At-Home HIIT Circuit

Recently, my knee had a flare up and I haven’t been able to do much cardio as I’d like. Since summer is on the way, I’m maintaining which usually includes at least one cardio session per week. If you’re new around here, you can read about my knee troubles here. After four weeks, I’m able to do squats and dead lifts again, but cardio stills tends irritate my knee because of the repetitive motion.

I decided to get a little creative this past week and put together this at-home HIIT circuit I can easily do in my living room and that wouldn’t bother my knee. I also wanted a workout that could be done quickly with minimal equipment. I’ve been working on my at-home setup for a while now, so I have 300 pounds of weight and a barbell, some kettlebells, and other random equipment. Honestly, I should probably workout at home more often, but I feel more motivated at the gym.

For this workout, I used a jump rope, two kettlebells – 5 and 10 pounds, a 10 pound plate, resistance circle bands – I have these, and a yoga mat. If you don’t have a yoga mat, you can lay down a blanket or towel. The jump rope and running stairs (it’s a little loud), can be swapped out with jumping jacks. If you’re looking to invest in some basic equipment, checkout your local T.J. Maxx or Marshalls for the kettebells and a yoga mat. Otherwise, be creative! Grab canned food from your pantry or a gallon of milk.

30 seconds jump rope
30 kettlebell swings
30 seconds stairs
12 front plate or kettlebell raises – I used 10 pounds
15 jump squats
30 shoulder taps
15 lying banded leg extensions
20 Russian twists, weighted
20 banded glute bridges

Repeat this circuit four or five times, it should take about 30 minutes. This workout is perfect in the morning before work or on the weekend when I don’t always feel like doing cardio at the gym. Once it warms up (Minnesota’s winter is AWFUL this year) I’m planning to take this circuit outside, and run sprints in place of jumping rope and running stairs.

I hope you give this workout a try if you’re looking for something different in your routine!