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- Working out all muscle groups in a circle. For this, multi-stage exercises are used (burpees, etc.) or a complex of several multi-joint exercises performed sequentially (push-ups, squats, presses).
- The training always takes place with a timer and a partner. Each exercise must be performed a certain number of times in a specified time, or the maximum number of times in a minimum amount of time (usually 20 to 25 seconds).
- Reducing the rest time between sets to 10 seconds. This is enough to fill the body with oxygen, but not enough to give muscle tissue a rest.
- Work always takes place in a certain pulse zone (much higher than the fat burning zone). Therefore, all training is carried out using a heart rate monitor.
Advantages
The Tabata protocol has a number of advantages over classical training methods:
- Effective for both general weight loss and drying. Thanks to the intense work of the heart, your muscles do not have time to undergo serious stress, while fat becomes a more accessible source of energy in conditions of lack of oxygen. But when cutting, it is still recommended to combine it with classical strength training in order to minimize muscle loss.
- Minimal risk of injury. If you warm up and use the classic Tabata protocol, there is very little risk of injury.
- Short training time. The Tabata protocol can be used separately from other workouts. Class time rarely exceeds 10-20 minutes, which allows you to find room for them even in an extremely busy schedule.
- Allows you to prepare ligaments and tendons within the periodization system. The Tabata protocol allows you to train your heart, increase aerobic and anaerobic endurance, master the basic technique of workout exercises, and at the same time tone muscle tissue.
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Contraindications
The Tabata protocol has no specific contraindications for classes. All warnings are standard for sports:
- Having problems with the cardiovascular system.
- Diseases of the digestive tract.
- Having problems with ligaments and tendons.
- Pregnancy.
- Hypotension and hypertension.
- Diabetes mellitus type 1.
- Atherosclerosis.
- Obesity of the 2nd degree and higher.
The latter is due to the fact that with the high intensity of the Tabata protocol, people are likely to damage their joints and get heart problems, even “” syndrome.
Although training according to the system is not contraindicated for beginners, even in the absence of any physical form, it would be better for them to first practice general physical fitness for 1-2 months, and then move on to the protocol. Otherwise, the system suits everyone.
Exercises for Beginners
The Tabata protocol is known for being used not only for training professional athletes, but also for maintaining one’s body in good shape. Sometimes it is even used during the rehabilitation of people after minor injuries, when it is necessary to regain mobility without putting too much strain on the muscles.
The Tabata protocol is suitable for beginners if you use the appropriate exercises:
- .
Almost everyone can master them. Plus, there are always simplified types of push-ups, for example, from the knees.
- Explosive jumps. They work several muscle groups and are interesting in terms of execution. You can simply jump from a half-squat position, or you can jump onto a stand or stacked weight plates.
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- Lateral jumps. You need to jump to the sides from a half-squat position.
- Spiderman push-ups. A more complex variation of push-ups that works not only the muscles of the arms and chest, but also the abdominal muscles. When lowering the body, one leg needs to be bent at the knee and pulled towards the arm of the same name. In the next repetition, use the other leg.
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- Dead bug. One of the best and simplest complexes for the press. While lying on your back, you need to take turns raising your opposite arms and legs, bent at the knee.
Tabata in a row Tabata non-stop Circular Tabata Incoming exercises Circular exercises for each muscle group. These are the basic complexes: - Push-ups
- Squats
- Pull-ups
- Plank
Narrow specialization, including easy and complex exercises: - Push-ups
- Plank
- Squats
- Plank
- Pull-ups
- Plank
Each exercise is performed sequentially. The set can be anything. Heavy basic exercises like: - Bench press
- Deadlift
- Squats, etc.
