I don’t love working out, let’s be honest. It’s a necessary evil, as far as I am concerned. I have a friend K who loves loves loves running, like she is miserable when she can’t. I think that’s quite a few of you and that’s awesome. And I am a horrible runner. But I do appreciate what working out gives you – extra energy and stamina, strength, and if my butt defies gravity for weeeee bit longer, so much the better.
I gained ton of weight after my first daughter. She was nearly 9 lbs and I swell up a like ripe watermelon.
Tracy Anderson
While I breastfed for 9+ months, I still couldnt get my stomach back to what it was till I tried Tracy Anderson Post-pregnancy Workout DVD.
This teeny-tiny former ballerina gained a lot of weight with her son and ended up incorporating lots of tiny lifts and movements into this workout which did wonders for my abs and arms. Interestingly my hubby commented that they did some of these moves in the Navy bootcamp like moving your arms up down just a little like 100x. You don’t think its anything but gooor did that hurt. She is so perky at it, I ended up calling her some not very names when crying into my yoga mat face down.
She famously works with Giselle, Madonna, Gwyneth Paltrow (who credited Anderson with shaping her self-described saggy and square-shaped butt into a lifted, rounded, and shapely backside) and most recently J. Lo. She has other workouts like Cardio Dance etc but I found that I am no J Lo on that end, too many things to keep in mind so I didnt stick with it.
Kayla Itsines (Bikini Body Guides)
Look up BBG as its called on Instagram and you see hundreds of absolutely amazing transformations. Heavy gals who, a year later, are sporting amazing six packs, mamas who had sizable love handles are hopping around on the beach in itsy-bitsy bikinis… Granted Itsines is a young Australian who hasn’t had kids but this workout works! It comes in an app form so you log in and do it or you can buy her book or pdf file and go from there. It’s a 6-day a week workout, alternating low intensity cardio with 20 min balls to the wall workouts. It ain’t easy, let me tell you that: burpees, jump squats, etc. I’ve started over and over as illnesses and injuries derail my plans but I am married to it. I’ve seen more definition in my abs and hubs noted my butt is perkier. What more proof do you need? LOL.
You can do this from home, you do need weights, 2 weight benches, and treadmill (or go to cardio outside). I don’t know if you all are on Instagram (come join me if not) but I follow Kayla Itsines there and she constantly posts all the girls who do the BBG and it’s such an inspiration to see the transformations. When I feel like I don’t really want to workout, I see a photo of someone looking amaze, and it’ll make me drag my butt to the gym.
Tennis
I am not a great player but I love the combo of being outdoors, seeing my friends and chasing that ball around. Before I know it, I’ve gotten a workout in. It does work your legs and it’s great cardio.
I’ve tried yoga and would like to get back to it at some point. I know some women who have amazing bodies from yoga, I didn’t notice any chances in mine but maybe you need to be on a different level. I love the meditative quality of it and it’s always good to stretch!
Spinning aka Joyride: it is intense cardio and I hurt all over but I gave up after a few months, just didn’t see any difference at all. But you might as we are all built different.
At the end of the day, the best workout for you is what you’ll actually do. Thus, it has to be something you’ll enjoy. No matter how you workout, as long as you do! However, if you’ve always been a runner or done weights but just can’t seem to be getting anywhere, your body might have gotten adjusted to the level you are at. You’ll need to either add interval training or try something else. What works for you guys?
