In my previous post I shared 6 tips that really helped me to finally start working out. Here I share how these tips apply to my workout routine in details.
I have always been an active person, I love sports, I love walking, and biking, and hiking, and swimming, and snowboarding any many other fun physical activities that have kept me somewhat in shape for the last 20 something years, but I have never been able to stick to a workout routine. The only thing that I enjoy and challenge myself to push harder is yoga, I love how it feels throughout the process and the thought of the Savasana keeps me going. However, yoga sessions are usually at least an hour long and in my current schedule I would not get the results I want in the time I have available for exercise hence I started to think about trying to actually work out.
Following my tip #1, I picked a program. I’ve been eye balling this program for over a year obsessing over transformations people shared and when I decided that I’m gonna start working out this was my first choice. This is not a sponsored post, I just really am happy it worked for me so I would like to give you some details about the program I am doing.
The program is called Bikini Body Guide, it was created by a fitness trainer Kayla Itsines in Australia. Originally it was in the form of Ebook, but by the time I joined they have developed an app called Sweat with Kayla which is truly awesome. There are weekly workout and meal plans, educational materials, in-app timer and much more. The app is subscription based and it costs $19.99 a month which could seem expensive but it’s quite a bit less than gym membership and you get more for it, like an actual exercise plan and a meal plan for all kinds of diet including pescetarian, vegetarian and vegan.
I personally do not follow the suggested meal plan but I get ideas and modify them to my preferences. I do all my workouts at home, the program requires a minimal equipment like dumbbells but there are suggested alternatives for everything you might need.
The workouts include 3 sessions of HIIT (high intensity interval training) a week, 3-4 sessions of LISS (low intensity steady state) a week and 2 sessions of recovery exercises. Each HIIT session consists of 2 x 7 min circuits repeated twice, each circuit consists of 4 exercises. LISS sessions are basically cardio of your choice, you can run, walk, bike, swim, do yoga, etc. I just walk every day to or from work or both (45 minutes each way). You can check more details on their website, they also have a 7 day trial which is a great opportunity to start and see if it’s for you.
The reasons Bikini Body Guide (Sweat with Kayla app) worked for me:
a) it takes only 30 mins to workout;
b) the fact that it’s broken down into 7 min circuits with 30 sec break makes me think: “Only couple more minutes!” until the next circuit that is but psychology works to help me power through.
c) I know exactly what to do by following the preplanned full body, legs and arms and abs workouts.
d) there are in-app check-in-s and badges that make my nerdy self want to collect them all, you will only get a weekly badge if you complete all the pieces including recovery!
Following my tip #2, 3, 4, I workout on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday (or Sunday, as I said leave space to be flexible!). This schedule just works better for me. I like to have no obligation Monday apart from work and daily mom life, but by Tuesday I am mentally ready for the challenge. That’s why I think it’s good to have a set schedule for the week and plan your workout days in advance. That way you know when it’s coming, it’s more manageable and sustainable.
When I was planning my workout routine, I knew that I need to fit the workout sessions somewhere in my current schedule as I really didn’t want to and realistically wouldn’t be able to get up earlier in order to workout in the morning. For me the best time to workout is right when I get home from work, which is around 6:30. Since I always walk home I am already pretty warmed up and all ready to go. The main thing is to get right into it before I change my mind. Luckily, it only takes 30 minutes, 30 very intense minutes, haha. During this time, I usually give my baby some snack or toys and he is sitting nearby laughing while watching me jump and squat like a crazy person.
Following my tip #5, I accepted the fact that it’s gonna be a while until I see changes. I think it is helpful to have certain milestones, for example, Bikini Body Guide is a 12 week program. Since I was totally new to working out I started with pre-training which lasts 4 weeks, it’s exact same system just with the easier exercises to start. So I knew that if I want to see the results I have to stick with it for at least 16 weeks total (4 months). The cool thing about this program is that you can continue for much longer if you want to, you can repeat the existing program or do the next round which is BBG 2.0 or ultimately, you can apply the same 4 x 7 min circuit principle and make up your own workouts by picking the exercises you learnt.
Following my tip #6, I got a workout buddy which is pure luck as my husband just decided to join me one day on my workout crusade, it’s really cool to have another activity to do together!
This pretty much sums it up, if you have any questions, make sure to leave a comment below and I’d be happy to answer. Good luck!
