Months ago, I came across Chloe Ting's workouts on Youtube and bookmarked one with the best of intentions.
Fast forward to August, and I wanted to get motivated and get the endorphins of exercise running through my system again. While I rely on Pilates and walking as my go-to, I found myself doing a lot of Sarah Beth yoga while locked at home for multiple months. It gave my morning some structure. But...after a few months of chips, queso, Oreos, and ice cream each day, I could use a little HIIT in my routine.
To be clear, I would say I gained about 6 pounds in 4-5 months. It wasn't life-changing and wasn't detrimental to my health. It hit me when my clothes just didn't fit right. That bothered me. It also wasn't that I was listening to my body or eating intuitively. Nope. I, like everyone else with the means to do so, was eating junk food out of stress and boredom. I'm not a stress-eater. But I will comfort-eat if the circumstances fall into place.
So there we were and what's done was done. I had to move forward. I only knew I'd gained weight in the first place because I was at the doctor on January 31st and again on April 18th and it was a 6 pound difference. My first reaction was what it always is when I gain weight: I went with the assumption that the scale was wrong and lived in denial for a few days.
Finally, I changed my diet a bit. The food is a huge part of it but different strategies work for different people, so I won't go into that. This is about exercise...
I started the 2019 2-Week Shred on August 10th. I didn't follow the program exactly because I didn't read all of the instructions. Plus, I think this worked to my advantage because if I'd started with 45 minutes a day, I wouldn't have stuck with it very long.
While Chloe Ting seems to be known for her ab workouts, I absolutely love a good leg workout. I highly recommend this quick Lower Body Burn.
I did two each day for two weeks. I mixed and matched depending on my mood. My strategy was generally first thing in the morning, while Wells ate breakfast and watched Daniel Tiger and played independently. It was about 20-30 minutes a day.
I also kept up with a few Pilates workouts a week, going by the monthly calendar I receive with The Balanced Life membership.
After two weeks, I felt better but I definitely hadn't lost any weight. I knew I had to keep going to both see results and make it a real habit.
I did the 2020 Summer Shred. It's a 28 day program, all free, and is all organized for you with warm-ups and cool-downs as well. Every 3-4 days is a rest day, so you do have a chance to recover.
In the end, I did 6 full weeks of Chloe Ting workouts. My thoughts...
+ Extremely user-friendly, even for the most novice of beginners
+ No equipment!
+ No jumping if you don't want to...some days I did the modifications because I've always hated jumping workouts.
+ The format, style, and general aesthetic of her workouts is excellent. Good playlists, motivating but not overbearing, has a countdown clock and built-in rest time...she knows what she's doing.
+ Just starting with one of her workouts a day (10-15 minutes) would probably be step in the right direction. I recommend going that way if you're either a beginner or if you're looking to build a real habit into your routine. Jumping into working out with 45-60 minutes every day is a recipe for disaster; you'll be sore, annoyed, and resentful (just me?). To start that way is not manageable if you have literally anything else happening in your life.
In the end, after 6 weeks, I lost a couple of pounds. I feel like weight can go back and forth so easily from hour to hour, even. So I don't put as much stock in the exact number. I'll take that for now.
Next up:
I'll be continuing with Pilates, as usual, but I think I'm going to do the 14 Day Slay program from Tone It Up. I'll likely stretch it to 21-28 days, just because I don't always have the time or desire to work out for more than 30 minutes a day, and I want to make sure I'm still doing my Pilates schedule as best I can. It makes a huge difference. Other than that, I want to start doing barre again.
What's your go-to workout right now, and do you have any recommendations?
*This is 100% not sponsored. All of these workouts were free on Youtube. I just thought I'd recommend something in case you found yourself in the same situation!
I'm an avid Burn Boot Camper, add in biking and walking. You can look up videos from the headquarters on YouTube and can use various household equipment if needed. However without equipment you feel it all over anyway.
ReplyDeleteI meal plan too and would love to see how your meal plans work. I'm always needing new ideas!
I did the Chloe Ting 2 week challenge. I hated every single minute of it haha. But I did like the way she set her workouts up, and I did notice a little difference in my ab area after the two weeks. I followed her program exactly and it was awful the days that she had 3 or 4 workouts back to back. But I powered through! My favorite workouts right now are Heather Robertson or Madfit (both free on YouTube.) I usually do one or two depending on the length, and then take a walk around my neighborhood.
ReplyDeleteI see so many posts on Chloe Ting... & I turned on & watched one & was like, Yeahhh - no :) LOL
ReplyDeleteHey,
ReplyDeleteMy Chloe ting 2 week ab workout was great! I initially thought it would be easy but it was not! My posture was horrible and what not! I didn’t maintain a diet, but I was still able to lose almost 5 inches. You wanna look into this! Also, if you have additional questions, let me know! It surely does help lose belly fat, but you might not see a much difference in the weight!