This may be a very quick workout and you may initially think it is not enough to do anything for your fitness level or weight loss, but when done multiple times throughout the day (with at least a 2 hour break in between), this can actually burn more calories overall than an hour-long, killer cardio workout. Do 6 rounds of this routine a day (for a total of only 30 minutes) and your metabolism will do the rest.

Sound too good to be true? Here is how it works. Every time you work out, your body will burn calories at an elevated rate to perform whatever physical activity it is that you are doing — this is the direct effect exercise has on your body’s metabolism. Once you are done exercising, your metabolism will drop back down, but not as low as your normal resting state. This small elevation in your metabolism (calorie burn per min) slowly trails off over the next one to two hours giving you an extra residual calorie burn from the workout you just finished. That residual calorie burn is what this program focuses on. By doing multiple small workouts, you not only get the total calorie burn from these workouts, but also an extra residual calorie burn — and this is where the real difference shows up.

For example, if you do a regular 60 minute workout and burn 500 calories (8.33 cal/min), which is typical for a moderately intense workout, you may burn an extra 90 calories from your residual burn (an extra 1 cal/min for the first hour and .5 cal/min for the second hour above your regular resting metabolism). This gives you a total of 590 calories burned for your one-hour workout.

If you do 6 of the Quick HIIT workouts throughout the day (being sure to give at least 2 hours break in between to get the most out of your residual burn), you will burn 50 calories per 5 minute workout (10 cal/min) because the workout is more intense than a typical workout. This gives you a total of 300 calories burned throughout your 30 minutes of total physical activity. Add the extra residual burn from all 6 workouts and you get 360 extra calories burned over the course of the day — .75 cal/min burn for the first hour after exercise and .25 cal/min for the second hour x 6. [Note: the extra calorie burn is lower here due to the fact that the quick workout does not have quite as strong an effect on your residual metabolism boost as does the longer workout used in the previous example]. All totaled, 6 of the Quick HIIT workouts will give you a total calorie burn of 660 calories in only 30 minutes of physical activity.

A warm up & cool down are not included in this video; both are highly recommended.

Exercises and Structure

Warm Up: (not included)
30-60 Seconds High Knee March or Jumping Jacks

Round 1

20 Seconds – Lizard Hops
10 Seconds – Rest

20 Seconds – Lizard Hops
10 Seconds – Rest

20 Seconds – Burpee Jacks
10 Seconds – Rest

20 Seconds – Burpee Jacks
10 Seconds – Rest

Round 2

20 Seconds – Lizard Hops
10 Seconds – Rest

20 Seconds – Lizard Hops
10 Seconds – Rest

20 Seconds – Burpee Jacks
10 Seconds – Rest

20 Seconds – Burpee Jacks
10 Seconds – Rest


Aside from the extra calories burned by doing high intensity interval training workouts throughout your day, you also get the other benefit of exercise; improved focus, better mood, etc.