RIRLift app icon RIRLift

Exercises

HIIT exercises at home: no-equipment and kettlebell circuits

Published October 29, 2026

The best HIIT exercises at home are burpees, jump squats, mountain climbers, high knees and skater hops for hard bursts, with squats, reverse lunges, push-ups and plank shoulder taps as quiet no-jump options and kettlebell swings and thrusters if you own one bell. Pick four or five moves, work 30 to 40 seconds and rest 20 to 30 seconds, and go round the circuit 3 to 5 times. Two or three 15 to 25 minute sessions a week, on days apart, is enough. Beginners start with 20 seconds on and 40 seconds off.

  1. Burpee Quads, Glutes, Chest, Shoulders
  2. Jump Squat Quads, Glutes
  3. Mountain Climber Abs
  4. High Knees Quads
  5. Skater Hop Glutes, Quads, Abductors
  6. Reverse Lunge Quads, Glutes
  7. Kettlebell Swing Glutes, Hamstrings

Full-body bursts

These moves get your hands and feet working together on the floor, so they raise your heart rate faster than anything else you can do in a living room. Put one of them first in every circuit while you are fresh.

Full body, squat to plank to jump

Burpee

Quads, Glutes, Chest, Shoulders

The burpee takes you from standing to the floor and back up every rep, which is why it tops almost every home HIIT list. Eight to twelve good reps in 40 seconds is a hard interval for most people.

How to do it

  1. Stand tall, then squat down and plant your palms.
  2. Kick your feet back into a plank.
  3. Jump your feet back under you.
  4. Stand up and jump, reaching your arms overhead.

Cues

  • Fast down, fast up
  • Solid plank
  • Land soft

Common mistakes

  • Sagging hips in the plank: brace on every rep.
  • Slowing to a walk-out: keep it crisp or rest.

Swap for: Half Burpee, Mountain Climber, Dumbbell Burpee

Build a session with Burpee
Log it in RIRLift

Full body, plank hop-ins

Half Burpee

Quads, Abs, Shoulders

Hopping the feet in and out from a plank keeps most of the burpee's effort without the stand and jump, so it works as the beginner version or as the move you switch to when full burpees fall apart late in a circuit.

How to do it

  1. Start in a high plank, palms below your shoulders.
  2. Hop both feet in until they land just behind your hands.
  3. Hop them straight back out to the plank and repeat.

Cues

  • Hands stay planted
  • Land softly on the balls of your feet
  • Hips level in the plank

Common mistakes

  • Letting the hips sag when the feet land back: brace before each hop.
  • Landing flat-footed and heavy.

Swap for: Burpee, Mountain Climber, Bear Crawl

Build a session with Half Burpee
Log it in RIRLift

Core and hip flexors, running plank

Mountain Climber

Abs

Mountain climbers drive the knees fast while your shoulders and trunk hold a plank, so the heart rate climbs with no landing at all. They slot well right after a jump to keep the pace up.

How to do it

  1. Start in a high plank.
  2. Drive one knee toward your chest, then switch legs quickly.
  3. Bursts: 15 seconds at half pace, then faster.

Cues

  • Shoulders over hands
  • Hips level

Common mistakes

  • Raising your hips high.
  • Bouncing on your hands.

Swap for: Plank Jack, Mountain Climber Jump, High Knees

Build a session with Mountain Climber
Log it in RIRLift

Core and shoulders, jumping plank

Plank Jack

Abs

Hopping the feet wide and back from a forearm plank adds a cardio element to core work. It is a good third or fourth move in a circuit when your legs need a break from squatting.

How to do it

  1. Set up in a forearm plank with your body in one straight line.
  2. Hop both feet out wide, then back together, without letting your hips bounce.
  3. Keep your weight even between both forearms.

Cues

  • Hips level
  • Quick, light feet

Common mistakes

  • Hips rising toward the ceiling: squeeze your glutes and keep the line.

Swap for: Jumping Jack, Plank Shoulder Tap

Build a session with Plank Jack
Log it in RIRLift

Jumps and running in place

Leg-driven intervals for when you have floor space and nobody living below you. Land softly on the balls of your feet and stop the set when the landings get loud.

Quads and glutes, jumping squat

Jump Squat

Quads, Glutes

The jump squat is the leg move that costs the most in the least time. Sets of 10 to 15 are enough; past that the landings get sloppy and the effort drops.

