My Kayla Itsines’ BBG (Bikini Body Guide) 60-Week Review
Quick update: A lot has happened since my 24-week BBG progress post! I did a 3rd 12-week round of BBG using the PDFs, then I took advantage of the 3-months of the @sweat app for $1 deal they had running last January. I love the app so much I’ve maintained my subscription ever since. In total I’ve done BBG 1.0 twice and 2.0 once with the PDFs, and BBG 3.0 and 4.0 on the app. I’m still currently training with the @sweat app, just a different program within it.
The @sweat app cost: The subscription cost is $10/mo with an annual membership or $20/mo with a monthly membership – both 100% worth it – and you get access to no fewer than 8 different program options (counting off the top of my head). I get paid nothing to promote this so keep that in mind.
Why I started: There are multiple reasons, and some of them have nothing to do with why I keep going. Of course, I wanted to fit into my clothes again after having baby number 2. More importantly, I wanted control. Over something. Anything. My days were completely dominated by the needs and schedules of 2 little people. Douse that with a crippling amount of housework and laundry, add a heavy sprinkle of pressure to have dinner on the table each and every evening, then top it all with the dark, sleepless reality that is postpartum. I was drowning and felt like I had no say in anything going on in my life.
Why I chose BBG: In May of 2018 I was a stay-at-home mom to a 3 year old and a 3 month old, no childcare/daycare, no family in town, no babysitters. I had very few opportunities to leave the house due to nursing and multiple nap times to work around (and even when I did have the courage/stupidity to venture out – hello, shit-show!), plus the baby needed to be held for every. Single. Nap. for a good 5-6 months. Fitting in time to physically get to the gym was nearly impossible, and I had no interest in wandering the gym aimlessly, bouncing from one random machine to another simply because it was available.
I scoured the internet for programs that 1) could be done from home, 2) told me exactly what to do, and 3) had workouts that were no more than 30-45 minutes long. Enter BBG. BBG offers short (4x 7-minute circuits for a total of 28 minutes), effective (read: KILLER) workouts that require very little to no equipment. I. WAS. SOLD. Or at least I figured it was worth a shot. I wasn’t ready to commit to the expense of the app or even pay for the PDFs. Like, when I would inevitably quit I’d just be out that money, right? I was big into self-doubt, and I’m cheap. So I scoured the internet again for the PDFs and got lucky to find them as a free, surely illegal (sorry Kayla!), download.
Why I love BBG: BBG was exactly what I needed when I needed it. It gave me a sense of control. Control over my emotions. Control over how I treated and moved my body and how I chose to fuel it. I was finally in charge. I took ownership of how I spent what little “free” time I had, and chose to get creative in order to fit my needs in and among naps, feedings, fits, and play.
I’m still a slave to my children’s needs and won’t pretend I’m not just because I workout, however, I’m purposeful about what I do when I can. I’ve done BBG at home in the living room, the playroom, the nursery, the hallway, on the back deck, and in the front yard. I’ve done BBG in hotel rooms and at campsites…seriously anywhere and everywhere!
My biggest “Ah-ha”: I realized if I waited for the perfect, uninterrupted, sure-thing time to train, it would never happen. So I worked out with my kids playing around, with, and on top of me. I pushed pause time and time again to fetch snacks, change diapers, wipe butts, comfort, help, and play. And I always pushed start again. Here’s the thing – once I started, it was easy to finish…eventually. Even if that meant maybe one 7-min circuit while the kids played around and with me in the morning, then another 7-min circuit while one napped and the other ate, and the last two 7-min circuits after they went to bed. However and whenever I could fit it in, I did.
This mentality oozed into other areas of my life, as well. Even though I knew in my heart of hearts someone would poop or get hurt at any second, instead of giving in and letting it push me into stagnation I’d start emptying the dishwasher silverware tray anyway. I’d start sweeping anyway. I’d start chopping vegetables anyway. I stopped saying “fuck it, what’s the point?” and started saying, “we’ll see how far I can get.”
Why I kept going: I always felt so amazing and accomplished (& sweaty!) when I finished a workout, even if I felt totally destroyed and defeated at the same time. The sense of accomplishment and pride was sorely missed in the thankless monotony that is stay-at-home momming littles. Seriously, many times I feel like I’m just wasting away in the playroom, losing brain cells with every crappy children’s book I read, and I desperately long for rational conversation with rational human beings.
And I can NOT talk about why I keep going without mentioning the amazing online community Kayla Itsines has cultivated. Women of all ages from all over the world and all walks of life have banded together to motivate, encourage, support, and cheer each other on. It’s truly incredible. I don’t feel alone in just about anything – motherhood, fitness, mental health, physical health, habits, joy, struggles. You name it and I’ve talked to a complete stranger I’ve never met about it and felt heard and understood. Hooray for connection, relationships, and friendships, even if it’s “just” over the internet.
And yes, the physical gains and progress certainly help keep me going. It’s pretty cool to see how I’ve manipulated my body over time – because I did this. Nobody else. This is mine. And I love it. Honestly, at this point habit and the mental need to move my body keep me pressing start day after day.
Progress pictures: If you’re on a fitness journey, TAKE ALL THE PICTURES! If you haven’t up until this point, START NOW. It’s not vain, it’s not creepy, it’s not weird. It’s a fantastic way to gauge physical progress when the scale is being a bitch. I wish I’d taken a few different poses, and I certainly wish my “before” pictures weren’t in Bears panties and a nursing bra, but I wasn’t anticipating sharing them online at the time. But the program told me to take pics, so I took the pics. And I’m so glad I did, because I didn’t realize how few pictures there are of me that aren’t just face selfies with my kids.
Here are my Day 1 –> Round 5 BBG progress photos:
May 2018 –> July 2019
Considering trying BBG? Do it. Be consistent. Eat well. Drink Water. Modify your ass off. And connect with me at @squatto4moscato on Intagram. 🙂
Note: Since July 2019 I’ve been doing Kelsey Wells’ #PWR program (also a @sweat program). I’ll do a review of PWR, too. 🙂