A 30-Minute HIIT Workout You Can Do Anywhere

Looking for a time-efficient workout you can do anytime, anywhere? Try this 30-minute high-intensity interval training (HIIT) routine below.

HIIT workouts - ones characterized by alternating between periods of hard and easy efforts - help improve cardiorespiratory fitness , the body's ability to utilize oxygen to feed your muscles and other tissues.

And this links HIIT workouts with numerous health benefits .

HIIT may also help with weight loss when combined with a healthy diet. When you exercise at high intensities, your body requires more oxygen to sustain the effort. "This will increase your total caloric expenditure during and after the workout," says Aimee Nicotera , an ACSM-certified exercise physiologist and health coach in Cape Cod, Massachusetts. You'll burn calories for hours post-workout as your body recovers from the high-intensity exercise, she explains.

30-Minute Body-Weight HIIT Workout for All Fitness Levels

Below, you'll find a 30-minute HIIT workout (featuring cardio- and strength-based exercises) you can do anywhere created by Alejandra Martinez , a CanfitPro-certified personal trainer in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

What to Know Before You Try These Exercises

Is this workout safe and appropriate for everyone?

This workout is appropriate for healthy people of all fitness levels. Check with your doctor first if you're new to exercise, injured or recovering from injury, pregnant, gave birth six months ago, or have a heart condition, chronic kidney disease , high blood pressure (hypertension), type 2 diabetes , or osteoporosis .

What equipment will I need? You don't need any equipment for this workout. How do I warm up?

Spend five minutes warming up first. Do bodyweight movements like squats (from standing, bend your knees and sit your butt back until your thighs are as close to parallel with the floor as you can go), jumping jacks (begin standing with feet together and arms at your sides, and then hop your feet wide while sweeping both arms overhead), and toy soldier kicks (from standing, swing one leg in front of you, keeping the leg and torso straight, and reach the opposite hand toward the raised foot; alternate legs).

How often should I do the workout? Complete this workout up to two times a week on nonconsecutive days.

Perform the first exercise for 20 seconds, working as hard as you can while maintaining proper form. Then, rest 40 seconds, and move onto the next exercise. Repeat until you've completed all six exercises, rest for 60 to 90 seconds. Return to the first exercise and repeat the routine. Do four rounds.

If that feels too easy, adjust the work-rest intervals so that you work as long (or longer) as you rest. Intermediate exercisers can perform each exercise for 30 seconds and rest for 30 seconds; advanced exercisers can work for 40 seconds and rest for 20 seconds.

1. Skater Jumps

Stand with your feet hip-width apart, arms at your sides. Keeping your right foot planted, cross your left leg behind you and out to your right side (almost as if you're doing a curtsy lunge). Keep your weight on your right leg. Simultaneously, swing your right arm to about shoulder height and your left arm across your body to reach your right hip.

Then, jump to your left to land softly on your left foot, swinging your right leg behind you and out to your left side. Your left arm should simultaneously swing out to your left side and your right arm should extend toward your left hip.

Continue leaping back and forth with your arms swinging in a skating motion. To make the exercise more challenging, touch your hand to the ground instead of swinging it out to the side.

2. Body-Weight Squats

Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, toes pointed forward. Keeping your weight in your heels, bend your knees to lower your hips until your thighs are parallel with the floor (or as close to it as you can get). Your chest should stay lifted up throughout the movement and knees over your toes (don't let them extend past). As you squat, reach your arms forward until they're in line with your shoulders.

Pause in the bottom position of the squat and then drive up through the heels to stand, pushing your arms down and behind your hips. Repeat. To make this exercise more difficult, jump out of the bottom of the squat to return to standing.

3. Walking Lunges

Begin standing with feet shoulder-width apart, arms at your sides or hands clasped in front of your chest. Take a large step forward with your left foot and bend both knees to about 90 degrees. Your front knee should be directly over your ankle; don't let it extend past your toes. Keep your core engaged, chest upright, and shoulders back. Push into your left foot to straighten your legs, bringing your right foot forward to meet your left. Immediately step your right foot forward and bend your knees into another lunge. Continue alternating legs to move forward.

4. Push-Ups

Get on the floor on your hands and knees; stack your shoulders over your wrists and your hips over your knees. Step back into a plank position, stepping one foot back and then the other so your legs are extended (straight) behind you and your feet are propped up on your toes. Engage your abdominal muscles by pulling your belly button in towards your spine.

To initiate a push-up , bend your elbows out to your sides at a 45-degree angle and lower the chest toward the floor. Touch your chest to the floor (if you can). Then, push your palms into the floor to straighten your elbows and return to the starting position.

Maintain a straight line from the crown of your head to your heels throughout the movement; don't let your lower back sag or your glutes pop up.

If floor push-ups are too challenging, perform the exercise with your knees on the ground (with your body forming a straight line from shoulder to knees) or elevate your hands on a stable surface like a bench or chair.

5. Alternating Jackknife

Lie on your back with your arms extended on the floor above your head. Draw your belly button toward your spine to engage your abdominal muscles. Keeping both legs straight, engage your abdominals and lift your right leg up and toward perpendicular with the floor. At the same time, bring your arms toward your right foot, slowly lifting your head, shoulder blades, and torso off the floor. Left leg should remain on the ground. Exhale. Then, extend your arms and right leg to return to the starting position. Repeat on the other side. Continue alternating sides.

6. Bicycle Crunches

Lie on your back and bend arms in toward your head so that hands are lightly supporting the back of it. Engage your abdominal muscles to pull your knees up and into your chest as you lift your shoulder blades off the floor. Extend your right leg straight out in front of you to make a 45-degree angle with the floor. Simultaneously twist your upper body toward your left knee, reaching your right elbow toward your left knee. Hold briefly and then repeat on the opposite side: Left leg extended and left elbow reaching toward your right knee. Continue alternating sides.

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Sources

1. Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans, 2nd edition. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services . 2018.