12/05/2021
It's great seeing everyone heading back to gyms, working out, socialising and smiling.
With the hunger to get stuck in a lot of people are doing Tabata workouts......or so they think. Unfortunately the majority of people are doing HIIT instead.
Here is what Tabata really is:
A version of HIIT was based on a 1996 study[10] by Ritsumeikan University Professor Izumi Tabata (田畑泉) et al. initially involving Olympic speedskaters. The study used 20 seconds of ultra-intense exercise (at an intensity of about 170% of VO2max) followed by 10 seconds of rest, repeated continuously for 4 minutes (8 cycles). The exercise was performed on a mechanically braked cycle ergometer. Tabata called this the IE1 protocol.[11] In the original study, athletes using this method trained 4 times per week, plus another day of steady-state training, for 6 weeks and obtained gains similar to a group of athletes who did steady state training (70% VO2max) 5 times per week. The steady state group had a higher VO2max at the end (from 52 to 57 mL/(kg•min)). However the Tabata group had achieved comparable aerobic improvements but only exercised 4 minutes per day on their 4 HIIT days compared to 60 minutes for the aerobic group. The Tabata group also started lower and gained more overall (from 48 to 55 mL/(kg•min)). Also, only the Tabata group had gained anaerobic capacity benefits.
If you're doing multiple exercises and selecting exercises that don't allow you to work at an ultra intensive level then you're doing HIIT and not Tabata.
Take the time to study what you practice, learn it and apply it correctly to get the best results.
