Kettlebell and HIIT style routines both offer a great way to get in a quick intense workout that burn a ridiculously high number of calories per minute. Why not combine the two and make a workout that has the best of both worlds. The resulting routine out is the aptly named "Brutal Kettlebell HIIT Cardio Tabata Workout". Let me give a bit of forewarning before you attempt this video; it is not intended for the beginner and though you can make it easier by using lighter kettlebells the nature of the exercises and motions will tax your cardiovascular and pulmonary systems not to mention make most of your body feel like jello when you are done. The Tabata set up of 20 seconds on and 10 seconds of rest is very aggressive for even 5 minutes at a time and this routine has you going straight through without longer than 10 seconds break for a full 18 minutes. With that said feel free to pause the video and take as much extra rest as you need to help you complete this routine straight through.

This routine is best done with a full set of kettlebells or like we use, an adjustable kettlebell; however you can use just one kettlebell for all the exercises though it will have to be light to not make it too hard for some of the more difficult exercises. For those of you that don't have access to even one kettlebell, let alone a full set, most of these exercises can easily be modified to use a dumbbell, or some other weighted object so don't skip this one just because you don't have any kettlebells.

Other than this routine being a fun way to challenge yourself to improve your endurance and strength, it is also a calorie burning powerhouse beating out even the average HIIT workout. This routine boasts a massive 24 calorie per minute on the high end and a 14 calorie per minute on the low end. This is most affected by the weight you are using but almost as important is your own individual level of effort you put into each exercise. This high calorie per minute burn gives a total of 432 to 252 calories burned in just 18 minutes. What is even better is that this style of routine also boasts a high afterburn effect, increasing the calories you burn over the course of the next 48 to 36 hours even when you are sleeping.

We did not include a warm up or a cool down in this video but we highly recommend that you do one of your own as a proper warm up can reduce your chances of injury and a cool down can lower your chances or severity of being sore the next day.

If you tend to workout in a location where you don't have access to the internet then you can print out the list of exercises below and run through them on your own. We do recommend watching the video first however as we include helpful tips on form and modifications.

Brutal Kettlebell HIIT Cardio Tabata Workout

KB Halo
Mt Climbers
KB Snatch Right Arm
Squat Jacks
KB Snatch Left Arm
Burpee
KB Swing
Push Up
KB Goblet Squat
High Knees
KB Crush Curl
Jumping Lunges