Cycling, Treadmill & Beachbody
Have you recently purchased at-home workout equipment? I feel like every time I check in to social media another friend has purchased a spin bike, a treadmill or a new set of dumbbells (you can finally find them again)! So many people have made their home their gym in the last 2 years… us included!
As someone that has been regularly working out in a gym or group fitness setting since I was 12, working out from home was an easier adjustment than I initially thought it would be.
At-home workouts started for me after having Jacob and pretty much never looked back. There are so many things I love about working out from home- the convenience of simply walking to my garage (will never get over this one), the time I save in the car, the freedom to move in a way that feels right for me each day, not having to explain myself when I need to modify a move, being in control of the playlist (very important- please do not play Taylor Swift when I am trying to work out) & not stressing about germs in the midst of a global pandemic.
We cancelled our gym memberships in 2020 and by now I thought we would have at least one of them back. I always imagined how great it would be to drop Jacob off at the gym childcare and get our workout in together. As for now, I can’t handle exposure to any more germs. Please believe our little one picks up plenty from the same 5 kids he sees 3 mornings/week at preschool. So when Omicron was announced right after Thanksgiving, we bought a treadmill.
Half of our garage is now a full on gym and it makes me so happy!! The dumbbells we have accumulated since college and the Peloton we got in December of 2019. Our only pandemic additions were placing down flooring (easy purchase on amazon) and now our treadmill. We use this space daily and the investments have absolutely been worth it! (You can read my peloton review here and I will write one soon on our treadmill).
How I Mix in the Peloton/Treadmill with Beachbody Programs
I thought I would share a bit about how I go about using cardio equipment in my fitness routine. I have a lot of fun mapping it out each week, but I know it can feel overwhelming for some people trying to figure out what to do when. I have quite a few clients with access to the same equipment as me and it’s a topic that comes up often.
When I plan out my workouts for the week, it always begins with the Beachbody program I am following at the time. Every program comes with a calendar of workouts to follow and they are all designed so that you are strategically working specific muscles each day. They truly take the thinking out of creating an effective plan. I do not always follow the calendar exactly based on the day of the week, but I do go in the correct order.
I am typically drawn to the programs that focus primarily on strength training. This gives me the base for what I am doing that week. Most programs include workouts 5-6 days/week and the majority of them are around 30-40 minutes.
By following a program on Beachbody, I feel like I am able to maintain a structure to my workouts. The peloton and treadmill both come with access to endless options of classes, but I prefer a calendar to stick with so I know exactly what I am working. Most days of the week, strength training is my number one priority and cardio is just extra.
The program I am doing now is much different from others since it is only 20 minutes (5 days/week for 4 weeks). There are 3 strength days and 2 cardio days each week. The program also includes optional cycling classes to add on if you want. It’s a very quick and effective workout that includes resistance loop work (my favorite).
I definitely enjoy working out longer than 20 minutes, so I am currently doing more with the peloton & treadmill than normal. Most days my workouts are somewhere between 30-50 minutes.
Here is a quick run down of this week’s workouts:
- Sunday- rest
- Monday- JOB 1 workout (strength), 30 minute walk/run intervals class on treadmill (50 minutes)
- Tuesday- JOB1 workout (cardio), 30 minute peloton bootcamp (50 minutes)
- Wednesday- JOB1 workout (strength), JOB1 core overtime workout (40 minutes)
- Thursday- JOB1 workout (cardio), 30 minute running bootcamp class on treadmill (50 minutes)
- Friday- JOB 1 workout (strength), peloton lower body bootcamp (50 minutes)
- Saturday- cardio group workout on zoom with my clients, 3-4 mile run on treadmill (60 minutes)
My schedule definitely fluctuates week to week, but I really enjoy mixing up my workouts with a lot of variety! Some weeks I take more than one rest day if my body needs it. And of course weeks where life hits me in the face look much different than this. I also have no problem switching up my plans mid-week based on how I am feeling. Daily workouts are more for my mental health and sanity than anything, so it’s always a top priority for me.
If you are interested in doing this program alongside me (or my next one), fill out this quick form and I will send you the details. While I obviously love mixing in my spin bike & treadmill, you don’t need anything but a few sets of dumbbells to do these programs.
I look forward to sharing another round of workouts with you when I start my next program!