“You don’t have to be extreme, just consistent.” —Kayla Itsines
Happy #WellnessWednesday, loves! To mark the occasion, I share my second BBG update with you. Here we go!
Whew! Man, these pictures of my progress are hard to look at them privately much less share publicly.
Coming from someone who’s a former dancer and was super fit because of 3-hour workouts, 5 days a week, it’s difficult seeing these images of myself.
However, to keep myself accountable, I must post about my progress.
The only thing that keeps me going is hoping that today’s post will inspire someone out there to love themselves while working on their progress.
Today’s BBG Update No. 2 is going to be more about my struggles since getting fit is not an easy journey. From my last BBG update, I talked about the car accident I was in a few days before Thanksgiving last year. It was a big part of my weight gain that I’m not proud of.
Honestly, I’m working on being at peace with my injury. My shoulder still clicks every time I lift weights and it’s hard to accept that considering my knees, right elbow and left side of my jaw are popped out of place too. I feel like a walking clicking mess, but I’m thankful it wasn’t worse.
Truthfully, going through BBG has been hard and I’m still mad about my setback. I kept thinking, “This isn’t how I should be looking today. If I didn’t have my setback, I’d be seeing baby abs by now.” However, I kicked out my “stinkin’ thinkin'” because a setback only means that the comeback will be that much more epic, right?
Anyway, to recap, Kayla’s 12 week program started on January 9th. These are my progress photos from weeks one through five. If you want to catch up, feel free to read my update on weeks one through three. I was sick during week 4 and was out for a few days, but I still took my “progress” photos when I felt better to keep a visual record. Since I was sick during week 4, I didn’t want to skip the workouts for that week so I’m one week behind the actual program now.
Here’s what I’ve been doing from weeks four through six:
EXERCISE
If you remember from my last post, I follow Kayla’s workout through her BBG eBook. Workouts are focused on legs/cardio, arms/abs and full body. All workouts consist of two circuits in seven minute intervals with a 30 seconds to rest between each circuit. LISS (ie. walking, jogging, swimming or cycling for 30-45 minutes) are on Tuesday and Thursdays.
Week 4: I don’t know what I caught, but I was sick for several days. I finally gave in and rested more than I wanted to. After being cooped up for a few days, I mustered up all the strength I had and walked on Thursday. I wanted to at least get a LISS day in and also to get out and get fresh air. I ended up skipping Friday’s workout and slept until noon on Saturday.
Week 5: Since I missed working out during week 4, I started week 4 during week 5. Burpees, jump lunges and jump squats were hard on my knees so I modified them several reps in. I struggled hardcore with straight leg jackknifes mid-week. Imagine working out with the lingering cough from being sick. So annoying! My energy was zapped so I did each circuit once. Progress over perfection, right?
Week 6: I started week 5 with sumo jump squats and burpees and modified them too. The struggle was real with a mountain climber/push up combo. Don’t get me started on the decline push ups I did on Wednesday! I think it took up 3 1/2 minutes with this set! Arms and abs are my favorite day of the week, but man, was it hard! I was still coughing so much that I only did each circuit once. Fifteen minute workouts are better than sitting on the couch, right?
FOOD
Week 4: Since I was sick, all I consumed was tea, OJ, Perrier water and soup. I slept more than I ate.
Week 5: I eased myself back into regular food and made overnight oats for breakfast, mommy’s bò kho (beef stew) for lunch and veggie stir fry for dinner most of the week.
Week 6: For breakfast, I switched between overnight oats and pitaya-berry-avo smoothies (I’ll share my recipe next month). Lunch throughout the week consisted of pho, chicken soup and small salads. I had fried chicken and pizza for the 20 of my 80/20 rule on Sunday.
Sidenote: On my previous post, I told you that I’d let you know what ate in Orlando. I did pretty well during my three days! I had curried fish (which was SO good!) at our team lunch with fresh greens, salads and ended my trip with one pasta dish for dinner.
Anyway, if you’re participating in Kayla’s 12 week program, give me a shoutout in the comments below!
I hope my BBG Update No. 2 post inspired you to either get moving or keep going wherever you’re at in your health journey. I feel like if I post about it and share with you, it can keep me more accountable and help me stay on track!
Even though I talked about week 6, I’ll post pictures from that week when I post weeks 7-9! Bare with me on my progress photos. It’s hard to pose and take pictures of your body without cutting off body parts, lol!
If you’re thinking about doing BBG…
Just give it a shot! Check out a FREE 7 day trial of Kayla’s workouts for yourself. Life is too short to not feel great so go for it! Make sure you modify and don’t rush through the workouts.
If you do decide to do it, just know that on some days, you may feel like you’re not making progress. It’s normal to feel that way. Trust me. You are doing great. Take pictures and I promise you’ll see your progress even when you may not feel like you’re improving. I’m proof with the pictures I shared today!
Are you part of the BBG community? If so, are you a beginner or veteran?
Note: I did NOT get asked nor was I compensated to write this post by Kayla or The Bikini Body Training Company. Just sharing my health journey with you and what I’m personally doing!