Get fit with a 4 minute workout

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- Imagine getting the benefits from 30 minutes of exercise in just four minutes. One doctor's study proves that it's possible.

Tabata Training, named after Dr. Izumi Tabata, consists of eight rounds of 20 seconds of exercise.

It's the fastest fat burning workout out there right now. Dr. Tabata had to do some major convincing to the fitness world that his method worked.

"In the original study by Dr. Tabata, one group did 30-minute workouts four days a week, while the other group only did the four-minute Tabata workout four days a week," said personal trainer Kinsey Cave. "The Tabata group actually out-performed the control group in the study. These results seemed so unbelievable that people simply didn't believe it until they replicated the study over and over and got the same results."

The workout was developed for people who have a short amount of time but want to get the max results from the workout.

"During the 20 seconds that you're working out, you're working at the highest intensity possible, as long as you are maintaining good form of the exercise," Cave said.

Then, you take a quick 10 second break. After the 20 seconds of work, during that 10 seconds, you're just trying to catch your breath.

Mountain climbers, jump squats, squat thrusts, ski jumps, and sprints are all examples of high intensity exercises that can be performed during the 20 second intervals.

Tabata training also works with low impact exercises such as biking, squats, or push ups.

"You're going to be challenging both your anaerobic and aerobic system, so you're going to improve your athletic performance," Cave said.

Experts suggest easing into the workout because it can be taxing on the body. Try doing 30 seconds of intense exercise then taking a 30 second break for a few rounds before working your way up to the full four minute workout.