How I Work Out At Home : Part 1 - HIIT

Working out has slowly become a regular occurrence in my life again - *thank goodness* yells my un-toned, podgey stomach and bingo wings!
 Growing up I never thought I'd become a lazy and 'un-sporty' girl but after leaving school and becoming 'adult' the thought of exercising slowly went to the bottom of my life priorities and I lost total interest in breaking a sweat and being active.
For a girl who used to be in every school sports team, head to dance classes for hours on end each week and chose P.E. as both a GCSE and A Level - I had rocketed to the other end of the spectrum!

I've had fitness phases over the last few years but nothing that's ever seemed to last more thana  few months - except for walking.... although that's probably just due to the fact that I'm a 26 year old who cannot drive. (yes, I'm saying that in a Clueless quote kind of way!)

I now have a gym membership... yes me! haha..... which means I can take advantage of all the fitness classes they provide, which I have fallen in love with - Dance Atomic is SO much fun!

I'm feeling so happy now I'm back doing regular workouts, runs and classes and slowly but surely I'm seeing a difference. (If I'm not annoying you on social media yet with my updates.... then you're clearly not following me on enough platforms!)

 I can't always get over to the gym and some days early mornings workouts are my only option.

I've been to a few HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) classes recently - I love the variety of moves and working out my whole body and the timed music that's used (so motivating for me knowing there's only 10/20 seconds left haha!).

It was while I was listening to this music that it suddenly HIIT me (haha get it?)  .... they must have downloaded this 'soundtrack' from somewhere, I could soooo do this at home! So I headed onto Apple Music and searched for HIIT albums and there they were - so many different versions and difficulties, perfect!

I went for a playlist that lasted around 20/25 minutes. Each set being 4x 60 second efforts with 20 seconds rest inbetween.

This is amazing for a quick morning workout or even after work before dinner! 

I try to break a sweat 6 days a week now, so 20 minutes in my own home is perfect - who can't spare 20 minutes?

You don't need alot of room and you can choose whatever moves you want! Whether you want to focus on an area e.g. legs/abs OR work the whole body with a variety of moves (that's my favourite way and it gives parts of me a rest!)

I have a kettlebell that I use to add a bit of weight work into my routines which I love - it was only £10 from Littlewoods #bargain and I have a yoga mat that I use for floor work (no-one likes a carpet burn) but apart from that all I need is my phone with the music on loud to keep me motivated! 

Like I said before, during the workouts you are actually given updates like "half way there" and "10 seconds left" - which really help me to focus and give my all for that 1 minute of intense exercise. (Plus you get 20 seconds in between... perfect for a sip of water or hair adjustment.)

So.... I'm sure you are all wondering what I get upto so here's a list of 10 of my favourite moves to do whilst doing HIIT at home..... (not sure what they are... google is your best friend.)

1. The Plank - great for working and strengthening the core.

2. Mountain Climbers - for someone who hates burpees these are a great way of getting the heart rate up.

3. American Swings - this is a kettlebell move that I probably find more fun that I should!

4. Squats - Booty goals.

5. Bicycle Crunches - a great way to target the abs and obliques in one easy exercise - I really like to push myself on these.

6. Triceps Dips - again with the kettlebell, I have NO upper body strength so as much as these pain me I know I need to do them to improve!

7. Squat Pulses & Squat Kicks - Again .... I need a good butt so these should work wonders.... I hope!

8. Alternating Sit-Ups & Press-Ups - these kill me.... but that means they are working! I normally do 4 sit-ups then 4 press-ups!

9. Scissor Abs - My belly is one of the areas I am most conscious of - I love these as I can really feel like working my muscles.

10. High Knees or Sprint - Another great one for getting my heart rate up - I literally power through this as hard as I can - it's only for a minute..... but it always feels longer (I'm not sure my downstairs neighbour appreciates it though....)

Like this post? Keep your eyes peeled for Part 2 of my 'At Home Workout' series coming soon..... featuring a certain lady's DVDs.....

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