My BBG Experience

Whether you’ve been reading my blog for some time now or if you’re new here, I’ll be the first to tell you that in the past I have been horrible about staying consistent with a workout routine. It’s not one of my strengths in the slightest. I’ll initially get all excited about a new program I’ve found only to do it for a couple weeks and then lose focus or motivation and stop all together. I might start back up a few months later, but the same pattern continues over and over again. Last year I started doing the BBG program (Bikini Body Guide by Kayla Itsines) and made it to week 6, but I stopped. I had every intention of starting over again, but never did. I don’t want to make excuses for myself, but last year was such a rollercoaster with my dad being in and out of the hospital and having another brain tumor removed. It was hard for me to find the will power to workout when I just felt so drained emotionally, and I also had that paired with a demanding retail schedule that was inconsistent and involved working nights and weekends. I felt like I couldn’t get into a rhythm or routine that made sense with all that was going on. I’m all about not giving up and continuing to push through the hard things, but I believe that there are certain seasons of life that call for rest rather than action. 

This year I truly feel that I have turned a new leaf. Yes I know what you’re probably thinking, that I’m just saying this and next year I’ll write another post about how I started out strong and then all of my workout plans collapsed. But in all honesty, this is the strongest I have felt, physically and mentally, in a really long time. I’ve been consistently working out 3 days a week for 12 weeks with the BBG program, and it’s been amazing! Giving up chocolate and sweets for the month of January really helped jumpstart my year and get me to where I am now. It was so hard in the beginning not having sugar when my body was so accustomed to it, but it definitely helped me build the will power to say “no” when I was craving something sweet. My mind feels insanely more clear and focused without all that added sugar in my body—looking back I can honestly say that I was blindly addicted to sugar and I felt like I needed it in my life in order to function. I’m not saying I’ll never have dessert again, because I don’t think I can ever stop loving chocolate! But now I know I don’t need it every single day and I can enjoy a dessert for special occasions or on the weekend every now and then. Having these healthier eating habits in place has also helped me stay focused and motivated to work out. My body doesn’t feel as tired or sluggish like it used to with eating sugar constantly, and I’ve been better about eating more fruits and vegetables throughout the week.

In January I purchased the Sweat app (Kayla Itsines’ fitness app that is $14.11/month or $84.86/year) which has all of the BBG workout programs on it, in addition to meal plans and guides to further help in your fitness journey. I think having the app helped me stay focused in my workouts, because each circuit is timed, and shows you videos of each exercise in that circuit. There was never any confusing on how to do something, and I loved having that visual aid every step of the way. BBG 1.0 is a 12 week program, with 3 specific days of workouts each week (legs, arms & abs, and full body). Each workout is 28 minutes long, and includes a cool down afterwards to make sure you stretch out your muscles properly. The BBG program also suggests optional low-intensity and high-intensity workouts on the off days, recovery stretch sessions on the weekends and an extra challenge exercise if you feel like pushing yourself on a particular day. You also have the option to swap out your workout on any given day and select one from some of the other programs Kayla offers, like PWR, FIERCE, PWR Post-Pregnancy and many more. For this round of BBG 1.0, I just stuck to the 3 core days, but when I start the program over again I will incorporate those additional LISS and HITT workouts to give myself more of a challenge.

I’m super proud of the results I’ve seen so far, and I’m looking forward to continuing the program throughout the rest of the year and challenging myself even more! For this first round I wanted to stick to the basics of the program and prove to myself that I could complete it—and I did just that! I’m going to continue working out for 5 more weeks until we leave for Israel, when I’ll take a 2 week break, and then I’ll start BBG 1.0 all over again before moving onto BBG 2.0. New workout clothes are another motivation for me when it comes to working out, especially when they are from Alo! This is my 2nd workout look that I own from them and their clothes are always so cute and comfortable. I was obsessed with these leggings the second I saw them, and I love them paired with this cropped tank! I’m also wearing this sports bra which you can’t see in the photos, but it’s a super comfortable style—I also own it in this color that Freddy got me last year.