Load type Aerobic. Development of maximum respiratory endurance. Aerobic. Development of heart muscle parameters. Aerobic. The development of indicators depends on the exercises used. Training time From 4 to 8 minutes. From 3 to 10 minutes. Up to 20 minutes. Peculiarities After completing each exercise, there is a 10-second rest, after which the transition to the next begins. There is no rest between exercises. Instead of a break, use light cardio, including running or planking. The exercises are performed sequentially. A distinctive feature is the ability to rest between different exercises for up to 40 seconds. May include more exercises than previous options. Efficiency Develops endurance. Used for weight loss/drying. It best develops the functional indicators of aerobic and anaerobic glycolysis in muscle tissue. Tabata in crossfit
is a direction that has absorbed the best from different areas of fitness, but few people know that the Tabata protocol played a decisive role in the formation of CrossFit as a sport.
It's all about the principles of CrossFit and Tabata, which have a lot in common:
- High intensity interval training.
- Priority over the aerobic component. Many CrossFit complexes, although performed with more rest than in Tabata, still involve working at maximum speed with minimal rest.
- Variety of exercises.
- Using light exercises to work out as many muscle groups as possible. A typical example is burpees. This exercise works almost the entire body in a few repetitions.
- Lack of narrow specialization. Both Tabata and CrossFit have exercises of different types, ranging from easy calisthenics to more complex workout elements.
In CrossFit, entire workouts are often used using the Tabata protocol, for example, working with a balance board in this mode or performing heavy basic exercises without scaling.
Conclusion
Finally, a few words about time. The Tabata protocol is an ideal solution for people who spend most of the day at work and cannot, for some reason, go to the gym or devote enough time to training. With this method, you can easily reduce your workout time from one hour to several minutes and can do it during your lunch break or in the morning instead of traditional exercise.
We can say that the Tabata protocol is a real paradise for “lazy people”. The only problem is that in these 5-20 minutes you get a really huge load, which you risk not being able to cope with without prior preparation.
But remember: you won’t build huge muscles using this approach to training exclusively, but you will perfectly prepare your body for the upcoming trip to the gym, restore muscle tone after a long break and lose a few kilograms.
Many people who want to lose weight are attracted to Tabata - weight loss exercises recognized as the most effective for burning fat. This system allows you to spend only 4 to 20 minutes on a set of exercises and at the same time lose weight faster than from a full hour of cardio exercise, while simultaneously strengthening muscles and developing endurance. However, this method has its own nuances and limitations, and is not suitable for everyone. Let's look at all the features of this training, lesson plans and examples of ready-made programs for entry-level and intermediate levels.
The essence of Tabata training is that short periods of ultra-intense exercise alternate with even shorter periods of rest. This system is an extreme version of high-intensity interval training (HIIT), in which the principle of alternating loads of varying intensities is taken to the extreme.
The Tabata system is named after the author, a Japanese doctor of physiology. In 1996, a group of scientists led by him worked on increasing the endurance of athletes. During the experiment, which lasted 1.5 months, sensational results were obtained.
In a group of participants who trained every other day using the new high-intensity system for just 4 minutes, their aerobic endurance improved much more than those who received the usual one-hour cardio exercise 5 times a week. And most importantly, in addition to this, the participants in the first group recorded an increase in anaerobic endurance, which is trained with strength training and never increases from regular cardio exercises.
Such results were achieved due to the fact that during periods of short-term, super-intense work of the trainees, their heart rate reached a frequency above 80% of the maximum, that is, it entered the anaerobic zone. The high effectiveness of the Tabata method could not be ignored; it soon gained wide popularity throughout the world.
In fact, this system is not a set of specific exercises, but a training regimen with strict alternation of intervals of intense work and rest. The exercises can be anything. Therefore, a more correct name for this method is the Tabata protocol.
Tabata Protocol Scheme:
- 20 sec. ultra-high intensity loads;
- 10 sec. respites;
- This 30-second cycle (20 + 10 sec) is repeated 8 times in total, making a 4-minute round;
- Rounds for 1 workout can be from 1 (for beginners) to 4 (for well-trained), the break between Tabata rounds is 40-120 seconds.
The total duration of the training, excluding warm-up and cool-down, which are mandatory with this system, can range from 4 minutes to 22 minutes (with 4 rounds with two-minute pauses between them).
