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

[BigButtons]

New thread!

Oh, and Iron 2, but quite a few of them are 38-minute-ish plus.

Hi I started the app and there’s some good programmes on there. I went onto intent and it just got too difficult. I ended up burnt out so I didn’t renew. I think I will renew again in September depending on what she brings out. Unleash was my favourite one on the app. The articles and meal ideas are good too. I haven’t done all of her you tube ones yet so am going through those

Has anyone else changed body shape since doing Caroline? I’ve been doing her workouts since 21 and my hips and thighs are bigger. I’m really struggling with it despite liking the look on others.

Ugh. Shame. Surely 30mins is enough the way Caroline works you...

@DreadPirateRobots The other programs on the App - Beastmode, Unleash and Intent - are all around 45 minutes, but really good programs and not as long as Epic 1 and 2. If you haven't done Epic 3 or Endgame stay with You Tube for the time being, they are IMO the best programmes there, and around 40 minutes (if you leave off the 100 rep finishers on Endgame you can make each session shorter[.
@Abra1t I'm doing Intent and love it, but finding it a lot more intense than her other programs. I lift just 3 days a week as I run on other days, so do 2 sessions making it effectively full body. It would be very difficult to do another workout the next day, but with other programs I never had a problem.
I'm 58 and have only been lifting since Jan 2023 but have definitely got bigger shoulders, arms and quads, I've lost any bust I had completely - I understand why body builders get implants now, waist is smaller and almost have abs. I haven't had any change in weight, still 58kg but there has defintely been some body recomp. I like being bigger, before I was a slim but saggy runner - my before and after photos, excuse the terrible underwear on the before!

@samthebordercollie , you have got great muscles. I am inspired.

I have been doing some epic 2 sessions. My job search and interview prep has taken over my life.

I like Intent too but am cutting back a bit as have been diagnosed with anaemia. I think too much demanding exercise after shingles and a serious family illness isn’t a good thing. So two intents a week and a mix of other shorter exercise sessions.
you look great!

I'm actually wondering if I should take a 1 week break from lifting as well and just do yoga and walking. I seem to have constantly had a cold or similar since Christmas and I do sometimes wonder if my body is overstressed. But I have been getting stronger, and I don't want to unnecessarily lose that... I really struggle with knowing when to work out and when not to. Plus I'd go stone crackers without exercise.

I don't have an answer but you've said something that I've been wanting to ask

I have similar concerns. I know lots of people feel better/like these changes. But I really don't want to get bigger shoulders or thighs. I'm short, with a small frame and have always had quite thin legs/arms (with a bit of a tummy!). I already feel bulkier in my legs and have only been doing CG workouts for around 3 months. But I don't like it!

I'm not sure how we get the balance between the benefits of strength training (I'm really enjoying these workouts) but trying to not get bigger legs, shoulders, etc. Tricky...?

The main change I saw was my arms and shoulders were getting really bulky so I have pared back on that for a while. I am losing weight so my legs and hips are smaller but probably not as small as they could be if I lost muscle. The issue with weight loss is that you can easily lose muscle and that’s not a good thing as you age. Having good muscle is kind of more important than your body shape as this is what will keep you mobile as you age and reduce your risk of falls and injuries

I am bigger overall. Upper body I love - lower not so much.
before cg I was obsessed with being as skinny as possible. I did exercises but the goal was to remain tiny . I under ate too.
So for me it is a balance: I am eating more . (
Not difficult considering how little I consumed before). I want to feed my muscles. But I also don’t like how big ( relatively for me) my thighs have become. I don’t mind about my bigger bum as I have horrors about developing on old lady flarse.

So I have resigned myself to buying some bigger sized clothing- still small by anyone’s standard-8-10. rather than my previous 6-8.
so I am bigger from a combination of more calories and bigger muscles. It has been tough to come to terms with this and I still struggle some days

I am pretty well dropping the weights altogether for all quad work- all lunges basically because I really don’t like how bulky my thighs have become- enjoying the shape but not the size.
If I could get rid of the thigh fat and have amazingly defined muscles that would be great. I am not disciplined enough to loose that weight and don’t have the genetics. If I lose too much weight I will lose what is left of my tiny boobs and my face will look emaciated.

But keeping some weight for squats and glute, hamstring work.
I started cg in 2021 and have done nothing but her workouts since. I get at least 10k steps in a day, often a lot more just through daily life!

