One of the most difficult aspects to leading a healthier lifestyle is exercising.

For some reason or another, we seem to have this notion that the only way to lose weight and be healthy is to love running or spend hours in the gym.

But that couldn’t be further from the truth.

HIIT workouts, or High-intensity interval training, are a quick and simple, yet effective, way to establish a lasting workout regime in as little as 15 minutes a day. And they’re great as part of your weight loss plan!

This type of training is a split between short, intense bursts of physical activity followed by even shorter intervals of rest.

It requires you to push yourself as hard as you physically can for a set duration of time, take a short rest, and do it all again.

And the best part?

It doesn’t require any equipment or a big chunk out of your day.

Just your body, the floor, and less than 30 minutes are all that’s required, meaning you have no excuse not to make it part of your routine.

Benefits of HIIT

HIIT workouts have been gaining popularity over the last few years, and it’s not without good cause.

Many people think that 15 minutes just isn’t enough time to get in a good workout and actually lose weight, but that’s where they’re wrong.

It all comes down to the intensity of the workout.

A study comparing the caloric expenditure of aerobic training, weight training, and high-intensity interval training concluded that HIIT can burn up to 25-30% more calories than weight training, running, or biking.

Similar to strength training, HIIT also increases your post-exercise resting energy expenditure (REE), meaning you’ll burn even more calories after your workout while you’re just enjoying life.

And all the full-body workouts help you gain muscle strength and definition, an important part of a healthy, capable body.

As if that wasn’t reason enough to give HIIT a fighting chance in your life, it’s an incredibly efficient use of your time.

It’s a challenge to find both the time and motivation to go to the gym 5 days a week.

Fortunately, HIIT workouts can be done anywhere in as little as 10 minutes.

Having a more attainable workout plan means you’re more likely to keep with it and actually see the results you want.

So, it’s really a no-brainer when it comes to high-intensity interval training for weight loss and healthy exercise.

10 Killer HIIT Workouts for Weight Loss

Since this type of workout is so intense, it’s recommended you only perform HIIT 3x/week.

On your off days, you can go for a walk or practice a calming yoga flow to get your body moving.

Related: 11-Minute Calming Yoga Flow for Anxiety Relief

For each HIIT workout, I wrote down the interval split and the exercises so you can easily follow along without the videos.

Don’t forget to give it your all during the active periods so you can fully reap the benefits HIIT has to offer!

1. 15-Minute FAT BURNER WORKOUT | Full Body At Home HIIT Workout

Sarah is the queen of HIIT workouts, so be warned.

If you don’t think this 15-minute HIIT workout will kick your butt, you’re dead wrong.

Try at your own risk.

Interval split:

• 30 seconds on each exercise
• 30 second rest between each round
• Repeat circuit 1 for 3 rounds then move on to circuit 2

Exercises:

• Circuit 1:
  • 10 High Knees then Chest to Floor
  • Star Crunches
  • 8 Mountain Climbers to Jack Push-Ups
  • 3 In & Out Squat Pulses
• Circuit 2:
  • Plank Toe-Taps
  • Plank In & Outs
  • 180 Jump Squats
  • Cross-Body Crab Kicks

2. Torch Calories with This 20-Minute HIIT Workout

The girls over at POPSUGAR Fitness are so encouraging and upbeat, making this fat burning workout one to enjoy (once you get past all the sweat and tears, of course).

But seriously, even though it’s only 20 minutes, you’ll certainly get your heart rate up quickly.

You may need to cut it back to 3 rounds at first, which is totally okay.

With a little bit of hard work and consistency, you’ll be able to smash out all 4 rounds in no-time.

Interval split:

• 40 seconds on each exercise
• 20 second rest between each exercise
• Repeat for a total of 4 rounds

Exercises:

• Plank and Knee Tuck Walk
• Push-Up/Down Dog
• Squat with Low Hip
• V-Sit Crunch with Russian Twist (+2 more twists each time)
• Gate Swing Hop

3. BLAST FAT FOR SUMMER | HIIT Workout

For those days when you’re really pressed for time or you just don’t want to do a long workout, all you need is this quick 5-minute HIIT workout.

Yes, it’s only 5 minutes (or more if you’d like)! But it’s 5 minutes well spent.

Interval split:

• 20 seconds on each exercise
• 20-40 second rest between each exercise
• Repeat as many times as you want!

Exercises:

• Star Jumps
• 3 Side Shuffles into 1 Half Burpee
• 2 Squat Jumps into 2 Standing Oblique Crunches
• Jumping Side-to-Side Lunge
• Squat Jump into Alternating Leg Crossover

4. Ultimate HIIT Workout for People Who Get Bored Easily – Fat Burning HIIT Cardio Workout

Fitness Blender has a lot of awesome home HIIT workouts you can do.