Advantages of the method
Compared to other Tabata training systems:
- The main advantage of the method is its high efficiency. In just 4-20 minutes of training, 3-4 rubles. more fat is burned per week than with classic hour-long cardio exercises. The fat-burning effect of the Tabata protocol is based on the fact that it triggers a fat-burning mechanism that operates not only during classes, but also continues for 24 hours after the training. Regular cardio does not have this “afterburning effect”; it burns fat only during training.
- The Tabata method improves both aerobic (cardiac) endurance and anaerobic (muscular) endurance.
- Due to the anaerobic effect, the Tabata system burns only fat, keeping muscle tissue intact.
- Tabata improves muscle tone. And although it does not greatly affect muscle growth and is not able to replace strength training, it helps to overcome the body’s adaptation to stress and get the weight loss and muscle gain off the ground during the plateau effect.
- You can practice the Tabata protocol anywhere - at home, in the gym, in nature.
- You don’t need any equipment for the classes; the only thing you need is a timer that gives sound signals according to the protocol. The Tabata timer program can be downloaded for free to your smartphone or used online.
- Regular Tabata training reduces the risk of developing type 2 diabetes and helps overcome depression.
- You can use a wide range of exercises according to your goals and preferences.
System Features
The main feature of Tabata training is that you need to perform the exercises at maximum speed. That is, in a 20-second period of time you need to do the maximum possible number of repetitions, without violating the technique of the exercise. To achieve the expected effect, it is necessary to work at the limit of strength, at which the heart “jumps out of the chest.”
Doing 8 such cycles in a row - one 4-minute Tabata round is not easy even for people with good physical fitness. Athletes rate this load as extremely difficult. The degree of difficulty of this load is evidenced by the fact that the level of lactate in the blood, which serves as an indicator of fatigue, during Tabata training increases on average three times above the lactate threshold. This is a very exhausting, exhausting load.
Therefore, Tabata is potentially dangerous for people with poor physical fitness. Those who finally got off the couch and decided to take care of their physical fitness are in vain thinking that Tabata for beginners will suit them. It should be noted that beginners for loads of this level of intensity are those who have been systematically engaged in cardio and strength training for at least 2 months and have experience in high-intensity interval training.
Due to the high stress placed on the heart and joints during this protocol, it is imperative to do a warm-up and cool-down at the beginning and end of classes. This will prepare the body for intense work, and then smoothly remove the cardiovascular system from stress mode.
Selection of exercises
Exercises for Tabata can be taken from cardio training complexes, strength training with your own weight, with light weights. This could be squats, jumping jacks, burpees, planks, lunges, push-ups, sprinting and much more. The main thing is to complete them as quickly as possible.
You can select exercises, focusing on working out problem areas, but it is better to load the whole body - top, bottom and abs.
During one 4-minute round of 8 cycles, you can perform from 1 to 8 different exercises. The options may be as follows:
- 1 exercise is repeated in 8 approaches;
- 2 different exercises are performed according to one of the schemes: 11112222, 12121212, 11221122;
- 4 different exercises are performed according to one of the schemes: 12341234, 11223344;
- 8 different exercises are performed in one approach.
You need to start and end each approach according to the timer signal. In between approaches and rounds, it is recommended not to stop, but to continue moving - walking slowly, doing simple movements to restore breathing.
It is recommended to change the Tabata exercise set every 3 workouts so that the body does not get used to the same type of load. In this case, the effectiveness of classes will not decrease. You can return to old programs from time to time, but supplementing them with new exercises.
You cannot practice the Tabata protocol every day. This can cause fatigue and nervous exhaustion. It is enough to train 3-4 times a week. It is not recommended to train using this system on an empty stomach or before bed.
Contraindications
Not everyone can do the Tabata system. It is potentially dangerous for the following categories:
- those suffering from cardiovascular diseases: heart defects, coronary artery disease, atherosclerosis, hypertension, heart rhythm disturbances;
- persons with poor physical fitness and no experience of high-intensity interval training;
- having diseases of the joints and musculoskeletal system;
- pregnant women;
- those adhering to mono-, no-carbohydrate and low-carbohydrate diets;
- having low endurance.
