under. Ouch!
2. Reverse Cross Over Courtesy Lunge
Start A: Start with your feet shoulder with apart, hands by your side with/without dumbbells
Action B: With your back straight and dumbells by your side, steps back diagonally crossing over the supporting leg. Ensure hips are facing forward and to extend deep enough that you are in a 90 degree angled lunge with each leg. Your back leg will be supported by your toes to drive the leg forward and repeat the exercise to the opposite side.
Expert Tip: To increase difficulty, either increase the weight of the dumbbell or add lateral resistance bands to your ankles and pump during the back lunge. The slower the movement the more difficult it is.
3. Power Jump Squats
Start A: Stand with your feet a little more than shoulder width apart and jump from a squat position.
Action B: Use your arms slightly for momentum. On the descent of the jump place your feet in the same deep wide base position situating yourself back into the original squat position. Make sure you keep your back flat and buttock tilted/rotated back. Jumps should be explosive using power generated from your legs.
Expert Tip: Drive from your heels and squat down deep to increase your vertical jump.
4. Steering Wheels
Start A: Start in a standing position, back straight, feet shoulder width apart. With a weighted plate of your choice, grab the outside groove or edges of the plate and extend both arms forward at shoulder level.
Action B- In a small controlled movement turn the plate over to the left and then right, repeating the sequence. With the momentum you should feel the activation in your rear delts.
Expert Tip: Keep the elbows high and as straight as possible. Contract your abdominals and glutes while doing this for better control and cross isolation. For increased difficulty you can do a shoulder raise in between each set of steering wheels.
5. Sliding Mountain Climbers
Start A: Starting position is similar to that of a sprinter in the “sprinter blocks” on your hands and feet. Place sliding discs underneath the balls of your feet (toes)
Action B: Shuffle your feet with knees in to your chest, back and forth similar to a quick sprinting motion on the spot.
Expert Tip: The key is to keep all you muscles tight to keep momentum and shoot your feet and knees in and out as fast as you can driving from the balls of your feet and toes. This will target and activate the glute muscles.
6. Jumping Jack Hammer Press Plyo combo
Start A: Stand with your feet together and the dbells at chest level parallel to the floor.
Action B: Proceed with a jumping jack movement. As your feet jump out simultaneously do an overhead should press upwards. As your feet come in your arms should simultaneously decline to the top of your shoulders.
Expert Tip: Jumping Jack motion should be quick and fast reaching maximum exertion (HIIT)
7. Kettle-Bell Lateral Swings
Start A: With 2 hands on a kettle bell. Prior to executing this exercise for the first time slowly start to shift your weight side to side with a slight rotation of the hips to gain momentum prior to actually swinging the kettle bell side to side.
Action B: Once momentum is gained swing the kettle bell side to side in a “tick tock” movement using your abs, arms and shoulders as the driving force to the momentum of the bell swing side to side. Ensure that as you swing the KB side to side you are rotating your hips in the direction of the movement putting your weight on the supporting leg. The supporting leg, mark with your weight up on the toes. This is one fluid movement from side to side with no interruption between sides.
Expert Tip: Squeeze/contract your glutes, thighs and abdominals throughout this movement for cross isolation of the muscles.
Author: Nancy Di Nino is a true example of the saying “don’t judge a book by its cover”. Most probably assume that weight loss comes easy for Nancy. And why wouldn’t they after seeing her grace the covers of fitness magazines. This couldn’t be further from the truth. Growing up and throughout her teen years she quickly inherited her European genetics. Italian (with traces of Venezuelan) and struggled with having larger buttocks, thick thighs and stubborn fat. So much that it caused her to develop low self esteem and mild depression. Motivated to make a change; with her persistence and insatiable drive she made her wildest dreams come true! Now Nancy Di Nino is a multi talented Fitness Celebrity, On-line coach/ Virtual Personal Trainer, Media Personality and Cover Model. Her diversity of talents extends to being a Brand & Marketing Manager which has allowed her to have an active voice and International presence in the media as well as inspiring those with a love for health and fitness, whether the soccer mom, active senior or active teenager. Now she loves helping people across the world reach their health and fitness goals with numerous transformations and weight loss success stories. She thrives on making a difference in people’s lives now making their wildest dreams come true.