Ready To Lift x BBG

How do (did) I mix weightlifting (Ready To Lift) and the BBG (bikini body training guide)?

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Straight Leg Deadlifts from RTL

{UPDATE/Recap (March 2017): I followed this routine on and off for about 9 weeks this past summer, then switched back to just RTL and creating more of my own workouts. Currently doing a lot of rehabilitation/mobility/stability work for some weak spots and lighter weighted workouts before getting back to heavier lifting.}

This is a question I’ve gotten quite a bit in that last few weeks since I decided to restart the BBG along with a new movement of motivated and inspired women on Instagram using the tag #bbgcrushmode started by kickass Jera of @workoutbean.

Over the past year my style has changed and I shifted to a primarily weights training focus, which has been amazing and I’ve seen and felt some great results. But there also comes a time when one gets too comfortable in the routine and craves just a tiny bit of change and new found purpose to kick ass. This push of women restarting came at a great time.

I currently follow a mixture of Weightlifting workouts (lower body ones coming from our Ready To Lift: Leg & Booty Guide) and BBG workouts. Here’s how I make it work for ME.

As of the past couple weeks I’ve been doing:

  • 2-3 lifting sessions a week in addition to BBG. 1 full lower body Leg and Booty session from Ready To Lift, 1 upper body session (that I create from scratch or find from another trainer online), and then a potential 3rd lifting sesh if I feel like a certain body area needs to be worked a bit more.
  • I’ve been adding a few additional exercises after some of my BBG resistance workouts. For example on Arms & Abs days, I’ve added in some weighted exercises for upper body (shoulders, biceps and triceps). And on a Leg and Cardio day, added in weighted exercises with an emphasis on Glutes and Hamstrings. I will adjust this all as the weeks pass, workouts change and I can see and feel what I want to focus on more as well.
  • I do no additional recommended Cardio, as one of my jobs involves biking a fair amount 4-5 days a week and for now this is enough.
  • A typical week may look like like: Monday: BBG Legs & Cardio, with added Hamstring & Glute exercises such as Romanian Deadlifts, Single Leg Deadlifts, Single Leg Sit Squats and Goblet Squats. Tuesday: No gym, but biking for Cardio at work. Wednesday: BBG Arms & Abs, plus a few additional weighted exercises such as: Tricep Cable Pulldowns and Shoulder Press. Thursday: Leg & Booty workout from Ready To Lift. Friday: Upper body workout (self written). Saturday or Sunday: BBG Full Body & extra weighted exercises, other day is REST DAY!

I love that more of my cardiovascular strength is coming back thanks to biking and the BBG, but I also know that my body responds well to weights. As I’ve been at this a while and am now a Certified Personal Trainer I’ve really learned what my body is capable of but also when I need to push it and myself mentally out of my comfort zone. That is why I choose to restart and add the BBG back into my routine for the time being. My body and mind were ready for a challenge and as I had done it in the past I knew how to add it in and mix it with my weight lifting schedule.

I’m sharing this because I want people to know it’s okay to mix and match different style of workouts and/or workout program. This is what’s been working for me the past few weeks, but I will change and adjust my workout plan as I need and want to. There’s no rule that says you have to follow 1 style or plan! Find a plan, a type of workout, a personal trainer (like Myself -queue shameless plug 😉 ) or create your own workouts. Do what works for YOU.

What is your current training schedule like?? If you have questions please don’t hesitate to ask!

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Ready To Lift Leg & Booty Guide

Becoming a Personal Trainer, New Routine, New Life.

I’m back!image

   I have been on the move, Literally. Temporarily moving back to the U.S. from Germany for a few months, then back to Germany once again. Needless to say, it has been a busy and transitional period in my life. I’ve had many amazing experiences in the past few months and learned a lot about myself as an ever evolving person. It has been full of many ups and downs, times of both uncertainty and the sureness of my path. But I’ve kept going, kept pushing and believing in myself enough to accomplish some amazing goals and dreams of mine.

image   While in the USA I finished up my ACE Personal Trainer course, and am proud to say I am now a Certified Personal Trainer through the American Council on Exercise. Over the past 2.5 years I have learned so much through my own personal experiences, extensive research and Personal Trainer Studies. Fitness and Nutrition has become a huge passion of mine, and a major aspect of my life. I absolutely LOVE helping others, through sharing my story and experiences, and offering support and advice whenever I can.  I want to help people realize their true potential to make a change in their own lives for the better, that it is possible.

   While in the U.S. I was also working on a Fitness project, a Women’s Lifting Guide “Ready To Lift: Leg & Booty Guide“,  which launched successfully early April 2016. Timagehis was truly a passion project, as both Brittany and I want to help encourage women to get into the weight room and pick up those weights. We have both had a very positive experience in our transition to more weightlifting (which I will share more about in another post).  We want to help women find confidence in the gym, in their lives and in themselves.  The making of this Guide involved extensive research, testing of the program and flying across the USA to meet my dear friend and business partner in crime, Brittany. I am very blessed to have connected with her through Instagram and our passion of fitness and health living. We had a nearly a week together, filming and shooting photos for our guide, editing, eating and having great conversations.

image   I am still in a bit of a transitional period while I continue to get everything organized over here in Germany, but thanks to our Ready To Lift Guide and the amazing community that is growing behind it, I have been keeping up with a fairly normal routine. I think it’s so important to keep pushing yourself in new ways, be it with new exercises, heavier weights, adding int a new challenge, it all leads to growth. I am currently mixing up my routine with the Ready To Lift: Leg & Booty Guide as my base (3 lower body sessions), and adding in roughly 2 Upper body workouts and a small HIIT that include a mixture of body weight exercises, many more Weights -both free weights and some machines. I am loving the challenge of scheduling and creating my own personalized workouts, and I plan to soon have Personalized Training Programs available. I will share more on that topic soon as well.

   I want this space to be one that is helpful, inspiring and educational. So, from this point on, I plan to consistently share a variety of helpful Information, new Recipes, Fitness Challenges, and Fitness and Nutritional tips to help you on your own healthy journey. My domain name may have changed – so that it reflects who I actually am – but it is still dedicated to sharing my Healthy Living Dreams. Excited to be back, and moving forward with you all.

  Much love, Alena Elizabeth