Who is this method suitable for?
- those who want to lose weight and improve their physical fitness;
- those who experience a plateau effect when losing weight;
- those who have stopped progressing in muscle building;
- those wishing to increase endurance and improve their level of physical fitness.
Even if you have a sufficient level of physical fitness and have no contraindications, start training using this system with caution. If you experience dizziness, weakness, or pain, try more gentle versions of HIIT.
Training programs
We offer approximate Tabata training programs for beginner and intermediate levels.
Entry level
- Running with throwing your shins back until your heels touch your buttocks – 2 approaches.
- Getting into a glute bridge – 2 approaches.
- Jumping with legs spread and arms raised – 2 approaches.
- Knee push-ups – 2 sets.
Intermediate level
Before starting the workout, warm up for 10 minutes.
- Jump with legs spread and hand touching the opposite foot - 4 approaches.
- Lunges forward and backward with jumping – 4 sets.
- Burpees without push-ups – 4 sets.
- Jumping with a squat and a 180° turn – 4 sets.
- Plank with alternating leg raises – 4 sets.
- “Book”: sitting with emphasis on your hands behind you, connect and distance your chest and knees - 4 approaches.
Cool down until normal heart rate is reached.
Difficult level
In the article, I will tell you about the newfangled interval training Tabata protocol, which is intended for rapid weight loss (fat burning) and some other information about weight loss.
And so, it all started when I received a letter in the mail, I quote (it’s big, I cut it off):
Hello. I tried everything, but the excess fat still hung on my stomach and sides, so I turned my attention to a well-known method of losing weight called Tabata interval training. What do you think about this? Does it help?
I ask, what did you try there?! Tell me. In response, I quote (in full):
Oh, what have I not tried. First, my husband gave me a hoop for weight loss, I twirled it until I was blue in the face, took pills (cut out the name), put garbage bags on myself and then went for a run for about an hour, then instead of the bags I bought a weight loss belt, and put it on my stomach and also went for a run. Despite all this, I eat practically nothing, I don’t eat after six, I’ve eliminated everything fatty and fried from my diet, I’ve eliminated sweets, but still nothing helps. I've tried a bunch of weight loss methods, but nothing helps.
I decided to insert this dialogue (with the girl's permission) into the article so that you ALL understand the extremely important information that follows. After all, there are a huge number of people like this girl. And everyone is brainwashed to the very core with misinformation...
Tabata Protocol: what the hell is it?
This is exactly what I said (to myself or out loud, I don’t remember) when I heard about this method. I won’t hide it, I am very categorical about all these newfangled methods, including this Tabata, which guarantees to lose weight in 4 or 7 or 15 or whatever they come up with minutes a day.
Why? Yes, because any weight loss begins with a diet, not with training. Diet is the BASIC and training is secondary. Without a proper diet, you can train at least all day (not like 4 minutes a day) until ****** = you still won’t succeed. Rest assured…
That’s why the girl who wrote to me by email (and there are a huge number of people like her) doesn’t succeed. Because excluding sweets, fried foods and fatty foods or simply starving is not a diet)), because any workout (including newfangled ones like tabata and others) does not work without a diet.
This is the basics. WELL, WHY, WHY, WHY is it so difficult to UNDERSTAND this?!
Most people are looking for some magical methods of losing weight: hoops, green teas, films, bags, scrubs, corsets/belts/massagers/electric stimulators, newfangled weight loss techniques... and other shit, preferring to believe in sweet lies instead of bitter, but effective ones truth...
The essence of Tabata training
Work (do exercise) at maximum intensity for 20 seconds
Rest for 10 seconds
20 sec work
10 sec rest
and so 8 circles (rounds)) (p.s. this is why the original Tabata lasts exactly 4 minutes, i.e. 160 seconds (exercises) + 80 seconds (rest), total 160 + 80 = 240 (exactly 4 minutes).
