HIIT Workout
40/20 Full Body HIIT Workout
The 40/20 interval format gives you twice the work time compared to Tabata, making it ideal for compound movements where you need a few seconds to find your rhythm. Four rounds of four exercises — burpees, squats, push-ups, and mountain climbers — with 40 seconds of work and 20 seconds of rest between each. The slightly longer work periods allow you to accumulate more total volume while the 20-second rest keeps intensity high. Twenty minutes including warm-up and cool-down. This is a versatile format that works for almost any fitness level since you can control your own pace within each 40-second window.
Workout Breakdown
More HIIT Workouts
Tabata Core Crusher Ab Workout
A Tabata workout focused entirely on your core — 16 minutes of intense abdominal work across three Tabata blocks. You'll cycle through crunches, bicycle kicks, plank holds, mountain climbers, leg raises, Russian twists, flutter kicks, and dead bugs. Each exercise gets the classic 20 seconds of maximum effort followed by 10 seconds of rest, repeated for 8 rounds per block. This isn't a casual ab workout — the Tabata protocol ensures your core muscles are working at near-maximum capacity with minimal recovery. The variety of exercises hits your rectus abdominis, obliques, transverse abdominis, and hip flexors from every angle. Includes a brief warm-up and cool-down. Best done 2-3 times per week with at least a day of rest between sessions.
Upper Body HIIT Workout 20 Minutes
An upper body focused HIIT workout that proves you don't need weights to build serious pushing strength and endurance. Four rounds of push-ups, tricep dips, plank shoulder taps, and diamond push-ups with 40 seconds of work and 20 seconds of rest. Each exercise targets your chest, shoulders, and triceps from a different angle, while the plank-based movements engage your core throughout. Twenty minutes total including warm-up and cool-down. If you can't do full push-ups yet, modify from your knees — the interval format still delivers results. Pair this with the HIIT Leg Workout for a complete no-equipment training split.
Pyramid HIIT Workout
A pyramid workout that builds intensity up and then brings it back down. Starting at 20 seconds of work with 10 seconds of rest, each round increases the work duration while proportionally increasing rest — 30/15, 40/20, 50/25, up to 60/30 at the peak, then back down. Burpees throughout, so the challenge is purely cardiovascular and mental. The ascending phase teaches you to manage increasing fatigue while the descending phase rewards your effort with progressively shorter work periods. Twenty-five minutes including warm-up and cool-down. Advanced difficulty — sustained burpees at varying intensities requires both fitness and mental grit.