If you have been looking for HIIT workouts that burn the most calories, you have come to the right place. HIIT stands for high intensity interval training, and these workouts burn a TON of calories.
The reason that HIIT workouts burn so many calories is because of the intense portion of the workout. In fact, you can burn as many calories in a 15 minute HIIT workout as you could in a 60 minute workout.
In this article we are going to discuss 10 of the best HIIT workouts that burn the most calories. And you will learn exactly how you need to perform them in order to get maximum results.
All 10 of these workouts are available in our app All Workouts: Personal Trainer (iOS | Google Play). You will find our guided HIIT workouts easy to use. If you also want to build muscle, our FREE workout plans will help you out.
How to perform a HIIT workout properly
If you are planning on burning a ton of calories, you have to perform HIIT workouts correctly. Once you understand the formula, you will start to feel more confident in your abilities.
I will admit, HIIT workouts never get easy. They are designed to push your body to exhaustion. But the payoff is worth it. A ton of calories burned in a short amount of time.
Let’s look over the formula for a standard 15 minute HIIT workout:
Warmup – 60 Seconds (A light jog or pedal on a bike will work)
Intense – 30 Seconds (Push yourself as hard as you can here)
Rest – 60 Seconds (Catch your breath and prepare for next intense portion)
Repeat – 10 Times
As you can see, the formula is fairly simple. But what makes this stand out from any other workout. It is the fact that during each intense portion, your goal is to get your heart rate to 90% of your maximum heart rate.
Learn how to calculate your maximum heart rate before committing to this. And if you don’t know how to calculate your current heart rate, you can always get a watch with a heart rate monitor. I personally use an Apple Watch, which can be purchased on Amazon.
The following exercises can simply be plugged into the formula that I shared above. Remember that for each intense portion, you must hit your 90% max heart rate. That is where the fat burn happens and the calories get shredded.
Assault Bike
The assault bike is an all out assault on your whole body. This machine makes your legs, arms, back, chest, and just about everything get a workout.
There is a reason that the assault bike is in my top 3 favorite HIIT workouts. It just all around gets the job done.
Battle Ropes
Battle ropes are awesome! As your body tries to whip around these oversized ropes, it’s working overtime to make it happen.
This in turn gets your heart rate very high, making for a perfect HIIT workout exercise. If your gym doesn’t have battle ropes, these are the ones that I recommend from Amazon.
Bike Sprints
As you can see in the video, I am on a stationary bike. Don’t let that hold you back though. This can be done with a regular bike outdoors, or just about anywhere.
If you don’t have access to a stationary bike or a regular bike, I am sure you know someone with a bike that you can borrow.
But don’t let the responsibility of finding equipment hold you back from performing HIIT workouts on a regular basis. The following 4 exercises can be performed at home without any equipment!
Burpees
Burpees are, in my opinion, one of the best HIIT workouts that burn the most calories without equipment. Burpees are an all in one exercise that works out your entire body, and burns an absurd amount of calories.
It is almost impossible not to get your heart rate to 90% of your max when you are doing burpees.
High Knees
In my opinion, this is the most entry level basic form of HIIT exercises that you can perform. It is just like running in place, but bringing your knees higher than normal.
Don’t get me wrong, you can absolutely get to 90% of your max heart rate with high knees. But it is going to take some serious intensity on your part. Always remember to be intentional about intensity.
Jump Squats
Jump squats aren’t just great for burning fat. They are also great for building muscle in your legs if that is something you are looking to do. Just a word of warning. If you are trying to build muscle, you cannot build muscle in a caloric deficit.
In other words, you can’t have it both ways. You can’t build muscle and lose fat at the same time. You have to make a choice about which one you are going to choose.
Mountain Climbers
Planks are difficult enough, but when you add in the motion of bringing your knees to your armpits while in a plan, that is tough. But that is what makes mountain climbers so great!
You are really going to get your core here, which means great abs when you have finished towards your goal.
Rowing Machine
Similar to the assault bike and burpees, the rowing machine is another one of those exercises that works out your whole body.
Have you ever seen those crew teams in the olympics? Have you ever seen an out of shape one? Probably not. That is because rowing in general burns a ton of calories. Most people can’t afford to buy a custom racing rowboat, so the rowing machine is the next best option.
Ski Erg Machine
I totally understand if your gym doesn’t have a ski erg machine. This is something that is new to my gym, so yours might not have it yet.
If your gym does have it, you will find that this exercise is super intense. It will really get your core and most of your body.
Treadmill Sprints
As with the stationary bike, this is another one of those exercises that you do not need any actual equipment for. You can just go outside and do sprints.
I do have a word of warning for you when it comes to sprints. Always stretch very well before you do them. I personally don’t do sprints anymore because I feel like I pull a muscle every time. Some people love sprints, others (like me) feel that there are better ways to burn fat.
Making sure your nutrition is right to burn fat
If you are looking to burn fat and lose weight rapidly, your nutrition is going to have to be right. I am not going to get super specific on what exactly you should be eating however.
I would like to instead focus on total calories eaten per day. Learn about calculating your maintenance calories before you do anything. Once you learn what your maintenance calories are, you can now do something about it.
The best thing to do in order to lose weight is eat at a caloric deficit. The next best thing to do is high intensity interval training. If you combine both of those things together, then your fat loss will be unstoppable.
A caloric deficit is simply eating less than your maintenance calories.
Another important thing that I want to note here is that eating at a caloric deficit is something that needs to be done over a long period of time. Yes, you can have a cheat meal, but make sure that overall, you are still at a caloric deficit.
I have met people who can’t seem to lose weight. When we finally sit down and talk about their diet, they tell me they eat great 6 days out of the week, and then have a cheat meal on the 7th day.
After we calculate all of the calories consumed, their cheat day is big enough to where it cancels out the other 6 days. And overall, they are actually eating at a caloric surplus.
This right here is one of the main reasons that people give up on their diet and exercise plan. They don’t understand their overall calorie intake, so they think it is impossible to lose weight.
Main Point: HIIT workouts that burn the most calories
If you were looking for HIIT workouts that burn the most calories, this article has everything you need to know. Each exercise was designed for burning fat as long as you apply the formula in the first section.
Remember, 30 seconds of INTENSE exercise, followed by 60 seconds of rest, then repeat 10 times. The key here is getting your heart rate to 90% of your max each time you perform the intense portion of the workout.
If you follow this formula AND eat properly, you are going to shed fat so fast, your friends and family will think that you got a gastric bypass.
Eating good food is definitely important. But the most important part is overall calories. Eat at a caloric deficit in order to lose weight at a consistent rate. HIIT is going to accelerate that fat loss of course.
Related Articles
Do HIIT Workouts Build Muscle? Let’s Find Out
20 of the Best Exercise Equipment Amazon Has to Offer (Home Gym)
How to Make Exercise a Habit: A Guide
Leave a Reply