- If necessary, the training time can be increased (but it will no longer be the original Tabata), and the loads themselves can be adjusted. For example, 8 sets of loads are not 20 seconds each, but 30 or 40 or 50 seconds each.
- Also at an advanced level, you can perform each exercise (not in 1 approach), but in 2 or 3 or 4 or 5. But then this is no longer the original Tabata and the training will not last 4 minutes, but longer (depending on number of approaches in one exercise).
- It is also possible (ideally necessary) between approaches (when the break is 10 seconds), record the number of repetitions performed in a training diary in order to track progress and gradually increase the load). For example: squat exercise, number of repetitions 10-8-8-7-7-6-6-5. If the sum of these numbers increases from week to week, then there is progress.
- The exercises used are absolutely any (squats, push-ups, lunges, burpees, jumping jacks, exercise bikes, deadlifts, parallel bars, abs, in short, any AEROBIC and ANAEROBIC exercises).
- Exercises per workout can be used both for one muscle (for example, the legs) and for all muscle groups (the whole body). For comprehensive development, it is better to use exercises for different muscle groups.
- Because in Tabata, 8 circles are used, respectively, for each circle there is 1 exercise (in total, 8 exercises should be completed per workout).
- What confused me was that this method does not have a WARM-UP before training. It is stupidly not provided for. This, in my opinion, is a gross mistake, because... there is an increased risk of injury. Accordingly, if you want to train using this method (by the way, it is not recommended for people who have heart problems) - you need to correct it yourself (by adding a warm-up).
- Training frequency per week. depends on how you train. Those. if the whole body is for training, then optimally 2-3 times a week. (for example, Tue and Thu. or Mon, Wed, Fri), if one muscle group (then you can at least every day), the main thing is that your fitness allows you + so that there are no conflicts in the recovery processes.
In general, in my opinion, nothing special, and personally, this method reminds me of CrossFit. To be honest, I don’t see any difference at all with this tabata. Seriously, what's so funny? This is CrossFit, only within 4 minutes.
No, you can certainly argue that in CrossFit there is no rest at all between approaches (for experienced professional athletes, yes), but the majority have it, just minimally, the same 5-10 seconds (as in this Tabata). What's the difference then? SHE IS NOT! Tabata is CROSSFIT in 4 minutes. That's all.
But they just come up with it)). However, CrossFit, fitness, bodybuilding, and any workout on its own (without diet) if you want to lose weight (burn fat) does not work. Therefore, no matter what newfangled workout for weight loss you come across - remember, without a diet - it’s not worth a penny.
Without a proper diet, you will never be able to lose weight. NEVER! ! ! Get this into your head, and don’t fall for all the nonsense, in the style of “Tabata: the best workout for quick weight loss.” THE CORRECT DIET is the best way to lose weight. Training is secondary.
How many articles have I written about losing weight (burning excess fat) on my website... damn, I even published a whole book, where I talked about EVERYTHING from A to Z:
And people are still looking for a magic remedy for quick weight loss... It’s so sad, honestly...
Examples of Tabata training programs
You can come up with so many things that you never dreamed of)). Any exercise, typical CrossFit is shorter.
In general, I’ll show you using the example of selecting exercises FOR FIGHTERS:
- Burpee
- Ab crunches
- Jumping rope
- Kettlebell row with a small squat or kettlebell swing
- Rotating a pancake around your head
- Clapping push-ups
- Throwing a plate or barbell in front of you
- Hyperextension
We do burpees for 20 seconds to the maximum, rest for 10 seconds, do abdominal crunches for 20 seconds to the maximum, after 10 seconds we rest and so on until the last exercise (hyperextension). That's all.
Or this is what the program might look like for ordinary people who have no equipment at all:
- Squats
- Push-ups from the floor (girls can do it from their knees if they don’t have enough strength)
- Jumping lunges
- Ab crunches
- Alternately raising the knees to the chest (at a fast pace)
- Jumping rope or imitation (if there is no jump rope)
- Running (from one wall to another, if at home)
- Burpee
We do squats for 20 seconds to the maximum, rest for 10 seconds, do push-ups for 20 seconds to the maximum, after 10 seconds we rest and so on until the last exercise (burpees). That's all.
