If you want a heart-pumping workout without stressing your joints, youâre in luck: This Pilates HIIT workout uses low-impact exercises to get you sweating.
The final installment of Sweat With SELFâs new Pilates series, this workout offers a combination of some of your favorite things: Itâs got âelements of Pilates, strength training, and high-intensity cardio,â as Sina Riemann, a certified personal trainer and Pilates instructor based in New York City, says in the video. âWe put it all in one class to make you feel your best.â
Throughout the workoutâwhich takes just 20 minutesâyouâll fire up muscles in your core, legs, and upper body. Youâll begin with a dynamic warm-up, where youâll perform reps of the inchworm to downward dog, a full-body exercise that gets blood flowing in your shoulders, core, and hamstrings.
Then itâs on to your actual routine, and like your warm-up, your workout is packed with moves that perform double duty. Take your first exercise, the bodyweight ab-roller to modified push-up. The first part challenges your entire core as your midsection fires to keep you steady as you ârollâ forward, while the modified push-up calls your chest and shoulder muscles into action. Then thereâs the plié squat burpee (challenging your quads, butt, core, and shoulders), which you can modify or progress according to your fitness level or what your body is craving that day.
The programming of this workout also helps it check the HIIT box: Youâll be going from exercise to exercise (which often work the same part of your body) with little rest. That means your muscles spend a lot of time under tension, which really gets your heart rate up. Sequences include the reverse lunge to reverse lunge step-out, donkey kick to hamstring curl, and side-lying leg lift to heel tap (with a pulse, because yes, this is Pilates!).
Important: While this workout is meant to go from move to move, itâs important to take some time to rest if you feel your form beginning to falter. Remember, quality is always going to be most important here.
This Pilates HIIT workout is a great one to bookmark if you want to work your entire body, really challenge your muscles, and get a dose of cardio. And since it doesnât require any equipment, you can do it anywhere!
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