How to do it

  1. Stand with your feet about shoulder width and your arms ready.
  2. Dip into a quarter to half squat, then jump straight up, swinging your arms.
  3. Land softly with bent knees and reset before the next jump.

Cues

  • Soft, quiet landing
  • Reset between reps

Common mistakes

  • Landing stiff-legged: let the hips and knees bend to absorb the landing.

Swap for: Box Jump, Bodyweight Squat

Build a session with Jump Squat
Log it in RIRLift

Glutes and outer hips, side-to-side bound

Skater Hop

Glutes, Quads, Abductors

Bounding sideways from one leg to the other trains the hips in a direction squats and lunges skip, and the one-leg landing keeps it hard without needing any weight.

How to do it

  1. Stand on your right leg with a slight bend in the knee.
  2. Push off sideways and land on your left foot, letting your right leg swing behind you.
  3. Stick the landing, then bound back to the right.

Cues

  • Stick each landing
  • Push sideways, not up

Common mistakes

  • Taking off before you are balanced: pause for a beat on each landing.

Swap for: Lateral Box Jump, Single-Leg Jump

Build a session with Skater Hop
Log it in RIRLift

Quads and hip flexors, sprint in place

High Knees

Quads

High knees are a sprint without a track: drive the knees to hip height for 20 to 40 seconds and you have a true high-intensity interval in a space the size of a yoga mat.

How to do it

  1. Stand tall and start jogging in place.
  2. Drive each knee up toward hip height while your opposite arm swings forward.
  3. Stay on the balls of your feet and build the pace over the interval.

Cues

  • Knee to hip height
  • Tall chest
  • Arms pump with the legs

Common mistakes

  • Leaning back to get the knees higher: keep your torso upright and lower the knee height.

Swap for: Butt Kicks, Skipping in Place, Mountain Climber

Build a session with High Knees
Log it in RIRLift

Quiet moves with no jumping

Apartment rules, sore knees or a sleeping baby: these four keep the work hard without a single landing. Do them faster than you would in a strength session, but keep every rep full depth.

Quads and glutes, squat

Bodyweight Squat

Quads

A fast bodyweight squat is the quiet stand-in for jump squats and the first move a beginner should own. Twenty smooth reps in 40 seconds is plenty of work.

How to do it

  1. Stand with your feet about shoulder-width apart, toes turned out slightly, arms out in front for balance.
  2. Push your hips back and bend your knees, keeping your heels flat and your chest up.
  3. Lower until your thighs are at least parallel to the floor, deeper if your heels stay down.
  4. Drive through your whole foot to stand tall, then go straight into the next rep.

Cues

  • Heels glued to the floor
  • Knees over toes
  • Thighs to parallel or lower

Common mistakes

  • Knees caving in on the way up: push them out over your little toes.
  • Quarter squats to hit a rep count: a full-depth set of 12 beats a shallow set of 30.

Swap for: Reverse Lunge, Wall Sit, Jump Squat

Build a session with Bodyweight Squat
Log it in RIRLift

Quads and glutes, single-leg lunge

Reverse Lunge

Quads, Glutes

Stepping back into the lunge keeps the knee easier to control than a forward lunge, so you can move briskly between legs for a whole interval without jumping.

How to do it

  1. Stand tall holding a kettlebell in each hand at your sides.
  2. Step one foot back and lower until the back knee nearly touches the floor.
  3. Keep most of your weight on the front foot.
  4. Push through the front foot to step back up, then alternate or finish one side.

Cues

  • Step long, drop straight down
  • Front foot does the work
  • Tall chest

Common mistakes

  • Short steps that push the front knee far over the toes: step back further.
  • Wobbling side to side: narrow the load or slow down.

Swap for: Bulgarian Split Squat, Dumbbell Reverse Lunge, Step-Up

Build a session with Reverse Lunge
Log it in RIRLift

Chest and triceps, horizontal press

Push-Up

Chest

Push-ups give the upper body a turn while the legs recover, which is what lets a circuit run for 20 minutes. Put your hands on a couch or counter if floor push-ups end before the interval does.

How to do it

  1. Set your hands slightly wider than your shoulders with your body straight from head to heels.
  2. Lower until your chest nearly touches the floor, elbows at about 45 degrees.
  3. Press back up to straight arms.

