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

[BigButtons]

New thread!

Thank you @samthebordercollie

hello- yes it’s been quiet- summer hols I guess?
I have been mostly following her suggested routines over the summer.
waiting to see what the new PE series will be like.
i re did the legs 10x10 yesterday- managed to go up in weights so am waiting for the doms to arrive later today!

I'm just back from a 1 week solo walking hols which took my mind off weights for a bit! I think I've lost a bit of muscle mass 😥which is disappointing but probably inevitable - I was burning a hell of a lot of calories and really struggled to eat enough, plus wasn't exactly getting weights in too.

Back on the horse today! I think I was about midway through Epic III. I think.

I tried taking creatine and it gave me bad stomach pains..I do have a sensitive stomach and suffer with ibs.
However my partner also tried it and he said the same.
Gave it to my nephew and he's been fine.
Another question for you all...if you are having a rest day do you still have a protein shake(if you use them) I do struggle to fit in enough protein with just the food I consume.
Stupidly I'm worrying about the extra calories in the shakes(I've gotten into the habit of mixing mine with milk not water)

@ellebelli I have a protein shake/scoop of protein powder in Greek yoghurt every day, it's important to keep up your protein intake even on days you don't workout. Whey protein is pretty low on calories!
I've been mixing and matching workouts from the app to do upper/lower body workout splits over the summer. I absolutely love the one hour upper and lower body with 4 straight sets on the App and do those two weekly along with other workouts. Particularly enjoying the Cluster series workouts.
Can't wait to see what the PE series will be like. I hope she will continue with the longer work and rest periods. I just use the App now, there is so much on it and I prefer the programmes and workouts there to the YouTube ones now.

Another quick question about creatine... what benefits have you found from taking it?

I think it's helped with gaining muscle, I'm more hydrated generally but because I started taking it just a month into lifting I can't be sure. I have no gut issues so I'll continue to take it.

I'm about to (re)start Iron after having tennis elbow, with light weights. Just going to do a couple of times a week to start with to complement my 3 times a week running. Am feeling very unfit and have put weight on over the past year or so. Intending to edge up the exercise and have started doing 16:8 intermittent fasting 5 or 6 days a week. Have decided that I will evaluate how it's all going at the end of Sept! I do really like carolines programmes, though I use much lighter weights than she does!

Hello all waves

Been lurking here intermittently over the last few months. Going to be 40 soon. Am not new to exercising but am pretty new to Caroline, having only found her on youtube in Feb or March. Now I do her workouts 3 or 4 times a week among other stuff, mostly workouts from Epic II, Epic III and Fuel, and that kettlebell supersets standalone one.

Sort of interested in this new PE programme launching on the paid app but not sure if it is worth it when there is so much free stuff I have yet to do. Maybe if I did her workouts 5 times a week- but I think that would kill me! Did people really do five Epic II workouts a week with her in real time?! I love the hour long full body ones but they seriously take me two or three days to recover from!

I don't like her cardio and do Les Mills stuff or Insanity Max 30 instead, 3 or 4 times a week. And lots of yoga.

So yeah, hi.👋

I do 5 workouts a week following her programs.
I have done Epic 1 and 2

Fuel,Iron, Heat and the advent series.
I am a week into Epic 3
Once I have completed all the free workouts on YT I will get her app-by which point I will be well behind but never mind will have lots to catch up on....On doing her workouts I have managed to increase my weights and can see more muscle appearing.

@Gobacktotheworld the app is excellent- well worth the money. You can do a 2 week free trial to see if you like it. There is loads of stuff on there. Her training style has changed a bit since you tube. Some weights are heavier and others much lighter for some arm and shoulder work for instance 🙂

Hello all. Has anyone started the PE program? I’ve just done day 1 and oh my goodness those Bulgarian lunges!!! I was toying with the idea of doing it with her in real time. Not sure. I might not be able to move!!!