It is a shock when you have always been skinny- I get that totally. I remind myself that this is a really really important investment for my older years. We invest money, have pensions , but very few people think to invest for their physical health. Being strong, having good muscle tone is so vital. I would rather be bigger and be able to catch myself from falling and possibly breaking a hip, I would rather build strong bones that are less like to crumble and impede my enjoyment of life when I am older. I want to be able to be functionally strong when I am old. I want to be able to do things for myself, be able to move, not be crippled and frail and skinny.

@BigButtons i do agree, my nan was a skinny old frail bag of bones and it’s really made me think about the trade off here. Big strong legs aren’t always a bad thing, they will stand you in good stead for a long time and my hip fat might help me out if I was to have a fall! I still have all most all my fat weight just on my thighs so I am Rugby player shaped!

Thank you @BigButtons. Lots of helpful things there for me to think about.

Also, I just wanted to say thank you to those of you who recommended Epic 3 to me last week, when I was feeling nervous/unsure about what to do after Iron. I've successfully completed 4 days of Epic 3 and really enjoyed it.

However, day 5 today was HIIT and I really, really didn't like it! I even tried the suggested no jumping alternative workout from Epic Heat, but still really didn't enjoy it. Can anyone relate to this? Do you think I should just force myself to do the HIIT days? I'm aware sometimes it can be worth pushing through with things we find hard/don't enjoy?!

@Cherryblossom81 her hiit is really hardcore- I mean really. I used to skip it and then decided to do it- as best I could/ passing when I needed to , going at a pace that didn’t kill me. After a while you get fitter and you get used to it. However, it is never anything but hardcore.
Because the app series from iron onwards has no hiit I am most likely horribly unfit now. I haven’t done any hiit for a year. There are different schools of thought on this. I have read that women from peri onwards should avoid hiit because it raises cortisol too much. I have no idea if that is true.

@Cherryblossom81 I rarely do the HIT workouts because I run on alternate days, but they are good to do, even if you can't keep up with CG (it's like she has put her video on a faster speed, no idea how she is so fast[.
Regarding cortisol, it's normal for it to increase after exercise, but it comes down again. There is a lot of misinformation about cortisol, HIT and cardio, mainly from people who use it as an excuse not to do those types of exercise! For anyone interested here is a link to a very informative, if long, discussion on cortisol spikes, the myth of adrental fatigue etc. https://www.strongerbyscience.com/podcast-episode-123/

I forced myself to do the HIITs because it's important for cardio training and I have actually started enjoying them. I do prefer doing them at home though, so I can sweat in peace and privacy; I switch the days around so that I do weights when I'm in the office and HIIT on WFH days.

It's really helpful to hear that other people find the HIIT workouts hard. It's made me feel a bit better and will persevere with them while doing Epic 3. (I think they are just once a week?)

The trainer I used before I found Caroline, combined cardio with weights, and also did straight cardio/HIIT workouts.(Shelly Dose if any one knows of her?)
To then start training the way Caroline does(one or two muscle groups per day without cardio)was a change for me.
I do the HIIT workouts if they are within the programme but actually think I may need to add a day of just cardio if there isn't any, because I am finding them harder than I did.
I also very rarely sweat doing Caroline's Workouts, and I used to sweat heaps before using the other trainer(so much so it put me off doing a workout sometimes-especially if I had washed my hair the day before!)
However all that said, I have gained more tone in my arms and legs doing CG workouts and been able to go up in my weights for upper body.
Basically what I am saying is that I will try to do a cardio W/O a week even if it doesn't feature in the programme I have picked from now on.

Right, I've decided: it's Epic III next for me and then Epic Endgame, I think. Now I just have to get through Epic Heat 48 (aka 30 solid minutes of pushup variations) so I can die with peace and dignity.

I also very rarely sweat doing Caroline's Workouts

Bloody hell. I do. I mean, not so much on a purely arms session, but a heavy weight leg session, you betcha, and a HIIT, fuhgeddaboutit.

It's the last week of Intent on the App 😢 and Caroline has written an excellent introduction to it focusing on the benefits of strength training as opposed to cardio and calorie burn.

I take no notice of my calorie burn at all. It’s meaningless. I am glad she wrote that article. I tried to post then remembered I am still in jail!
wanted to get a work out in today but had a whole day of tiling the kitchen ( not actually me tiling) and painting a bedroom.
I’ll probably catch up with what I’ve missed afterwards. Should kee me busy for a couple of weeks. Mostly leg days it must be said so I will do the intent upper body to go with them.

I don't track calories (I strongly suspect the calorie estimate I get off my fitthing is highly inaccurate anyway) but I do track RHR and VO2max/cardio score.