Total Body Tabata Workout // 12 Minute Tabata with Weights

Total Body Tabata Workout // 12 Minute Tabata with Weights is a perfect finisher workout from Heather Robertson. I loved it! This is a short cardio + strength workout. There is some impact in this workout but nothing high impact. Heather primarily uses dumbbells to increase the intensity. I used this workout to finish off Heather’s Powerful Full Body Strength Workout. I was already worn out by that workout so this did an excellent job finishing me off. I personally do not consider this a total body workout and I would not ever use it as a strength workout, though there is metabolic strength work in it. But everyone is different. For me, this is the perfect finisher workout to use after a strength workout to give you a burst of cardio with a little bit of bonus strength work.

This workout is done tabata style: 20 seconds of work followed by 10 seconds of recovery; repeat this 20/10 interval 8 times for a 4 minute tabata circuit. There are 3 tabata circuits in this workout. Each circuit alternates 2 different exercises. There is a timer in the lower right hand corner of the screen, counting down your intervals and recoveries. During the recoveries Heather previews your next exercise. Unlike other tabata workouts, there is no recovery between each tabata circuit–so you are working straight through for 12 minutes, one tabata after the other.

Total Body Tabata Workout // 12 Minute Tabata with Weights is 17:42 minutes; 2:30 minute warm up and 2:15 minute stretch. Equipment: dumbbells and fitness mat. Heather is using 10 and 15 pound dumbbells. The weights listed below are what I used.

Tabata 1:

1. Squat & hop (do one squat holding one DB goblet style then lower arms so DB is hanging between legs and do one squat hop) (one 25# DB)
2. Climber jacks (4 mountain climbers + one plank jack)
3. Repeat #1 & 2 three more times

Tabata 2:

1. Side lunge hops (holding one DB in both hands, do a side lunge then hop shuffle to change legs) (one 16.5# DB)
2. Shadow box (alternating front punches) (5# DBs)
3. Repeat #1 & 2 three more times

Tabata 3:

1. Curtsy combo (alternating curtsy lunges w/ a deadlift between each side) (20# DBs)
2. Swing & switch (alternating single arm kettlebell swings with a DB, pass DB from hand to hand at top of each swing) (one 20# DB)
3. Repeat #1 & 2 three more times

For more info on Heather Robertson’s workouts and other (free) streaming workouts I’ve sampled and reviewed, check out my Streaming page.