This article originally appeared in Women's Health.
What if I told you a 20-minute workout could give you better results than 60 minutes on the treadmill? Welcome to Tabata training! By now, you’ve probably heard the word “Tabata,” but you might not really know what that means. Tabata is a form of high-intensity interval training (HIIT) that’s been proven to torch serious calories quickly.
In a Tabata workout, each round lasts four minutes. It requires 20 seconds of all out intensity, followed by 10 seconds of rest, repeated eight times. And when I say "all out,” I mean ALL OUT. We're talking about 100-percent max effort for every burpee, tuck jump, and mountain climber. It's worth pushing yourself though, because that's how you get such a stellar workout in such a short amount of time. Plus, it's not for long—you can do anything for 20 seconds.