HIIT and Tabata protocols for improving physical and cognitive health in sedentary college students: a randomized trial

Introduction This randomized controlled trial aimed to compare the effects of HIIT-30S protocols (30 s work/30 s rest) and Tabata protocols (20 s work/10 s rest) protocols on physical fitness and cognitive function in sedentary college students. Methods Eighty-four undergraduates (19.07 ± 0.76 years; 34 males and 60 females) were stratified into HIIT-30S, Tabata, or moderate-intensity training (MICT) groups and completed 24 supervised sessions over 8 weeks. Physical outcomes included an 800-m run (cardiorespiratory endurance), push-ups/sit-ups (muscular endurance), 50-m sprint (speed), the Sitting Reach Test (flexibility), and heart rate recovery (cardiovascular recovery ability). Cognitive assessments encompassed the WAIS-IV core cognition (general intelligence), letter-number sequencing test (working memory), time management questionnaire (TMQ), emotion regulation questionnaire (ERQ), reaction time testing, and a 12 weeks follow-up comprehensive cognition questionnaire. Statistical significance was set at P < 0.05. Results HIIT-30S and Tabata outperformed MICT in all domains ( P < 0.05). HIIT-30S elicited superior physical adaptations: 800-m run time decreased by −11.78 s, push-ups increased +9.29 reps, sit-ups increased +11.39 reps, 50-m sprint decreased −0.37 s, and HRR improved +12.66%. Tabata showed greater neurocognitive enhancements: WAIS-IV core cognition scores rose +10.47 points, letter-number sequencing scores rose +1.68 points, TMA scores rose +10.97 points, EMA scores rose +16.79 points, simple reaction time decreased −40.61 ms, choice reaction time decreased −65.15 ms, and Continuous Reaction time decreased −51.14 ms. At the 12-week follow-up, HIIT-30S maintained cognitive gains (+3.05%) with the greatest improvement compared to Tabata (+1.97%). Discussion These findings indicate that the work-to-rest ratio is a key determinant of training effects, enabling protocol customization for specific individual fitness and cognitive aims.