I promised myself I’d be fit before I turn 20.

[geminii]

Hey everyone!

Yesterday I was just doing what I normally do, browsing YouTube and playing a Sudoku puzzle at the same time, and then suddenly had a realisation - “didn’t I say that I wanted to be fit before I turn 20?” followed immediately by the thought, “oh, geez...I have just under seven months to make that happen...”

Yeah, I promised myself, while in high school (a few years ago), that I would be fit before 20. I’m not overweight now but I was overweight at one point in my life. Lost most of that weight but I still have a ways to go.

Plus, my fitness is basically zero. I realised just how bad it was when I ran a Parkrun a couple of months ago and I was basically last, being passed by old people, young kids. I was left at the back with all the mothers pushing their prams! Nobody was judgemental but I was embarrassed of myself. I mean, I knew I was bad - I just didn’t know I was that bad.

I’ll be honest, I don’t really know what my goals are. I don’t know if I’ll be too ambitious or too light handed with any goals I choose, so I’ll just make it simple - I’d like to see physical results as a result of working out. A friend called me fat yesterday and I just thought, “stuff this, I’m just going to prove them all wrong.”

I worked out quite a bit earlier this year and lost about 5 kilos! So I was really proud of that. Now I’m going to focus less on the weight, and instead focus on how I feel and how I look and how tired/not tired I get after performing certain activities (I’ll still track my weight though).

I’ll mainly use HIIT as my form of weight loss and fitness-building, as that’s what seems to work best for me (and it’s what helped me get rid of the 5 kilos). No gym membership so I just work out in the living room.

I’m sick right now so as soon as I’m feeling better I’ll start my workouts. This is what I’m planning for my daily workout:

• 30 minutes HIIT
• (Optional) An extra short workout targeting arms/legs/core etc. (I’ve seen some on Youtube that run for 6 minutes)

If anyone more well-versed in fitness has any advice then I’m all ears! This is the plan that helped me lose my initial amount earlier this year but I’m unsure as to whether it’s enough to help me get fit by February next year (Will it make me look fit? Will my endurance improve?). And I don’t want it to be too long of a workout either, because I have uni and work as well. I have 8am lectures on Monday and Tuesday so they’ll basically be my rest days for working out (I can’t wake up, workout, and get to uni by 8am!).

Hopefully this thread keeps me accountable and helps me achieve my goal!

- geminii

[r1ckworthy]

So good of you to start a thread on this. It looks like you've made  progress already! We'll be sure to keep you extra accountable!

[caffinatedloz]

Yeah! Love your workout plan! How much variety is there in your day to day HIIT workout? I always find I lose motivation when things are repetitive, so perhaps you might enjoy varying those exercises.

So cool to see someone who has set a goal and wants to achieve it! Wishing you the best of luck and sending good vibes your way.

[brothanathan]

Remember the importance of breathing 

[geminii]

So good of you to start a thread on this. It looks like you've made  progress already! We'll be sure to keep you extra accountable!

Thank you! I suck at self motivation (which is another thing that I need to work on) so I’ll be glad for all the pestering I get about this! xD

Yeah! Love your workout plan! How much variety is there in your day to day HIIT workout? I always find I lose motivation when things are repetitive, so perhaps you might enjoy varying those exercises.

So cool to see someone who has set a goal and wants to achieve it! Wishing you the best of luck and sending good vibes your way.

Thanks! In regards to my HIIT workout, it is pretty repetitive but there’s a variety of exercises within it so I find it okay. Plus it makes it easier for me to say “just two more rounds of jumping jacks and then I’m done!” I found other HIIT videos boring after a while but this guy is really motivating and I haven’t gotten bored yet which is awesome!

Remember the importance of breathing 

Absolutely. Thank you so much

[caffinatedloz]

Thanks! In regards to my HIIT workout, it is pretty repetitive but there’s a variety of exercises within it so I find it okay. Plus it makes it easier for me to say “just two more rounds of jumping jacks and then I’m done!” I found other HIIT videos boring after a while but this guy is really motivating and I haven’t gotten bored yet which is awesome.

Do you have the link or name of the channel? Would love to check it out, even if I don't actually get around to doing the workouts hahah. I was doing a 30 day exercise plan but I think that I set my goals a bit too hard as there was the same amount of progression each day. (eg. the plank length was meant ti increase by five seconds a day which was fine until i got past two minutes and realised how unfit i am...) Is meant to finish in a week but actually stopped it halfway through.

TL;DR I am asking for the channel name even though I know deep down I probably won't get around to doing the workouts anytime soon, if ever as I'm notoriously bad at sticking to workout plans.

[geminii]

Do you have the link or name of the channel? Would love to check it out, even if I don't actually get around to doing the workouts hahah. I was doing a 30 day exercise plan but I think that I set my goals a bit too hard as there was the same amount of progression each day. (eg. the plank length was meant ti increase by five seconds a day which was fine until i got past two minutes and realised how unfit i am...) Is meant to finish in a week but actually stopped it halfway through.

TL;DR I am asking for the channel name even though I know deep down I probably won't get around to doing the workouts anytime soon, if ever as I'm notoriously bad at sticking to workout plans.

Two minutes! That’s much better than me - I have never timed myself but I’m guessing you can go for about two minutes longer than I can xD

Sure! Here’s the link: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=jrw1rcKHEGs
And here’s one of the 6 minute workouts I’ve tried: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=rDDCdmgG-mg
OH and my all time favourite KILLER workout: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=bql6sIU2A7k

A big motivator for me is that it’s only half an hour! That’s the great thing about HIIT - it’s hard, it’s intense, but it’s all packed into just half an hour. No need to spend hours slaving away at the gym. Once you’ve done it you can relax for the rest of the day! Plus within the video there are options he gives you if you’re feeling too tired, such as sitting down while still moving your hands and feet as if you’re doing jumping jacks, or squatting just a little bit instead of all the way down. I found this really helpful. I still do the beginner version (replacing the burpees with jumping jacks) but hope to work my way up to burpees soon.

Definitely try to give it a go!

[brenden]

The most relevant piece of advice you could get right now is... don’t stop doing whatever you choose to do.

Is your strategy optimal? Who knows. Maybe it’s 90% optimal and there are ways to be 91% optimal or 92%, or 93%... and people will love to tell you all about how you should change your work out, and you might be tempted to do some googling, and look for a ‘better’ strategy, or go searching for some sort of insight that you don’t currently possess. It’s easy to get focussed on that stuff, and once your focus is devoted to that... well - there are other things that it won’t be devoted to.

The one thing you should be psychotically disciplined about is working out 70+ times in the next six months. Just do it. That’s all there is. Set a goal, stick to it. You will succeed.

[Evolio]

Very excited to be with you on this journey to achieve your goal! 

https://www.youtube.com/user/FitnessBlender/videos
Here is a link to Fitness Blender's youtube channel which I personally use. They have hundreds of workouts that are about 30 mins long and they also have a lot of HIIT ones as well.
They also give you modifications for exercises if you want something more low impact.
They're very trustworthy and totally worth the time!

What kept me on track was always finding the time to do a workout. Even if you have no time, just do 5 mins or 10 mins because it's always going to be better than if you do 0 mins! 
Consistency is key!

You can do it! Just focus on your goals and you will get there! I believe in you!
And don't forget to have fun!