RideAnaerobic
The Original Tabata
7–8 × 20 s all-out / 10 s rest
- 26 min
- 2:40
- EliteDifficulty 5 of 5 — Elite
- Izumi Tabata
What we typed
Warm up 12 min building from 50% to 75% FTP. 8 × (20 s all-out at 170% FTP, 10 s rest easy at 40% FTP). Note: 7–8 reps, until you can't hold the power. Cool down 10 min at 50% FTP.
Fit File Forge built the steps below from these words — the same steps your watch gets.
Describe your ownThe session
Warm up
Build from 50% to 75% FTP.
Rep
All-out; 7–8 reps, until you can't hold the power.
Rest
Easy.
Cool down
Targets
Set as a share of your FTP. Your watch applies it to the FTP in its own settings, so it keeps up as that changes.
- 50–75% FTP
- 165–175% FTP
- 39–41% FTP
- 49–52% FTP
Scaled version
8 × 20 seconds at a hard-but-sustainable effort with 10 seconds' rest.
Build the scaled version in ForgeAbout this session
The story
From Izumi Tabata's 1996 study: on a cycle ergometer, seven to eight 20-second bouts at about 170% of VO2max, each separated by 10 seconds' rest. Most 'Tabata' classes are far easier than the original.
What it trains
Anaerobic capacity and VO2max in four brutal minutes.
Who it's for
Fit, healthy riders who want the real thing. It should end in failure — that's the protocol.
Sources
- Effects of moderate-intensity endurance and high-intensity intermittent training on anaerobic capacity and VO2max — Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise (PubMed), 1996
Related workouts
Wingate Intervals
4–6 × 30 s all-out, 4–5 min easy
30/30 Maximal Repeats
2 × 8 × (30 s maximal / 30 s easy)
6 × 1 min Anaerobic
6 × 1 min at ~150% FTP, 4–5 min easy
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