Cues

  • One straight line
  • Elbows angled back

Common mistakes

  • Flaring the elbows straight out: tuck them toward your ribs.

Swap for: Kneeling Push-Up, Incline Push-Up, Push-Up Plus

Build a session with Push-Up
Log it in RIRLift

Core, anti-rotation plank

Plank Shoulder Tap

Abs

Tapping each shoulder from a high plank trains the trunk to stay square, and it is a silent move to pair with push-ups or burpees for a lower-body rest.

How to do it

  1. Hold a straight-arm plank with feet a little wider than hips.
  2. Lift one hand and tap the opposite shoulder.
  3. Replace it and tap with the other hand, keeping your hips from rocking.

Cues

  • Hips stay still
  • Feet wide for balance
  • Slow taps

Common mistakes

  • Rocking side to side: widen the feet and slow down.

Swap for: Plank, Push-Up Plus, Bear Crawl

Build a session with Plank Shoulder Tap
Log it in RIRLift

If you own one kettlebell

A single bell turns a bodyweight circuit into one that also builds strength. Swings and thrusters work the hips, legs and shoulders together, so short sets leave you breathing as hard as a sprint.

Glutes and hamstrings, hip hinge

Kettlebell Swing

Glutes, Hamstrings

The swing is fast hip extension under load: 15 to 20 reps in 30 seconds works the backside of the body and the lungs at once, and it is easy on the knees.

How to do it

  1. Stand with your feet a little wider than your hips, the bell set about a foot in front of you.
  2. Hinge down, grip the handle with both hands, and hike the bell back between your thighs.
  3. Snap your hips forward to stand tall, letting the bell float up to about shoulder height on straight arms.
  4. Let it fall back between your legs as you hinge again, and go straight into the next rep.

Cues

  • Hips snap, arms just hold on
  • Stand tall at the top
  • Bell passes high between the thighs

Common mistakes

  • Squatting the swing by bending the knees deeply: push your hips back and keep the shins nearly vertical.
  • Lifting the bell with your shoulders: if your arms are working, the hips are not driving it.

Swap for: Dumbbell Romanian Deadlift, Kettlebell Deadlift, Superman

Build a session with Kettlebell Swing
Log it in RIRLift

Legs and shoulders, squat to press

Kettlebell Thruster

Quads, Shoulders

Squatting and pressing in one motion uses most of the muscle in your body each rep. With a moderate bell, sets of 8 to 12 are a strength move and an interval at the same time.

How to do it

  1. Clean a bell into each rack, elbows tucked, feet a little wider than your hips.
  2. Squat until your thighs are at least level with the floor, keeping your elbows up.
  3. Drive up out of the squat and let the momentum carry straight into a press to lockout.
  4. Lower the bells to the rack as you drop into the next squat.

Cues

  • Elbows up through the squat
  • Legs start the press, arms finish it
  • Lock out before the next squat

Common mistakes

  • Cutting the squat short to make the press easier: full depth, then press.
  • Pausing at the top and losing the rhythm: the bells go up and come straight down into the next rep.

Swap for: Kettlebell Clean & Press, Kettlebell Overhead Press, Goblet Squat

Build a session with Kettlebell Thruster
Log it in RIRLift

Put them together: example sessions

Each session below picks from the exercises above for one situation, with the sets, reps, rest and RIR filled in.

Session 1

New to HIIT, no jumping yet

Open in the session builder
  • Workouts2× a week
  • Working sets30 a week
  • Per workout~20 min
  • EquipmentBodyweight

You are starting from little or no exercise, or you want two weeks of easier sessions before adding jumps.

Five moves, three rounds each: 15 working sets in a session of about 15 minutes. Twice a week gives your knees, ankles and lungs time to adapt before you add landings, and 2 to 3 reps in reserve keeps every rep clean while you learn the pace.