For dessert, a video on the topic “Tabata” (CrossFit in 4 minutes) and the use of strength exercises:
Best regards, administrator.
Losing weight with a minimum of effort at home without exercise equipment or trainers is the dream of every overweight person. Doctor Izumi Tabata took a serious step towards its implementation, developing a unique training method, which is now gaining wild popularity.
The principle lies in interval training at high speed, alternating with rest. One workout lasts only four minutes, it is recommended to do sessions 3 times a week, so by doing just 12 minutes a week, you form muscle relief, burn fat and tone the entire body. Doesn't it sound like a fairy tale?
What is the Tabata Protocol?
Each workout consists of eight sets, which are divided into 20 seconds of intense repetitions of the exercise and 10 seconds of rest. Your muscles work effectively in anaerobic mode for exactly these 20 seconds, and the minimum for recovery is just 10, during which you cannot drink water or flop down exhausted on a chair, it is best to walk at a calm pace.
Exercises must be selected wisely: firstly, those that you can do intensively - 8-10 repetitions in 20 seconds, and secondly, those that can use many muscle groups. The most effective exercises are burpees, squats, crunches, running in place, push-ups and jumping jacks. For greater effect, experienced athletes do all this with weights.
Benefit
Working at such a frantic pace, you engage almost every muscle fiber in your body. In 20 seconds, the ATP energy supply mechanisms first turn on, then the glycolytic ones come into play, they are responsible for burning fat. The Tabata protocol is the most productive in accelerating metabolism.
If we compare the “speeds” of a regular workout in a rocking chair and Tabata, then the latter is five times “faster”, and fats will be broken down even after completing a 4-minute session. Professional trainers compare the Tabata Protocol to a good 45-minute aerobic or cardio workout, which not only burns fat deposits, but also strengthens the heart muscle, cardiovascular system, and increases endurance.
Harm
It should be understood that Tabata is a high-intensity workout that is contraindicated for beginners in the sport and people suffering from cardiovascular diseases. Trainers say that if you have never tried running in your life and a distance of 5 km is an insurmountable barrier for you, you should approach training using the Tabata System with extreme caution.
Serious obesity (2 forms), spinal problems, atherosclerosis and hypertension will also be contraindications to training. Undoubtedly, you first need to do classical exercises, go to the gym under the guidance of a trainer, get into optimal physical shape, and only then start Tabata training on your own.
Let us take as an example a study by a team of scientists led by Porcari and Talisa Embert, who studied groups of subjects who trained according to the Tabata protocol.
The subjects' complexes consisted of additional weights, consisting of push-ups, scissor squats, box jumps, burpees, jumping rope, overhead clapping jumps, and others. The study found that on average, during Tabata training, subjects' maximum heart rate was 86% (84 - 88%) and VO2max was 74% (67 - 81%).
Both met or exceeded industry recommendations for improved cardiovascular fitness and body composition. In terms of energy expenditure, the 16 subjects expended 240 - 360 kcal during exercise, an average of 15 kcal per minute.
Once again, Tabata met current energy expenditure recommendations for improved health and weight loss. On average, subjects perceived Tabata as an extremely difficult load, the IVI was 15.4 (“hard”). In addition, the average blood lactate level of 12.1 mmol/L during exercise showed that subjects were performing well above their lactate threshold.
The researchers' conclusion was clear - despite all the effectiveness of the system, it is very dangerous to work so intensively. Before trying Tabata training, people need to have a good level of physical development.
So, if you have read or heard somewhere about a magical training system that takes so little time and gives such wonderful results, do not rush to delude yourself - it is only suitable for trained athletes. It is clear that the level of physical fitness is individual for everyone, but if you have never seriously exercised, then you can only get harm from using the Tabata Protocol.
Finally, here is a “delicious” video about the Tabata System with a pretty instructor, which will certainly help motivate you to do your homework: