Okay so I went on vacation last week to OBX and prior to leaving I started doing these hip hop tabata workouts and found myself loving them. 
So I have done some research on tabata and would love to share for those of you that have never heard of it and/or never tried. I am intrigued with all types of body movement and the workings of the inner body/mind/spirit. I think that we all have the capacity to heal and build our best selves. It is definitely a process and definitely takes work but can also be SO fun and So interesting and the more I learn the more grateful I am for this house of mine.
For me, yoga was what opened me up to the idea of how moving in different directions and in different ways than normal everyday typical movements – really created space inside for me. The whole saying – if you don’t use it, you lose it. So I want to keep my body the most well rounded and well oiled machine that I have to carry me through my day to day world and through times of stress.
I personally had heard of tabata a while back – probably in the 90’s and it was touched on again during a wellness retreat I attended a couple years ago. We did one tabata session and I remember thinking in terms of efficiency to my life – there were no excuses that I couldn’t carve out less than 10 minutes a day.
Upon further research – Tabata is the first workout born in a lab. It consists of 20 seconds of high intensity movement followed by 10 seconds of rest, repeated 8 times. The results after this 4 minute workout included a 28% increase in anaerobic fitness while an hour of cycling showed no improvement. Tabata’s formula was also compared to other HIIT (High intensity interval training) type training and the results were still better. Tabata also appears to have an after effect burn on the body for up to 12 hours post exercise. This form of exercise was developed by Izumi Tabata, a leading sports scientist. Dr. Tabata credits Olympic Speed Skating Coach Irisawa Koichi for pioneering the technique.
If you are looking or wanting to give it a go – I personally LOVED Keaira LaShae’s Pop Sugar Hip Hop Tabata YouTube video workouts. They are 25-30 minutes because they do include pre-stretching, cool down, and a water break in between exercises. She does 20 seconds on, 10 seconds off (repeated 4 times) for about 6-7 diff moves. I am amazed at how much I sweat, how fun they are, and her commentary is also fab. In one video – you move from one “club” to another with song changes.
So if you are looking to add some high intensity to your workouts – give it a go and comment and let me know what you thought!
Hope this does your body well!