For everyone
Interval timer
Set your work, rest and rounds, then press Start. Or pick a ready-made routine, from your first gentle session to race fitness.
The workouts, exercise instructions and effort guide on this page are general information for adults. They are not tailored to you, they are not medical or professional advice, and they may not be suitable for you. They do not replace advice from a professional who knows you. Although exercise can be good for your health, all exercise carries some risk of injury.
Get advice from a doctor, physiotherapist or other qualified health professional before you start if:
- you have a heart or lung condition, high blood pressure, diabetes or any other long-term condition
- you have ever had chest pain, fainting or dizziness, with or without exercise
- you have an injury, a joint or back problem, or pain when you move
- you are pregnant or have had a baby in the last year
- you have recently had an operation, or been ill
- you take medicine that affects your heart rate, blood pressure or balance
- you are new to exercise, or coming back after a long break
- a doctor or other professional has told you to limit or avoid exercise
- you have any other concern about your health
Stop straight away if you get chest pain or tightness, feel faint or dizzy, become unusually short of breath, feel your heart racing or beating irregularly, or feel sharp pain. Call 999, or your local emergency number, if you have chest pain or tightness, or if any of these does not settle quickly with rest.
Start at a level that feels comfortable and build up gradually. Clear the space around you, use a floor that is not slippery, and make sure any chair, step, bench or equipment is sturdy and will not move.
You choose whether to do these exercises and how hard to work, and you do them at your own risk. Read our full Medical Disclaimer.
Interval timer
Ready
Sound settings
Sound
How to use it
Set the effort and the number of rounds, or pick a ready-made routine or one of yours on Exercise routines. Press Start. The timer fills the screen so you can see it from across the room, and a ten second countdown gives you time to get into position.
The colour says where you are without your having to read anything: amber while you get ready, green while you work, blue while you rest or warm up. The ring around the number shows how much of the current interval is left, and the line under it says what comes next.
The sound is on to start with, so you can listen rather than watch. Tap Sound on to turn it off. There is a tick for the last three seconds of every interval, a double strike when it is time to work, a softer falling sound for rest, and a short run of notes at the end. Choose Bell, Wood block or Beeps and set the volume under Sound settings.
To stop early, press End and then tap it again. You go back to the page, just where you left it.
Why intervals
Short, hard efforts with a rest between them are an efficient way to raise fitness, and they help muscle take up glucose from the blood. That is true whether you are getting moving again or training for a race.
The 28 Day Plan routine gives you 90 seconds for your 20 press ups, a minute to rest, then 90 seconds for your 20 squats, at whatever pace and version suits you. The other routines run from gentle chair-based moves to the 4×4 session, which is one of the best studied ways to raise VO2 max, and Tabata: 20 seconds all out and 10 seconds of rest, eight times. Use the timer with the 28 Day Plan.
Your data
Everything the timer remembers is saved on this device, in your browser. None of it is sent to Health Shelf or anyone else. That is the sound and volume you pick, the workouts you finish (so it can say how many you have done this week), any routines you make in Exercise routines, and that you have read the safety information (so it only asks once).
It will not appear on another phone or computer, and clearing your browsing data deletes it. To keep a copy, or move it to a new device, use the My data page, which you’ll find in the 28 Day Plan menu (☰ on phones) at the top of every page.