Tabta Training

Today in class, Dr. Yang decided to shake things up a bit and commence our lively group by completing a high intensity workout.  Usually at 8 am everyone is still trying to wake up and get the sleep out of his or her eyes; however, this morning’s workout was very effective. At the beginning of class, generally we talk about upcoming topics, current events relating to physical fitness and activity, and various other subject matters. Today, we tried a high intensity interval training known as Tabata. High intensity interval training is an extremely effective form of cardiovascular exercise, completed in sessions that may vary anywhere from nine to twenty minutes long. Although these workouts are very short, they are very intense, providing the participant with the proper conditioning needed to improve the metabolism and burn fat.

The tabata method is based on a study done in 1996 and consists of 20 second of ultra intense exercise, followed by a 10 second rest period. These 30-second intervals are repeated continuously for 4 minutes long, which is 8 cycles. Throughout these 8 cycles, participants are trying to complete the most intense form of workout possible, such as high knees, jumping jacks, striking objects, pushups, and etcetera. Another method to use this style of intense exercise is to complete 60 seconds of intense exercise, followed by 75 seconds of rest period. This cycle can be repeated for 8-12 cycles in order to be effective. Tabata is a recently new form of physical fitness and applications can be downloaded onto any smart phone or computer. This application allows participants to get in a high intense workout whether they are in their office, in their room, or at a store. Tabata is great short interval workout that has the same benefits as any other workout and it is very easy to control and complete. I believe tabata is a great source of physical activity and it would be great to implement this workout more in other classes.