I always thought I was in pretty good shape, but then I had kids.
In my pre-natal life, regular exercise was an essential part of my daily schedule. I had weekly training sessions and did online yoga. I also loved sports and played netball several times a week and even took tennis lessons to finally beat my sister.
I also stayed active during my pregnancy by doing prenatal training with a personal trainer and doing pregnancy Pilates online. My fitness level served me well for the birth (all 2 and a half days) and for the months following my son’s arrival, including carrying a basket upstairs and holding my son while he was breastfeeding. , which helped me through some physically demanding times.
After getting the green light to resume exercise at my 6-week postpartum checkup, I went back to my personal trainer and focused on strength training and stretching exercises. And after some pelvic floor muscle training with lots of Kegels, I was able to get back to playing netball.
But when I returned to work, things changed. My job (ironically, as a fitness and wellbeing editor) was physically exhausting trying to juggle a full-fledged role with motherhood. It also meant I had very little time to plan meals and cook from scratch like I did on maternity leave.
Then, last October, my role came to an abrupt end and I had to cut back on my expensive personal training sessions. Slowly but surely, I found myself moving less, eating the wrong things more, and feeling too tired to care.
It didn’t take long for me to feel my strength decreasing. When I held my 2-year-old son, I had a hard time picking him up because he was out of breath even after a short distance. My already depleted energy levels took a further hit and I was constantly tired and had limited enthusiasm for playing energetic games with him.
I also noticed changes in my body. Clothes that had previously been comfortable suddenly felt tight and uncomfortable. And when I stopped breastfeeding, my weight quickly increased by 5 kg.
So when my partner signed up for Apple Fitness+, the Get Back to Fitness in 6 Weeks program immediately caught my eye. I needed something to help me get out of my fitness funk. Is this okay?
What is the Restart Your Fitness Challenge?
(Image credit: Stephanie Wood)
Apple Fitness+’s 6 Weeks To Restart Your Fitness program gradually increases the amount of time you spend working out each day. You’ll spend two weeks in the “Comeback” section, where the workouts are usually only 10 minutes long. I thought this would be an easy way to get back into regular exercise.
Then, “build up momentum” with classes of up to 20 minutes each over the next two weeks. Then, the final two weeks encourage an “all-out finish” with mostly 30-minute workouts.
Each week consists of two HIIT workouts, three strength sessions, one core class, and one yoga routine. In terms of equipment, the requirements were minimal. All you need is a yoga mat, some weights, and ideally adjustable dumbbells that allow you to change the resistance between movements.
So I pulled out my best gym leggings and got to work. This is how I did it…
The platform was very exciting
There’s a reason Apple Fitness+ consistently ranks among the best workout apps you can download today. The user experience is polished, the visuals are pleasant, and the trainer is very motivating.
But what I found particularly effective was the insight it provided into my own performance. Statistics tracked by the Apple Watch, such as heart rate, calories burned, and activity ring progress, were displayed on the screen during the workout.
For HIIT sessions, there was also a feature called “burn bars.” This is a real-time comparison of my performance to the performance of others who have previously completed the workout. Displayed as calories burned taking into account body weight to ensure like-for-like comparisons.
Continue to work hard even as you begin to plant your flag at the tip of the burn bar as your position goes from “middle of the pack” to “first of the pack” (and on one glorious occasion, “first of the pack”) I was able to do that. Thanks to that, my work rate has increased.
Another thing that has really motivated me is that before I sit down at my desk, I put on an exercise ring (which tracks how many minutes of vigorous activity I do each day; my current goal is set at 30 minutes). is closed. Honestly, I felt pretty smug knowing I had already checked a workout off my to-do list.
I discovered that movement begets movement.
(Image credit: Stephanie Wood)
A good CBT (cognitive behavioral therapy) practitioner once told me that if you’re going to procrastinate at work, you should start by telling yourself you’ll just do it for 10 minutes. Her theory was that once you get started, you’ll end up doing more work, but with a 10-minute goal, it’s easy to get started.
I found the same to be true for this fitness program. The fact that my workouts for the first two weeks were only 10 minutes long not only made it mentally easier to work out every day, but once I was done, I was motivated to do more. I also noticed that it was coming.
For example, one day I followed an upper body strength class with a 10-minute online yoga session on one of my favorite YouTube channels, Yoga with Kassandra, to give my body a little stretch.
Then, inspired by her challenge to “try a new move today,” I followed it up with a 10-minute Popsugar Salsa Pop workout. What was supposed to be just 10 minutes of exercise ended up being 30 minutes.
“When we complete a task, our brain releases dopamine, which triggers positive emotions such as happiness, joy, and motivation,” says pre- and post-natal fitness expert and author of The Strong Like Mum Method observes Shakira Akabusi.
“This gives us the motivation to set more goals and keep achieving them. The key is to start small and make it sustainable,” she added. This is exactly what the 6-week program is all about.
I developed healthier habits
“One of the great things about starting to make healthy changes and becoming more active is that it motivates you to continue making healthy changes in other areas of your life, such as your sleep and nutritional habits,” Akabusi says. I say.
This was definitely the case for me after starting the 6 week challenge. I quickly found myself becoming more conscious about the choices I made in my broader life, especially when it came to food.
