7 Best HIIT Exercises You Really Need to Help You Burn Extra Body Fat

Your body stores some of the calories from the food we eat as fat. Some of the stored fat helps to provide us with the energy we need for our daily activities.

In most cases, the body stores more fat than we need.

Thus, we need to find ways to burn the excess fat that the body does not use. Without burning the excess fat, we put on more body weight and catch various diseases.

High-Intensity Interval Training, or, HIIT exercises is one of the most effective ways to help the body burn some of the excess and unwanted fat.

While you may have to use some equipment for some of the HIIT exercises, you do not have to do that for many others.

The best HIIT exercises to include in your workout, if you are working from home, are those that use little or no equipment. We refer to these as bodyweight exercises.

Bodyweight exercises use your weight to help you burn fat and build muscle.

You can do bodyweight exercises within the confines of your home.

You do not have to buy any equipment or take a gym membership.

These bodyweight HIIT exercises will take little of your time. Thus, you may find it easy to do them, even if you are on a tight schedule or have little spare time.

Best HIIT exercises you can do at home that can really help you burn excess body fat

Here are 7 HIIT exercises that can help you burn body extra fat. You can include these in your healthy lifestyle plans and weight loss strategies.

These HIIT exercises can suit you well if you are one of those who exercise very often at moderate intensity. But we will encourage you to seek medical advice before adding these to your workout.

Combine these insane moves into a single routine to help you burn more calories and build muscle

Perform each exercise for 45 seconds, then rest for 20 seconds. Each will take about 5 minutes to complete. Do each as fast and as intensively as you can.

Repeat 4 times and move to your next chosen exercise.

You can devote 30-45 minutes to each session. Thus, you can have a quick and intensive workout without any disruption to your busy schedule.

Equipment needed: None.

Burpees

Burpees is one of the best HIIT exercises for building upper body strength.

The exercise will target the muscles in your triceps, chest, and shoulders. It combines strength, cardio, balance, and mobility. It can be a bit tricky to master so, you will need some practice if you are new to it.

Though Burpees is one movement, you can break it up into 4 different moves. You start by first getting into a plank, then a push-up, and finally, a jump start.

Steps to Follow

• Stand with your feet roughly a foot wide open, with your hands by your sides.
• Get into a squat position and place your palms on the floor and in front of your feet.
• Just as your palms touch the floor, kick your feet back behind you to get into a raised plank position. Keep your spine straight and your core tight as you do this.
• Finally, leap into the air with your arms raised above your head, then back on your feet, and with your knees bent.
• As your feet touch the floor, lower yourself to start another rep.

Mountain Climbers

Mountain climbers is one of the HIIT exercises that target both your lower and upper bodies.

The exercise can target your core, quads, arms, and shoulders. In effect, you can look at it as a total body exercise that can work different body muscles.

The mountain climbers exercise can get your heart pumping and help you burn calories. You can use the exercise to build core strength and cardio endurance.

Also, it is one of the HIIT exercises that challenge your balance and agility.

You can make mountain climbers part of your HIIT exercises. You can also add the exercise to your morning workout at the gym or home.

The basic exercise targets beginners. But experienced and seasoned exercisers can benefit greatly from the exercise with a few variations.

To do the exercise, you should imagine yourself climbing a mountain. The only difference is the floor will be the mountain

Steps to Follow

• Start by getting into the high plank position by getting on your palms and toes and engage your core.
• Engage your quads, glutes, and thighs and make your legs straight. Your hands must be about a shoulder-width away from each other. Your back must be flat. Make sure you relax your neck by looking at the floor between your hands. Make sure your shoulders hips and heels are in a straight line.
• Still keeping your core tight, inhale and pull your right knee as far as you can towards your chest.
• Then, exhale and return to your starting position.
• Switch legs and repeat with your left knee by pulling it towards your chest and back to your starting position.
• Make sure you keep your hips down as you do the movement.

Push-Ups

If you are looking for an effective exercise to build your core strength and upper body as part of your HIIT exercises, then push-ups must be your go-to exercise.

Push-ups will also fit nicely into your circuit training or strength workouts. You can also add the exercise to your bodyweight exercise sessions

Steps to Follow

• Start by getting into the high plank position.
• To do this, get on the floor or mat on all fours. Your palms must be flat on the floor and slightly wider than your shoulders apart.
• Extend your legs back and balance your body on your hands and toes. Your shoulders, hips, and heels must be in a straight line.
• Depending upon what makes you comfortable, your feet can be close to each other or apart.
• Pull your belly button toward your spine to contract your abs and tighten your core.
• Inhale, slowly bend your elbows and lower your elbows until it forms a 90-degree angle. Make sure your head and your spine are aligned and keep your torso rigid.
• Exhale, start contracting your chest muscles. Then, lift yourself by pressing upward with your arms till you extend your arms fully; that is, to your starting position. Make sure you do not lock your elbows. Instead, keep your elbows bent slightly.
• Repeat as many times as you can or as dictated by your workout regime.

