Health

30-Day Fitness Challenge, Day 10: Cardio + Flexibility

Published on 12/28/2016 at 8:16 AM

Daniel Fishel/Thrillist

You're on Day 10 of the 30-Day Gym-Free Fitness Challenge. To return to the main challenge page, click here.

Today's workout is all about Tabatas. If you're unfamiliar, Tabatas are a form of high-intensity interval training (HIIT) that consist of eight rounds of 20 seconds work and 10 seconds rest. Each Tabata lasts four minutes, and you'll perform the same Tabata sequence four times, allowing one minute of rest between each Tabata.

Simply choose between option #1 and option #2. You'll knock it out in just 19 minutes, but it's a good idea to spend at least five minutes warming up before you dive into this intense routine.

Option #1: Bodyweight Tabatas

If the weather is bad, or you want to exercise while watching TV, the bodyweight option is the way to go. For each of the exercises, you'll do as many reps as possible in 20 seconds, then rest for 10 seconds before moving to the next exercise. Repeat them two times through for a total of eight work-rest intervals. After completing all eight rounds, rest for a minute before repeating the full Tabata three more times.

Squat jacks

Mountain climbers

Bear crawls

Broad jump to backward hop

Option #2: Sprint Tabatas

If you prefer to do your cardio outside, you can't go wrong with a sprint Tabata. After doing your five- to 10-minute warm-up, sprint as fast and as far as you can for 20 seconds, rest 10 seconds, then repeat, performing a total of eight rounds. After you finish a Tabata, walk slowly for a minute to recover, then dive right into the next one. As with the option #1 bodyweight routine, you'll complete a total of four four-minute Tabatas to finish the workout.

Post-cardio 10-minute stretch

Regardless of which option you choose, after you've completed your routine, add this 10-minute stretch series (it's the same as the one you did last week) to maintain flexibility and range of motion.