Thanks for the prod, BB- downloaded it and just did the first day of P.E. You know I quite enjoyed it. Not as hard as some of her other leg workouts I have been doing on youtube. The Bulgarians went on forever but then they always do haha.

Odd to see all the same people who slime all over her on FB are also busy brownosing hard on the app comments section. Is this their only hobby? Lol. I know all trainers get their demented followers and it isn't Caroline's fault, but some of them need hosing down.

The app itself seems interesting but I won't have time to explore it all till the kids are in bed. Any recommendations? I am only doing free trial then will pay on a monthly basis till I am sure I am using it enough.

@roundcork yes I did this today and those Bulgarians stung. I used wedges. I like Bulgarians though- but I know my backside is going to hurt tomorrow. I liked the way it was set up🙂

I like Bulgarians though

You and I are very different people, @BigButtons 😁

It's funny, I can happily do squats and hip thrusts all day, but I hate lunges, especially Bulgarians.

Bloody Bulgarians-Dread seeing the chair in the corner!
I can't do them off a chair anyway so use a step but they still really hurt me.
Recently in the Epic 3 series I did some bulgarian's that focused more on the quads and omg the doms after those....

@DreadPirateRobots ha- I loathe hip thrusts!

Hip thrusts have got a lot better for me since I switched to using a barbell and got a decent pad for it - I have quite prominent hipbones and the dumbbells always dug in even with a towel in the way.

I like Bulgarians! According to the youtube exercise geeks, they target the gluteus medius more than most other exercise. But Day 1 was almost a bit boring because so many.

Day 2 is - OK, a bit slow paced? Is the app overall just a little less bouncy and energetic than youtube?

Aahh! All the chat about lower body weight training is making me jealous. I was doing hip thrusts with a barbell about 5 weeks ago and felt an intense pain in my left butt muscle. I thought I was just working super hard so kept going. Not clever! I think I now have piriformis syndrome which is causing horrible sciatic pain right down my left leg.
I've not been able to do Bulgarian lunges (never thought I'd miss those!) or any lower leg workout since. I'm sad as I've been doing CG workouts for almost 2 years and have never injured myself.
Hoping it resolves with time. So just enjoy all your lower body workouts while you can!

That sounds really rubbish, pharma.:(

I'm doing PE too, itts the first programme I've followed in real time. I'm enjoying the format, matched Caroline's weights Day 1 (I enjoy Bulgarian lunges) but Day 2 no way could I do,that except 5e 4kg shoulder exercises, she has so much upper body strength. Although even she seemed to struggle with the shoulder exercises today!
@Gobacktotheworld the YouTube programmes are definitely more 'bouncy', - faster paced with more cardio. I prefer the App because it is more like traditional weight lifting with longer lifting and rest periods generally. I prefer doing cardio separately to lifting!

@pharmachameleon so sorry about your injury, I've had that too (after heavy RDLs) but it didn't last quite as long, hope it gets better soon.

@pharmachameleon sorry about your misbehaving limb and buttock!
I have something similar- I suspect it is an it band issue though which causes something akin to sciatica so I have to be careful with how heavy I lift for leg days.
I generally don’t go over 12.5kg as my legs bulk up a lot of I go heavier- especially the tops of my thighs.
speedy recovery to you🙂

Just done day 3 of PE and I’ll be the lone voice saying I don’t like it! No fault of Caroline - I just find the pre-exhaust format extremely mentally challenging. It was fine for upper body where I like all the moves but for lunges, which I already strongly dislike, doing bodyweight and then going to weighted is very hard for me. It’s like my body is saying “mate, you hate this, I won’t make you do it” and I almost freeze when I come to pick up the weights then have to force myself to do any reps at all. I barely completed a weighted set in the whole work out. They’re also quite long and I already get up really early to do them so I have time anxiety whenever it goes over 45 minutes and inevitably end up skipping parts. And I have a boredom issue with 3 lots of supersets.

I’ll stick it out for a bit, but I’m looking forward to changing to post-exhaust because that’s really my preferred style.