Twenty On, Ten Off, Eight Times
The timer above is already set to it. Press start and go.
Tabata is one specific protocol, not a category. Twenty seconds of all-out work, ten seconds of rest, eight rounds. Four minutes, start to finish. Change those numbers and you still have a fine interval workout, but it isn't Tabata anymore.
Why Four Minutes Is Enough
The part most people skip: all-out means all-out. In Dr. Izumi Tabata's original 1996 study, athletes hit around 170% of their VO2 max during the work intervals. That intensity is the whole point. The four minutes only does anything if the twenty seconds genuinely cost you something.
Most "Tabata" workouts are really light intervals with a fast clock. Real Tabata is short because it's brutal, not because it's convenient.
What to Do for Twenty Seconds
Pick one movement you can do fast and safely without thinking about form. Squats, burpees, mountain climbers, high knees, kettlebell swings, the assault bike. Anything that lets you redline and reset quickly.
Skip the technical lifts. Twenty seconds of max-effort barbell snatches is a great way to get hurt. Save skill and heavy load for a different session. Run one movement for all eight rounds, or alternate two. Both work.
The Ten Seconds Is Not a Break
Ten seconds is barely enough to stop, plant your feet, and find your breath. That's deliberate. The short rest keeps your heart rate high, so every round starts from a deficit and the cost compounds.
Don't reach for your phone. Don't wander off. Gasp, reset, go again.
Common Ways to Get It Wrong
Working at 80%. Then it's just cardio, and pleasant cardio at that.
Stretching the rest. Ten seconds means ten seconds. The timer won't wait, and neither should you.
Running twenty rounds. That's a different workout. Four minutes is the entire deal. If you want more, rest fully and run another round of eight.
Choosing a movement you can't do while exhausted. Round six is not the time to discover your form falls apart.
Tabata or Just Intervals?
Tabata is the strict 20/10 for eight rounds. Everything else, 30/30, 40/20, EMOM, boxing rounds, is interval training too, just under a different name. If you want to set your own work and rest, the interval timer handles any ratio you like.
Using This Timer
Press start. You get a three-second countdown to get into position, then the first work round begins. A sound marks every switch between work and rest, so you can keep your eyes on the floor instead of the screen.
Want a different protocol? The preset buttons cover the common ones, or open Settings to build your own.