Article Tabata Sprints

[MalcolmX]

Tabata Sprints is basically a brief cardio routine that utilizes the Tabata protocol and sprinting.

The original Tabata protocol was done on exercise bikes as a training tool to get the Japanese olympic speed skating team in their top conditioning possible. This workout is done with sprints instead. Why? Because sprinters generally have good musculature.

Evidently it's rather brutal and effective. Brutal because even these olympic caliber athletes were in the floor gasping for air at the end of training sessions. Effective? It's reported to be very fast at burning fat while allowing one to maintain muscle mass. It's also reported to improve aerobic capacity and anerobic capacity.

If you have health concerns that limit your cardio ability, you really shouldn't try this. If you are healthy, you may want to consult your physician before starting a program like this one.

Minutes 1-4:
Warm-up @ 50% of perceived maximum
effort followed by:

Minute 5:
Sprinting for 20 seconds
Rest for 10 seconds
Sprinting for 20 seconds
Rest for 10 seconds

Minute 6:
Sprinting for 20 seconds
Rest for 10 seconds
Sprinting for 20 seconds
Rest for 10 seconds

Minute 7:
Sprinting for 20 seconds
Rest for 10 seconds
Sprinting for 20 seconds
Rest for 10 seconds

Minute 8:
Sprinting for 20 seconds
Rest for 10 seconds
Sprinting for 20 seconds
Rest for 10 seconds

Minutes 9-12:
Cool-down @ 50%

 

[luXy]

Looks reaaally simple on first glance. But 10 second rest is mad short. Tempted to try this out for my next cardio session

 

[gosu_smurf]

tried it and ITS INTENSE. can't complete the full thing religiously

 

[sinful]

This is one brutally effective workout that can really leave you breathless.

 

[justified]

u'll tend to cheat and not sprint the full 20 seconds, tend to end up jogging

 

[pndep]

u'll tend to cheat and not sprint the full 20 seconds, tend to end up jogging

i dont think you'll cheat by not sprinting full the full 20s, you'll probably just cheat yourself by not pushing 100%.

 

[MalcolmX]

tabata 20 seconds / 10 seconds counter

 

[prosu]

there are quite a few tabata timers on the iPhone, go search app store for it

 

[clan_NEt]

i dont think you'll cheat by not sprinting full the full 20s, you'll probably just cheat yourself by not pushing 100%.

yeah it'll be very easy for this to happen given that there is only 10 seconds of rest. chances r u'll still be panting and heart pumping like mad after the 10 seconds.

 

[sinful]

IMHO, the very short periodic sprints makes it really tough - you keep shocking your body by changing from sprinting to a slow jog. If it was sprinting for a longer time, say 1 minute and jog 30 seconds, it would be much easier. But timing is everything when it comes to workout efficiency.

 

[xzibit]

anyone tried this for a couple of weeks at least and saw any good results?

 

[PWiD]

Really? Couple of weeks and you'd expect results already?

 

[justified]

tat is also assuming u can survive few weeks of this routine. lol. it's hard to give ur 100% and complete the full sets I tell u

 

[PWiD]

Tabatha sprints, or HIIT runs have been around for the longest of time. They DO work. Problem is whether anyone can religiously complete such a demanding task. The same theory can be applied in cycling or rowing and whatever else you can do in and outside of the gym for cardiovascular training. The whole point of it is to encourage metabolism and thus fat burn OUTSIDE of the time spent doing cardio vs low intensity and long duration cardio such as running or jogging.

Here's a thought : who do you see more, fat sprinters or fat joggers?

 

[pitdog]

honestly I prefer these kind of cardio compared to super long distance cardio workouts. well c'mon it's only like 12-15 mins of intense pain? better then suffer for 1hour running on the treadmill! plus the short intense cardio is effective too!

 

[PWiD]

If you've actually tried it out and kept at it for months or so then good for you. Otherwise that's just purely a copy-paste from the original text cut down into 2 sentences. lol.

 

[Germs]

First time I've heard of this, can imagine it getting quite intense very quickly, looking forward to trying it out myself.

 

[fooledbyrandom]

bumping this thread with a cute cartoon i've stumbled upon.

 

[brahmance]

bumping this with an study that backs up the tabata idea: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8897392