One Great Home Workout to Lose Fat and Build Muscle

Sometimes it can be so hard to find the motivation to go to the gym or to get out for that run. It’s so easy to convince ourselves that we don’t have the time or that we’ll go tomorrow. But you don’t have to leave the house to get the exercise that you need! Why not consider trying out a home workout?

So to make things easier for you, we have a fantastic home workout to share with you. You can do this from the comfort of your own home, you don’t need any equipment and it can take as little as 4 minutes! (I know, great right?)

Tabata

The name of this home workout is Tabata and I have personally tried and tested it myself, trust me, it works!

The whole concept behind this workout is that it’s a type of high-intensity interval training (otherwise known as HIIT). This means that you do 20 seconds of your chosen exercise at a really high intensity and then you get 10 seconds of a break. You do this 8 times which makes up 4 minutes.

The really great thing about this home workout is that although you keep the same format, you can choose the exercises depending on what part of your body that you want to work out. So you could do the same exercise for all eight sets if you really wanted to target a certain muscle group, or you could do eight different exercises and get a full body workout.

I would recommend choosing 2 exercises and alternating between them for a really intense workout of those muscle groups. If each exercise is only done once for 20 seconds then you may have to do 2 or 3 sets of 4 minutes to see a benefit.

Music

I’m sure you all know how important music is for working out, and I personally believe that music you listen to is a major factor for how much energy you are able to put into your workout.

Now, of course, you could easily do this workout to your own choice of music and use a timer to determine when to start and stop the exercises but all of that acts as distractions from your own workout and your form. When doing a Tabata home workout,  because it’s so short, I would recommend simply using one of the Tabata songs available on Youtube, which will tell you when to start and when to rest!

Here’s one of my favourites but there are many different variations of the songs: Tabata Songs.

Check them out and find one that you like and, most importantly, that gets you in the mood to workout!

Personal Recommendations

Personally, a Tabata workout that I would do quite often is to just do squat jumps for the 4 minutes. When done correctly, squat jumps are a fantastic way to target so many different muscles in your legs, core and back.

If you do decide to do this workout, make sure that your ordinary squatting form is good before you start, with your knees shoulder width apart, back not rounded and knees pointing outwards as you squat.

As you go through the exercises, make sure to land on your toes as you land each time and go straight from landing into another squat, don’t take time to stand between each squat.

If you do this workout correctly, it is a killer! But a very effective killer that is sure to tone your bum, hips, legs and core!

Other recommendations that I would have is to do exercises like plank, side plank, Russian twists and tabletops to target your core, or maybe press ups, full plank or tricep dips for your arms. If you have weights or a kettlebell, add them in if you’d like. Change it up and get creative with your home workout!

Before You Start

From doing Tabata myself, I have a few tips to share with you to take into consideration before you start your home workout:

1. Think about what part of your body you would like to target with this workout.

– Once you decide whether you’re doing arms or whether it’s time for leg day, it’ll be much easier to pick out specific exercises.

2. Decide on which exercises that you’re going to do and in what order. (Write them down if there’s a lot of them)

– The last thing you want is to spend 5 out of each 20 seconds trying to remember what exercise you’re meant to be doing!

3. Stretch before you start  

– I can’t put enough emphasis on the importance of stretching properly before you start. Make sure that you stretch your whole body, not just the part where you’re focusing because sometimes certain exercises can affect muscles in places that you didn’t expect.

4. Know your own pace  

 – Know how fast or how intense you’ll be able to do your workout, don’t push yourself too hard and risk injury. Push yourself out of your comfort zone and challenge yourself but at the same time, don’t try to take massive steps. It’s much better to do a relatively tough workout every two or three days when you’re starting off than to push yourself too hard and not be able to do anything for a week.

5. Stay Hydrated  

– Hydration levels have been proven to directly impact performance so make sure that you have water beside you as you go through your workout, and sip on it each time that there’s a break.

6. Enjoy it!  

– The more you enjoy your workout, the easier that it will be. Try your best to embrace the burn and remind yourself why you are doing this. Also, remember that it’ll all be worth it for the feeling that you’ll get afterwards!

     Clothing

As with any workout, the right clothing is extremely important. You want to make sure that you’re completely comfortable in what you’re wearing so that you can stay focused on your actual workout. (And of course, you want to look unbelievably stylish at the same time!)

That’s the whole reason that we created our range of clothing, to help people to find something that they would feel comfortable and confident in while doing their workout, going for a run or practising yoga.

You can check out our range here: I-SPY Clothing.

I’m motivated to go and do a workout myself now! Let us know what you favourite Tabata routine is in the comments!

                                                                About the Author                                                                                        

 https://i-spy.ie/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Blog-5-1.png Egan is the Co-Founder and Marketing Manager of I-SPY Clothing. She has always had a love of fitness and running and enjoys sharing what she has learnt from her workout journey with others. https://i-spy.ie/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Blog-5-1.png believes that fitness should be a part of everyone’s life and is passionate about spreading this message.