Yes, that is me above. I was just finishing week 24 of BBG and I thought I was looking pretty great! I have never been the type to pose for these body shot selfies, BBG and the #bbgcommunity made me do some funny things.
Here is the deal. Yes, BBG made me strong and lean. I looked pretty damn good for the ripe age of 35. It also made me tired, constantly sore, agitated, and more self conscious than I have ever been. TRUTH BOMB!
You might be asking, what is BBG? Well, BBG stands for Bikini Body Guide and was developed by Kayla Itsines, a personal trainer from Australia and Instagram sensation. The format consists of 3 resistance workout a week that are 28 minutes each. It also includes doing a few days a week of LISS (low intensity steady state) workouts like walking or biking, and a couple of HIIT (high intensity interval training) session towards the end of the program. I like that the resistance training is relatively short at only 28 minutes, and can be done from any where with minimal equipment. This worked well with my schedule as a stay at home mom. The workout always left me dripping with sweat since a lot of it is plyometrics based training.
BBG also has a huge community on social media. Just check out the BBG hashtag on Instagram and prepare to be “inspired.” This is what really got to me after awhile. Seeing the all of these women posting their “progress selfies” on Instagram really felt like a competition. I felt like I was killing it in the gym, but I was constantly comparing my progress with everyone else’s. It went from encouraging in the beginning to discouraging after awhile. Girls with amazing bodies posting things like “it’s not about how you look, but how you feel.” Umm, yeah right!
I can definitely say that after 36 weeks, I was done. My knees and back were always hurting from the insane amount of jumping involved. I was bored and really started to dread my workouts. I transitioned back to doing lots of yoga with some occasional running and resistance training mixed in.
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| My BBG transformation photo Round 1 vs Round 2 |
I feel much more balanced now. I feel like I am truly loving my body and giving it the compassion it deserves. I am much happier now than when I was on my BBG journey. I may not be quite as lean, but I am okay with that.
Any questions or comments, feel free to leave them below and I will answer them.
Jenny Garvin Fitness 
Awesome post. I think BBG is amazing for beginners to learn about training while improving their body image but I find, like you did, people start to get joint pain and are very bored with their session.
I think that I did learn a lot from BBG about training, so that is a good point. It really is high intensity and can produce great results, but I think that a person can get similar results on a workout plan that is easier on the joints.