Two months ago I talked about working out at home, and it’s time for an update! After 37 days of using the Ashley Borden workout, I decided to switch over to the Kayla Itsines workout. I’ve done the Kayla Itsines Bikini Body Guide, aka BBG, for 2 whole weeks now and I’m loving it so far.
- Supportive Community: One of the first things I noticed about the BBG was the incredibly supportive community on Instagram. You can feel the positive energy and enthusiasm from all the girls that are doing the BBG. Through the #bbg hashtag you can meet other people who are working out using the guide and quickly form a support group.
- Accountability: Because the community is so active and visual, you can use it as a method of accountability. I made a separate Instagram account for the BBG so I can see all my workout posts and progress in one place. This is an extra motivating factor for me, because I can see my progress build up visually.
- Fitspiration: I think fitspiration helps keep your motivation going, so on days that you’re not really in the mood to work out fitspiration can really help swing it around. In the BBG community, you get to see some amazing transformation photos of girls who are doing the BBG. I think it also helps to see people do the same work out you are doing because you know they are going through the same struggles you are. This brings the focus on to the process, not just the results.
- Variety: The one downside to DVD workouts is that there isn’t much variety. So you’re basically repeating a handful of workouts over and over until you know the lines by heart. The BBG has 12 weeks + 4 pre-workout weeks worth of workouts so it keeps things fresh and challenging!
- Accessibility: You can purchase the guide with Paypal- always a plus- and immediately download the guide as a pdf file. I’m always happy when I can access a book or video immediately after purchase rather than having to wait for it in the mail.
Now that I’ve gone over some of the reasons I love the BBG, let’s talk about some things it could improve on.
- A timetable is included for Weeks 1-4, but she has a separate pdf for the rest of the weeks that you have to buy with a tweet. I think the timetable for all 12 weeks should just be included in the guide.
- The guide wasn’t entirely clear on what the warm up should be. There was a small note somewhere saying that you should walk quickly for 5 minutes to warm up but there wasn’t a section dedicated to the warm up. I emailed customer support for clarification and they replied: 5 minutes of any blood pumping activity (walking, running, jump ropes, jumping jacks, etc) to get your muscles warmed up. For now I’m just using the warm up video in the Ashley Borden DVD.
- Given the cost of the guide, I don’t think it’s too much to ask for videos that explain each exercise move. A glossary is included in the guide, but with exercise it can be so much easier just to see the move visually.
- I’d already been exercising for a month before I started the BBG, but I still had to adjust the number of reps that are used in the guide. I knew that my knees have always been a problem area so I only did 5 reps for squats/lunges to avoid pain (When I started with the Ashley Borden workout, I started with doing only 1 rep for squats/lunges and gradually built up over many many weeks). However I haven’t had shoulder problems while doing tricep dips in the past, so I wasn’t expecting to get a shoulder injury from doing 15 reps as per guide. What I liked about the Ashley Borden workout was that there was a set time for each workout (since it’s a video) and you only did the number of reps you could do within that time. She also showed adjustments for beginners and encouraged form over quantity. I think it would have been worth noting that it could be a good idea to start low and gradually increase reps as you grew stronger.
- You only have 24 hours to download the pdf file. Considering you can access and re-download most ebooks, audiobooks, and exercise videos after purchase, this felt a bit strange to me. Does this means that if you don’t have a backup copy and your computer stops working for whatever reason, you have to pay for the guide again?
Despite these loopholes, my overall experience with the guide and the community has been a positive one. I would recommend the BBG guide to anyone who has had a hard time sticking to an exercise routine in the past, because of how big and supportive the community is. There are constantly posts being made to the #bbg hashtag on Instagram so there is no lack of inspiration to turn to, and if you make a post to the hashtag you’ll find people who will cheer you on as well!
Your turn ♥ What exercise regime do you follow?
*P.S. This post was not sponsored in any way. I simply use the money that I would have spent on a gym on guides and gear instead.