As the title suggests, this particular fat burning workout is for people who get bored of doing the same movements over and over again.

Instead of a circuit compromised of a few exercises that you repeat multiple times, there’s about 30 different exercises to blast through one time.

So if you’re looking to switch up your HIIT routine, give this one a try!

Interval split:

• 20 seconds on each exercise
• 10 second active rest between exercises

5. 30-Minute HIIT Cardio Workout with Warm Up – No Equipment at Home

One thing many HIIT workouts don’t include is the warmup and cool down, but this one takes both of those into account.

So the active time for this workout, including an intense warmup, is closer to 24 minutes.

That’s sounds more doable, right?

When performing the exercises, pay attention to your form. You want to keep your core engaged so you’re not flailing around and to help build up abdominal strength.

You can always slow down the movements slightly to make sure you have proper form.

Interval split:

• 30 seconds on each exercise
• 45 second rest between circuits
• Repeat for a total of 3 rounds
• Perform circuit 1, rest, circuit 2, rest, and repeat for 3 rounds

Exercises:

• Circuit 1:
  • Star Jumps
  • Fast Feet
  • High Knees
  • Power Jacks
  • Toe Taps
• Circuit 2:
  • Hand Walk-Outs
  • Squats
  • Jumping Lunges
  • London Bridges

6. 20 Minute Abs & Cardio HIIT Workout – Belly Fat Burner

A strong core is the foundation of a strong, healthy, capable body.

What better way to strengthen your abdominal muscles than with a HIIT workout?

Not only are you increasing strength, you’re also burning fat that’ll eventually show off all your hard work underneath.

Interval split:

• 25 seconds on + 15 seconds rest for odd numbered exercises
• 40 seconds on + 20 seconds rest for even numbered exercises
• Repeat for a total of 4 rounds

Exercises:

• High Knees
• Jack Knife
• Jump Squats
• Rolling Plank
• Mountain Climbers
• Sprinter Crunch

7. 10 Minute FAT BLASTING HIIT Workout

Since all you need are 10-minutes to blast this baby out, it’s the perfect workout to sneak in between study breaks or even your lunch break at work.

Some of these moves are a little complex, so you might need to take it a bit slower at first to get the proper form down.

Interval split:

• 40 seconds on each exercise
• 20 seconds rest between each exercise
• Repeat for a total of 2 rounds

Exercises:

• 2 Front Jumping Squats to Hut Hut Hike Left & Right
• 4 Plank Walks to Half Burpee
• 3 Side Hops to 4 Plank Shoulder Taps
• Bear Crawl to 4 Oblique Mountain Climbers
• 3 Walking Lunges to 8 High Knees

8. 20 Minute HIIT Workout | Arms, Abs, Butt

Arms, abs, and butt are basically all that matter, right?

This HIIT workout focuses on 5 main exercises instead of adding in multiple movements into one, making it the perfect beginner HIIT workout.

Interval split:

• 40 seconds on each exercise
• 20 seconds rest between each exercise
• 1 minute rest between rounds
• Repeat for a total of 4 rounds

Exercises:

• Plank Reach
• Double Leg Lifts
• Lazy Burpees
• Bicycle Crunches
• Frog Jumps

9. 15 Minute Fat Burning HIIT Workout | No Equipment

Up for a challenge?

Then this HIIT workout by The Body Coach is just what you need.

Even though there are only 5 exercises, you’re practically doing twice that since each exercise is 2 different movements.

So if you’re ready to up your HIIT training game, this will definitely give you a run for your money.

Interval split:

• 35 seconds on each exercise
• 25 seconds rest between each exercise
• Repeat for 3 rounds

Exercises:

• 6 High Knees to 4 Lunge Jumps
• 5 Narrow Push-Ups into 5 Wide Push-Ups
• 5 Toe Touches into 5 Full-Body Crunches
• 6 Mountain Climbers with Lateral Move
• 4 Crab Toe Touches then 4 Kick Throughs

10. 30-Minute Calorie-Torching HIIT Workout with Weights

This is a great HIIT cardio workout for beginners and athletes alike.

Throughout the video you’ll see modified versions of each exercise to make it more beginner-friendly.

And to make it more challenging, simply add in some 5-10 pound dumbbells!

Since there are several different circuits and interval splits, this is a video you’ll want to follow along with for the whole duration.

You Can Do It!

Once you have the right resources at your disposal, change is so much easier.

Don’t get me wrong, it’s still difficult to leave an old life behind and create a new and improved one.

However, it’s much easier to stay consistent and align your lifestyle with your goals when you have the most effective tools in your pocket.

HIIT is probably THE best (and easiest) way to get into the routine of giving your body the nourishing movement it needs in as little time as possible.

So the next time you need a good sweat, give some (or all) of these HIIT workout videos a try!