No-jump circuit
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
A1 Bodyweight Squat 3 × 12–20 3 40 s
A2 Push-UpHands on a couch or counter if needed. 3 × 5–12 3 40 s
A3 Reverse LungePer leg. 3 × 6–10 3 40 s
A4 Half Burpee 3 × 6–10 2 40 s
A5 Plank Shoulder TapPer side. 3 × 8–12 2 2 min
How to run it
Do it on two days that are not back to back, for example Tuesday and Saturday. Go through the five moves as a circuit, resting 40 seconds between moves and about 2 minutes after each round.
How to progress
When every round hits the top of each range with 2 reps left, add a fourth round. After two weeks at four rounds, move to the 20-minute circuit and swap the half burpee for full burpees.
Open in the session builder

Session 2

Twenty minutes, no equipment, three days a week

Open in the session builder
  • Workouts3× a week
  • Working sets60 a week
  • Per workout~25 min
  • EquipmentBodyweight

You can do a set of burpees and jump squats comfortably and want a harder home session that fits before work.

Two alternating circuits of four moves, five rounds each: 20 hard intervals per session and 60 a week. Three sessions is the most this plan asks for, with a rest day between each, and keeping each set 1 to 2 reps short of failure keeps the landings soft and controlled on the last round.

Circuit A: Burpees and squats
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
A1 Burpee 5 × 6–10 2 20 s
A2 Jump Squat 5 × 10–15 2 20 s
A3 Mountain ClimberSeconds of work. 5 × 20–30 1 20 s
A4 Plank Shoulder TapTotal taps. 5 × 10–16 2 90 s

Open Circuit A: Burpees and squats in the session builder

Circuit B: Skaters and knees
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
A1 Skater HopPer side. 5 × 8–12 2 20 s
A2 Push-Up 5 × 8–15 2 20 s
A3 High KneesSeconds of work. 5 × 30–40 1 20 s
A4 Plank Jack 5 × 12–20 2 90 s

Open Circuit B: Skaters and knees in the session builder

How to run it
Run Circuit A on Monday and Friday and Circuit B on Wednesday one week, then flip them the next. Move straight from one exercise to the next with 20 seconds of rest, and take 90 seconds after each round.
How to progress
Add reps first: when every round reaches the top of each range, add a round, then cut the rest between moves from 20 to 15 seconds. Change one thing at a time, every two or three weeks.
Open in the session builder

Session 3

One kettlebell, 25 minutes, twice a week

Open in the session builder
  • Workouts2× a week
  • Working sets32 a week
  • Per workout~20 min
  • EquipmentKettlebells

You own a single kettlebell and want home sessions that build strength as well as fitness, without adding a third workout.

The bell adds load, so two sessions a week build strength that bodyweight circuits stop building: four moves, four rounds, 16 working sets in about 25 minutes. The swings and thrusters sit at 2 reps in reserve so your back and shoulders stay in good positions when you are out of breath.

Kettlebell circuit
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
A1 Kettlebell Swing1 warm-up set first 4 × 15–20 2 30 s
A2 Burpee 4 × 6–10 2 30 s
A3 Kettlebell Thruster 4 × 8–12 2 30 s
A4 Mountain ClimberSeconds of work. 4 × 20–30 1 2 min
How to run it
Do it on two separated days, such as Monday and Thursday, and walk or rest on the others. Rest 30 seconds between moves and 2 minutes after each round.
How to progress
When all four rounds hit the top of the swing and thruster ranges at 2 reps in reserve, buy or borrow the next bell size up and drop back to the bottom of the range. Until then, add a fifth round.
Open in the session builder

Make it fit you

Questions

Which HIIT workout is best at home?

A circuit of four or five full-body moves, such as burpees, jump squats, mountain climbers and push-ups, done for 30 to 40 seconds each with 20 seconds of rest and repeated 3 to 5 times. It needs no equipment and works in a small room.

Is 10 minutes of HIIT a day enough?

Ten hard minutes is a real workout, but doing it every day leaves little room to recover. Two or three 10 to 20 minute sessions a week, with walking or strength work on the other days, gets you more.

Is 20 minutes of HIIT effective?

Yes. Twenty minutes of intervals at a hard effort, with a short warm-up first, is enough to improve fitness. Longer sessions usually mean the intervals get easier, not that more work gets done.

Do HIIT classes raise cortisol?

Hard exercise raises cortisol for a short time afterward, as any training does. It settles back down with rest, which is one reason to keep HIIT to two or three sessions a week with easier days between.

Can beginners do HIIT at home?

Yes, with longer rest: 20 seconds of work and 40 seconds of rest, using no-jump moves like squats, reverse lunges and half burpees. Add jumps and shorter rest after a few weeks.