Weights - Caroline Girvan

[KittyMcKitty]

Hi

after years of just yoga and energetic dog walking (it’s very hilly where I live) I’m mindful of the fact that I need to add some weights.

Im mid 50s and the menopause has not been kind to my figure!

I’ve looked at Caroline Girvan who seems fab but how heavy are her weights!!! I’ve got some 5kg dumbbells- would these be ok for starters?

Also where do I start / how often / how long to notice results?

Any advice gratefully received!

As a starter 5 kg might be too heavy for some exercises - it’s better to do them with good form than heavy weights and badly.

Do you have access to a gym with a decent free weights and functional fitness area? Then you’ll have a range of weights and other fun things like sand bells, the sled, and equipment for proper barbell lifting so you can much heavier than Caroline Girvans programmes.

I don’t currently have access to a gym unfortunately so am looking for something to do at home but certainly that may be a possibility in the future. Thank you.

Bodypump

It's perfectly fine to start with body weight on a number of important full body exercises. For example, full body press ups - my trainer taught me gradually to do them - he's never let me do them from my knees, but made me do full body hand-release press ups (look those up), by painfully slowly garnering the strength to do them properly. You have to work not only your ams & shoulders, but engage your core.

Similarly, squats - if you're doing them properly, they should engage your core.

I suppose the thing I find with the Girvan workouts is that there aren't many full body & compound lift exercises, because it's hard to do them heavy enough with just dumbbells.

But you could try dumbbell thrusters, which combine a deep squat with an overhead press. I'd start with much lower weight than 5 kilos though, if you're not used to weights. You could go really hard and do devil's presses - a combination of a burpee and a thruster. Google it - you'll see why they're called that. Or "man makers" combining renegade rows with a devil's press.

These are all full body compound movements which you can start without weight, and then gradually add weight via dumbbells.

I have recently started with Caroline Girvan and am finding it great. Going to the gym, PT etc are not realistic in my lifestyle but 30min at home is and I feel so much stronger after only a couple of weeks.

Start with the "beginner epic" series which is mostly body weight but still pretty strenuous.

If you go on Caroline's website there are PDF leaflets taking you through things like what weights to use. Needless to say if you are unsure, go for a lighter one and build up.

There is a great long running thread on here dedicated to Caroline Girvan programmes.

By the way the weights she uses herself are massive but if you look at the leaflets she recommends starting lighter. I've got 5kg as my "heavy" ones and that will do for now!

Thank you that’s fantastic I will start with the epic beginners (had a look it looks quite challenging!).

Do you mix CG with Yoga / cardio etc?

No- I'm sure this would be a good idea but I won't have time so am sticking to the 5x30min per week of CG. Sometimes I add a 10min abs workout as this is the worst part of my body post kids!

I am a newbe to Caroline Girvan and think her iron series is the easiest. Also don't be fooled by her 5 beginner videos, they are pretty tough. I tried a couple of epic videos and found them harder than iron.

I am doing iron with 5kg for legs and 3kg for arms, I don't have much muscle at present.

I've just found Caroline's workouts and am enjoying iron series.
I usually do more cardio focused workouts with lighter weights so I like the slow pace and being able to use heavier weights.
I already feel stronger
I would probably start with 3kg or 4kg and work your way up..

I did her Iron series using 3kgs, and by the time I’d finished it I was able to repeat it using 5kgs (except for some exercises - things like shoulder-presses I would still use the lighter ones). Now I’m eyeing up some 7.5kgs!

My body feels really taut for the first time ever, and I can feel how much stronger I am, even using relatively light weights.

I got a bit bored of the CG videos by the end, and now do a variety of dumbbell workouts, but always free ones from YouTube.

Well I did a 20 min full body workout with 2kg weights today (how does she lift those heavy weights?). Really enjoyed it and had definitely broken a sweat by the end!

Now just need to stick with it! I think I’ll try the Iron series starting tomorrow.

Well done OP, I love CG after finding her two years ago. Still do them several times a week. Never get bored of her workouts