If you’re ready to burn fat, tone and tighten your body, and condition your cardiovascular system, look no further than these 7 best HIIT workouts! High-intensity interval training or HIIT is performed by completing high-intensity exercises such as all-out sprints or bursts of activity to increase heart rate to a high level, followed by a period of rest.
HIIT training is one of the best workouts you can do for fat loss because it burns a large number of calories. And, due to its high-intensity nature, it primes the body to continue burning calories long after your workout is over.
Better yet, HIIT workouts are generally short. All of the HIIT workouts you find on this list are 30 minutes or less. Even if you’re short on time, if you can commit 30, 15, or even 10 minutes of your day to complete a workout, you can effectively contribute to fat loss, and fitness gains in your life today.
Check out the list of fun HIIT workouts below to get started. Feel free to choose whichever fits the equipment you have available on hand or your workout preferences!
1. 10-Minute Tabata Cycle Bike HIIT Workout
Get a high-intensity cardiovascular workout when you perform this quick exercise on your in-home cycle bike. This workout includes 8, 20-second maximum intensity sprints or hill climbs, with 10 seconds of recovery in between each. Matt as he instructs you through a full warmup, workout, and cooldown.
2. 10-Minute HIIT Row
This HIIT row workout is a great way to incorporate HIIT training into your rowing cardio program. The workout will take you through 10, 1-minute long max effort rowing intervals. After each hard row you will have one minute to recover before the next hard row begins. A warmup and cool down period should always be performed prior to performing any HIIT training workout. During each hard rowing interval, you should focus on producing maximum power with each stroke. The focus should not be on a fast stroke rate. 30 strokes per minute would be a good stroke rate to aim for. If you have a rower that has adjustable resistance, keep the resistance at a moderate level.
3. 30-Minute Treadmill Interval Training
This 30 Minute HIIT Treadmill Workout for Beginners is the perfect workout to help you work your way up to 30 minutes of sustained cardio. It’s also an excellent way to increase your cardiovascular fitness and burn calories. While this workout is suited to beginners, it can and should be adapted to continue to challenge you throughout your fitness journey. This workout includes 10 intervals of 2 minutes of running at an up-tempo pace, paired with 1 minute of walking or jogging at an easy recovery pace for 30 total minutes of cardiovascular exercise.
4. 20 Minute Full Body HIIT
This 20 Minute Full Body HIIT Workout requires no equipment, so find a little space and get ready to sweat! This workout is designed to build strong lean muscle in your upper body, lower body, and core while burning lots of calories. For this workout, you’ll have 30 seconds of an exercise followed by 10 seconds of rest. There are 12 total exercises in the circuit, once you’ve completed all 12 exercises, you’ll get 2 minutes of total rest. Repeat the circuit one more time for a full 20-minute workout.
5. Recumbent Bike Intervals
Achieve a low impact cardiovascular HIIT and upper body resistance training workout with this Recumbent Bike Interval Workout. For this workout you’ll need a recumbent bike and a resistance band. You’ll start with a full body warmup, followed by 6 all-out sprints on the recumbent bike. End this intense session with some upper body toning and strengthening exercises by remaining seated on your bike and using a resistance band. Choose a resistance band that’s not impossible, but not too easy either – your last few reps of each resistance set should feel very hard.
6. 20 Minute Cycle Bike Intervals (20/10/5-second Sprints)
If sprinting on your cycle bike is new to you, this 20-minute bike sprint interval workout will be a good way for you to slowly add max effort sprints to your workouts. Built into this workout are 6 max effort sprints. Each sprint will be either 20, 10, or 5 seconds in length. After each sprint there will be a recovery period so you can rest to be better prepared to push yourself for the next sprint.
7. Fan Bike Tabata HIIT Workout
If you have a fan bike, this is a quick and effective HIIT workout you should add to your regular routine! The goal for this workout is to complete 8, 20-second maximum effort sprints with 10 seconds of recovery in between each sprint. When done correctly, this workout will help you boost your cardiovascular performance and burn calories in a short amount of time. Follow along with fitness trainer Sydney as she takes you through the 2-minute warmup, Tabata rounds, and 2-minute cooldown.
If you’re truly looking to get fit and lose weight, I recommend aiming to incorporate 2-3 HIIT sessions into your training schedule each week. Pick and choose your favorites from the workouts above, or find more HIIT workouts on the SHF YouTube channel!
In addition, aim to complete a consistent exercise routine for the rest of the week. This should include at least 30 minutes of light to moderate cardio on days of the week you don’t have a HIIT session planned, as well as at least 2 resistance training sessions a week to increase strength and muscle tone.
Also remember there are other important healthy lifestyle factors that contribute to your overall success in a weight loss journey, including but not limited to nutrition, sleep, and self-care. For best results, carefully consider your current lifestyle, and where you can make improvements to increase your overall weight loss and fitness success!
For more info on HIIT workouts and if they’re right for you, be sure to check out our podcast episode where Matt and Kriss discuss why you should consider adding HIIT training to your routine.