Jump Rope

Jumping rope is one of the most cost-effective HIIT exercises to add to your workout.

Jumping rope can improve cardiovascular fitness. It can help you build muscular strength and endurance. It can also boost your balance and agility and help you burn calories.

While jumping rope may seem like a basic exercise, it demands coordination. Thus, you may need some practice, especially if you haven’t done any since third grade. You may also need to have some patience to develop the rhythm.

To make sure you are doing the exercise properly, take note of the following to help you get the best results:

• Make sure you relax your shoulders, keep your elbows in, and slightly bent.
• Keep any movement in your upper body to the barest minimum.
• Do not turn the rope with your arms, instead turn the rope with your wrists.
• Bend your knees slightly while jumping, and land softly on the balls of your feet.
• Do not jump too high. Jump to leave just enough space under your feet to make room for the rope to pass under.

Squat Jumps

Like plyometric jumps, squat jumps can improve your agility and boost lower and upper body strength. It can help you burn calories much faster than the regular squat if included in your HIIT exercises for a regular workout.

Squat jumps can help you build explosive power. Such explosive power gives you the ability to take off much faster and move quickly.

Thus, squat jumps can be of great benefit in many sporting activities, such as running, football, tennis, and many other field and track sports.

Steps to Follow

• Start the exercise by standing with your knees slightly bent. Place your feet about a hip-width apart.
• Hinge at your hips by pushing your butt back and lower down to make your thighs parallel to the floor.
• Press your feet down and forcefully jump off the floor as high as you can. Extend your legs fully while doing the jump.
• Come back down by bending your knees to make a 45-degree angle with the floor as you land; then immediately do a squat and forcefully jump again.
• Repeat the cycle.

Jump Lunge

Jump lunges take the basic lunge to another level by adding a jump to the exercise. Doing so increases the difficulty and intensity of the exercise. Jump lunge challenges your core, hips, hamstrings, quads, glutes, calves, and hip flexors.

Adding jump lunge to your HIIP exercises for a workout can help you engage your cardiovascular system.

Jump lunges can help boost your heart rate, and help you burn more calories.

Steps to Follow

• Begin the exercise by Standing. Keep your feet about a shoulder-width from each other. Engage your core
• Make sure you plant both feet firmly onto the floor.
• Quickly jump straight up. While in the air, switch your feet and land back in a lunge. By switching your feet, you will land with your feet in positions opposite to where you started.
• Continue jumping, switching your feet back and forth to complete the required repetitions.
• Work on getting a high jump and a deep lunge, each time, moving quickly and smoothly.

Forearm Plank

A strong core reduces stress on your joints and helps you to develop a good posture. A strong core makes it easy for you to carry out many activities, such as swinging a bat or bending to tie your shoes.

It is necessary to have a strong core if you are into such sports as athletics. It is because a weak core can lead to more fatigue, poor stamina, and injuries.

The forearm plank is one of the best exercises for building your abs and core. Thus, to make sure you maintain a strong and stable core, the plank must be on your list of HIIT exercises for any workout you plan.

The forearm plank is not a cardio exercise. It is an exercise for building strength.

But, because you engage many muscles when you do the exercise, the forearm plank can help you burn calories. Thus, having it as one of your HIIT exercises is a sure way to burn more calories while building and strengthening your core.

Steps to Follow

• Get into the plank position by balancing your body on your forearms and toes. Keep your face down and your feet apart. Direct your eyes to the floor. Make sure your elbows are directly under your shoulders and your forearms facing forward.
• Pull your navel in and towards your spine to engage the muscles in your abs.
• Relax your head and make sure it is in line with your spine. To get the position right, imagine your body is a long, straight line from your ears to your toes.
• Hold the position for 30 seconds, or more if you can.

Final Words from LiveLife

HIIT exercises can give you many benefits. Such benefits include helping you burn calories, reducing the possibility of injuries, and keeping you healthy and fit.

But HIIT exercises may not be suitable for everyone. Thus, it is necessary to discuss with your doctor before you start a HIIT workout.

Why not add some or all the HIIT exercises we have suggested to any exercise or workout plan you build? You can make any changes to the routines. You can also do the exercises at your convenience and place.