Lifting with Caroline Girvan 2024: What's not to love?!

[BigButtons]

New thread!

Thanks ☺️

I will be starting the new unleashed series tomorrow. Would be today but I have my sister in law’s funeral to attend. Can’t say I’m sorry to be missing a brutal leg day!

Also - it’s a novelty to be able to access the new thread!

Thanks for the new thread.
Sorry about your sister in law.
(I half dread leg days too)

Thanks for the new thread! I'm not going to do Unleash until I've finished Beastmode 2 and done Iron 2. At the moment I'm doing my favourite full body 1 hour workouts on repeat because I love them but I need to get back to Beastmode. I just prefer full body workouts!

Well I've been working out with Caroline for nearly a year now, and that first day of the Unleashed series bloody killed me off. I've been doing the YouTube advent series for the last month which are only 20 minutes so I must have got complacent.

Looking forward to the results if I can keep at it, fingers crossed. I've just downloaded the app after using YouTube up until now.

@IrisBearded the iron 2 and Xmas app series were very tough me I hope it has prepared me somewhat for unleashed. I made huge strength and stamina/ grit gains doing both of those.

@bigbuttons I did try a couple of Iron2 workouts and I agree she has stepped up the difficulty from the YouTube workouts.
Which is good because I need a challenge.

I started Iron 2 on the launch day, but due to a variety of reasons only finished last week. I've decided to have a de-load week and follow the yoga with Adrienne new January program to stretch me out before starting Unleash next week. That way I can also see what people say about it to prepare myself!

just seen this thread in active. I’d love to get into lifting, is Caroline Girvan accessible for weakling overweight beginners?

And what equipment do you need to invest in?

@User69371527 as a fellow weakling overweight beginner, I am finding the Iron series on YouTube manageable, but the Beginners series on her app (paid for) is supposed to be very good. The Beginners series on YouTube is hard!

Maybe some 3kg -5kg dumbbells and a mat/rug to start with? If you like the first few, you might eventually need a resistance band and a yoga block/something to elevate your heels.

You can definitely do it, if it's hard at first bear with it as you'll see results in your endurance. I was 5 stone overweight when I started a year ago, and now I'm a healthy weight. Mainly due to diet but strength training has changed my body more than any other exercise I've ever done.

I've been doing weights since lockdown in March 2020 and discovered CG in 2021 I think. Was excited to start Unleash in real time today but thought Day 1 was very hard! I always find lower body days more challenging than upper body ones so hoping Day 2 is a bit less brutal. I won't be doing it until Wednesday though.

I started the beginner routine on the app before Christmas then switched to Iron on YouTube when my free trial run out. I did 3 days of Iron then decided to stop.

I’ve restarted today and I’m determined to finish the set. I also want to start C25k, I’m planning on getting into the habit of doing Caroline’s workouts before adding anything else in. I usually fail because I’m too ambitious 😬

Thanks for the new thread @BigButtons. I’m sorry to hear about your SIL.

It sounds like I made the right decision in not starting Unleash today - sounds like I need to get my strength up first.

@samthebordercollie I prefer full body workouts too. I hate upper body workouts, probably as I hate push-ups, but HIIT is probably worse. Burpees are evil!

I’ve only ever done the free you tube workouts, is it worth downloading the app?

I started the beginner epic on YouTube last week. Did the first 3 days, extremely sore over the weekend. I had my regular Pilates class today, hopefully will try day 4 tomorrow.

Yes- it really really is. I was on the dance for ages- but it is excellent and so much content!

It’s misnamed. It is an introduction to her style and don’t rather than for beginners. The pp beginners is properly beginners. She explains a lot as she is going which she doesn’t do normally. There is also a form library so you can check you are doing things correctly!

I’ve just done day 1 of the Iron series on YouTube and really enjoyed it! Hoping to stay motivated.

Well so far the unleashed series is proving very challenging, as I thought it would be. Glutes yesterday and I managed to load 45kg onto my barbell. Mins you she was using 78kg. I will see how I get on with this series. The lighter weight/ body weight part of the session is far harder than the heavier weight bit. I will see how my body reacts to it. It hates fuel and I didn’t finish that one.

Can I ask a question!

What weights are you all using.

I bought some. Very much a pathetic weak beginner but I like Caroline Girvan. My form is probably terrible but my weights don't help. They are clunky and wide.

I don't want to spend the earth but I would love to find some dumbbells that are easy to hold and use.

@NCgoingdry I have a set of dumbbells that have metal handles and are rubber at the end and are really comfortable. They range from 2.5 to 12.5kg. I have one kettlebell that is 16kg. I usually manage with these but will probably have to increase a bit soon. Weights are expensive unfortunately but keep an eye on marketplace, Aldi and Argos and you might get a bargain. If you compare the cost of buying weights vs a gym membership it's still a good deal.

These are the same brand as mine although the weights are slightly different.