I didn’t want to ruin my hard work on the exercise mat, so I started making better choices. For example, I swapped biscuits for bananas or made scrambled eggs instead of reaching for pastries for breakfast.
Increase your water intake (keeping a water bottle nearby helps), try to plan your meals in advance, and get the right mix of protein, carbs, and vegetables to help curb your ever-increasing Uber Eats habit. It was helpful.
Research shows that this reaction is typical. Professor Akabusi points to a 2019 study published in the International Journal of Obesity that found that after a few weeks of exercise, study participants who were previously sedentary were more likely to choose foods such as lean meat, fruits, and vegetables. They also revealed that they tended to prefer fried foods and soda. , and fewer other unhealthy choices.
I also started prioritizing sleep and created a relaxing routine of drinking a cup of herbal tea, dimming the lights, and reading for 10 minutes before lights out. Between that and starting to move more throughout the day, I found that I slept easier.
Morning training suited me best.
(Image credit: Stephanie Wood)
I’m not much of a morning person, so I was surprised to learn that working out before I start work is most beneficial. If you put it off until later in the day, you’re more likely to find reasons not to exercise at all, like “I just ate,” “I’m waiting for the food to wear off,” or “I don’t exercise.” If you do it now, you’ll have time to take a shower before the meeting. ”
There were days when I was in a frantic rush to get my body in shape before picking my son up from daycare (on particularly busy days, I found myself doing a 10-minute core workout at home). (Bedroom floor with dress on).
But on days when I worked out in the gap between my son’s daycare and sitting down at my laptop, not only did I feel satisfied by checking something off my to-do list before 9 a.m., but I also felt better. was also arranged. For the rest of the day. I felt competent, focused, and motivated.
Akabusi, who similarly loves early morning workouts, explains why morning is the best time to exercise by citing sunlight, which signals to your body that it’s time to wake up first thing in the morning, and the natural release of cortisol first thing in the morning. Here are some combinations of rising trends.
However, he also says that subsequent training should not be completely discounted. “Several studies suggest that muscle strength is typically highest in the afternoon or evening, and that strength training during these times may be beneficial,” she says.
“The most important thing is to establish some consistency, so it’s best to exercise whenever you can make it a regular habit.”
life sometimes gets in the way
It was easy to carve out time for a 10-minute workout. But as time lengthened to 20 or 30 minutes, the demands of work, childcare, and managing life got in the way, making it difficult to coordinate daily time.
This could lead to feelings of guilt and feelings of “not trying hard enough.” But, as Akabushi points out, “Being active doesn’t have to mean a structured workout every day. My biggest tip for staying active is to find something you enjoy. .”
“Exercise shouldn’t feel like a chore and there are so many options for exercise. Dancing, walking, swimming, playing rounders with friends or doing a fun obstacle course outside with the kids. Let’s try making some!”
The results were also impressive.
At the end of the six-week program, if you look at the Trends section of your iPhone’s fitness app, you’ll see that your VO2Max, an important measure of cardiovascular health, is trending upward.
Although weight loss wasn’t the main reason I embarked on this challenge, I did start to notice that I had lost a little weight (about 1 kg) and my stomach area looked a little slimmer.
But red knots remind us that weight is not the only indicator of fitness and health. “Along with weight and measurements, energy levels, muscle tone, sleep patterns and mood are also important indicators of health,” she says.
I wholeheartedly agree. The most important change I experienced was in how I felt. As early as the second week, I noticed a noticeable increase in my energy levels. When my son screamed for me at 6am, getting out of bed felt effortless. And on the netball court, I noticed that my reactions were sharper and my stamina improved, which helped me win the Player of the Match award.
(Image credit: Stephanie Wood)
My ability to get things done has also improved. I felt like I was able to organize my thoughts and move forward with things. This was a welcome change to the cloud of chaos I was used to.
After all, I felt happy. It sounds like a cliché, but it’s a simple scientific truth. Exercise makes us happy. Granted, probably not during a 50-second burpee set (where climbers are on my list of most evil exercises, IMO).
But as the days and weeks of the challenge went by, I found myself feeling calmer, more upbeat, and generally more optimistic about life. “Exercising increases your energy and makes you feel positive,” Akabusi asserts. “When we exercise, our bodies increase the production of ‘happy hormones’ such as endorphins and serotonin, which improve our mood.
“When your heart rate increases, it also increases the delivery of oxygen and nutrients to your muscles and organs, pumping blood around your body and giving you more energy.”
The 6 week challenge was exactly what I needed
Now that the 6-week challenge is over, I’ve really rekindled my relationship with fitness and am determined to build on my start so far. I will continue to use Apple Fitness+ to train regularly (though probably not every day).
Thankfully, the six-week program helped me identify some of my favorite trainers, including the kind-hearted giant Greg Cook and the irresistibly hilarious Bakari Williams and Jamie Ray Hartshorne. Now you can add workouts with these coaches to your Apple Fitness+ list so you can get started right away.
Losing a little more weight would be great, but it’s the broader health, fitness, and well-being benefits I’m hoping to hang on to. I aim to be healthier and happier.
