Getting fit and losing weight don’t have to mean hours of slogging it out at the gym! Celeb trainer Michelle Bridges reckons just 15 minutes is all you need to achieve a good workout. And she should know! With a jam-packed work schedule and one-year-old son Axel to run around after, Michelle’s a master of multitasking. “I’m just like everybody else,” she insists. “I don’t have the luxury of going to the gym whenever I want, so with the little time I do have, I want to make it as worthwhile as possible!”
So you reckon you don’t have any time? Nice try! That excuse won’t fly with Michelle. “Give me a break!” she laughs. “Barack Obama trained five or six times a week, even when he was travelling. If you’re busier than the president of the United States, I’ll let you off the hook, but I don’t know anybody who is!”
The key, Michelle says, is consistency – and it’s far better to do 15 minutes of something regularly than nothing at all. So if you want to shed those excess summer kilos and get fit fast, give this 15-minute Tabata workout a go and experience the results for yourself.
What’s Tabata anyway?
It’s a style of interval training where you exercise hard for 20 seconds, followed by 10 seconds of rest. “What’s great about this type of training is that, psychologically, you can deal with 20 seconds, even if you haven’t exercised properly in years,” says Michelle. “If I said I’m going to make you go for a run for an hour without stopping, you’d probably want to burst into tears. But if I just said, ‘You’ve only got to do 20 seconds and then you get a rest,’ people think, ‘OK, I can dig deep and do this!’”
Michelle’s ultimate Tabata workout
Each round consists of two exercises. Alternate between the two moves in each round for four minutes, rest for a minute, then move on to the next round, until you’ve completed all three rounds.
Round one
Jump squat
Legs and core. Lower into a deep squat, then push through your heels as you jump, landing softly with knees over toes and your torso tall. Repeat for 20 seconds. Rest for 10 seconds.
Push-up
Chest and arms. Keep your back long and, on your knees or toes, bend your elbows to lower your chest between your hands. Push back up to the starting position. Repeat for 20 seconds. Rest for 10 seconds.
Round 2
Burpee
Target: Whole body. From a standing position, step or jump your feet back into a plank, keeping your back long, before jumping your feet back underneath you and standing or jumping back upright. Repeat for 20 seconds. Rest for 10 seconds.
Superman plank
Core. Start in a plank position with your core braced. Slowly extend your opposite arm and leg. Return to the start position. Alternate arms and legs. Repeat for 20 seconds. Rest for 10 seconds.
Round three
Reverse lunge
Legs. Step one leg back into a lunge, lowering until your back shin is parallel with the floor. Keeping your torso tall, squeeze your butt to return to the starting position. Repeat on the other side and alternate for 20 seconds. Rest for 10 seconds.
Tricep dip
Arms. Place your hands on the edge of your couch and extend your legs in front of you. Lower down until your elbows are at right angles, then push back up to the starting position. Repeat for 20 seconds. Rest for 10 seconds.
Not feeling it today?
That’s OK, Michelle says. “Mix it up and do exercises that might not be quite as difficult. Instead of burpees, you could do a wall sit where you’re leaning up against a wall in a seated position for 20 seconds. At least you’re still doing something!”
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