21 Day Workout Challenge

I WORKED OUT FOR 21 DAYS IN A ROW & HERE’S WHAT HAPPENED…

Let me preface this by saying I’m not the type of girl who must work out everyday in order to “feel great” or “achieve the looks I want”. I’m actually the total opposite, always finding excuses not to go to the gym & eat that one last cookie (the others were likely gone because I ate them too…). So working out for 21 days straight was a big triumph for me. I had to do it however not because I needed to get healthy but because I announced it on my Instagram stories only a few days in & well, once it’s out there, challenge accepted. Below is what I learned along the way. The clothes I felt were best for all activities, the music that motivated me, some studios & classes I discovered that I surprisingly loved, how I felt throughout the process, & if I’ll ever do it again…

Banana Leaf Leggings

HOW IT ALL WENT DOWN:

Days 1-4: I think it was the adrenaline & excitement to begin these days that make them go so smoothly. I was eager to attend each class & beyond motivated to push my hardest throughout. Day 1 I did a SoulCycle class, Day 2 I went for a 2 hour long walk/light jog along the beach, Day 3 I did YogaHop, & Day 4 I did CycleHouse.

Days 5-7: I loved the variety of classes from my first few days so I decided to stick with that & keep switching it up. I started fizzling out around Day 7 until I realized it was Day 7 & then I was super impressed I had made it that far. Just the little bit of motivation I needed to keep going. Day 5 I did Love Yoga, Day 6 I did SoulCycle, & Day 7 I did Studio MDR.

Days 8-13: I stuck with the variety with a heavy emphasis on SoulCycle as my ClassPass was slowly but surely running out (ha!). By this point I had found teachers I loved, classes I preferred, & the timing working out worked best for me. Early mornings helped keep me motivated, for the most part, to eat healthier throughout the day. However I did love some evening candlelit yoga classes to help unwind. Day 8 I did SoulCycle, Day 9 I went for a hike in the Pacific Palisades, Day 10 I went for a long walk, Day 11 I did SoulCycle, Day 12 I went for another long walk, & Day 13 I did SoulCycle.

Days 14-18: For some reason these days were the hardest for me. I wasn’t as motivated to keep going & flat the couch was constantly calling my name. Was I worn out? Was I physically exhausted? I tried to let my body relax a bit by doing some more relaxing activities that still were considered exercise (aside from 2 SoulCycle’s I forced myself to). Day 14 I went for a long walk, Day 15 I did SoulCycle, Day 16 I did YogaHop, Day 17 I did SoulCycle, & Day 18 I went for a hike.

Days 19-21: I knew I was in the homestretch which gave me that extra boost I need. I was excited to wrap this week up & say I had worked out for 21 days in a row! For some that’s normal but for me, that had never happened before! I wanted to give these last few days my all.

WILL I DO IT AGAIN?

Once the 21 days wrapped, I treated myself to a deep tissue massage & had planned to take 4 days of working out off. The massage surely happened however after one day of not working out I felt the urge to go for a run or sign up for a class. I was stoked as this was exactly the results I was hoping for. My body actually wanted to workout. Who had I become?! I worked out on Day 2 of being done with my challenge & went for a walk on Day 3 followed by a hike on Day 4. By Day 5 I was signing up for classes each day of the week again & well, here I am a few weeks later, into Day 15 of my second 21 day workout challenge! Clearly this is something I will keep challenging myself to do & hopefully it will eventually become part of my everyday routine.

DID I LOSE WEIGHT?

To be honest, I didn’t lose any weight during my first 21 day workout challenge but the blame for that likely lies in the way I was eating. Baby steps, right?! I did however find that my body develops muscle rather easily (what, what!) so if I stick with something, I should have that 6 pack in no time (ha! kidding, not that easily). While I’d love to drop a few lbs as I’m sure everyone else would say, the important thing for me was that I felt great working out. After about a week or so it turned into a stress reliever, helped me unwind & distract myself for an hour or so from any stress I had in my life. To me, that was huge. I used to turn to food (& sometimes still do) when I got overwhelmed but the fact that I was able to curb that habit so quickly was wildly impressive & a massive achievement for me.

WHAT DID I WEAR:

As I mentioned, I was basically an amateur workout person going into all of these. I showed up to pilates without grippy socks (heck, I didn’t even own them until 5 minutes before that class…), wore shorts to a spinning class, & a baggy sweater to heated yoga. YIKES. Some were just plain old uncomfortable while others were dangerous to perform the exercises not in the proper attire. I found that Alo Yoga become my go-to pair of leggings for all workout activities. They’re super lightweight but durable & thick (aka not see-through for those bendy yoga positions). Plus they’re incredibly comfortable & to be honest, freakin’ adorable too (ha!). I wore them for hiking, walking, pilates, spinning, & yoga–all of which they were great for.

Shop These Looks:

WHAT DID I LISTEN TO:

As much as I didn’t work out before, I didn’t really listen to music either. I mean I’d listen to the radio & music at parties but I was never one to discover all the cool new music or even have Spotify for that matter… Some of my favorite artists to listen to during workouts were Kanye West (he is insanely motivational & upbeat), Beyoncé, & Jessie James.

10 Pump Up Workout Songs To Keep You Going

WHAT DID I EAT BEFORE & AFTER:

By now you know my eating habits aren’t the best. However I did find when working out in the mornings, my body preferred I eat about an hour after class. If I was taking a 7 or 8:30am class (as I often did), I would likely not eat until 10:30/11 which wasn’t that hard as I performed better on an empty stomach, showered after class, & by then was preparing food. If I was working out in the evening or at night, I would grab a bar (some of my favorites are RxBar, GoMacro, & Papa Steve’s), make a BWBK smoothie, or eat some Brekki beforehand to keep me satisfied & then have dinner about an hour after class.

WHERE DID I GO:

In my workout diary above I listed a bunch of the studios I went to. Below is a list of some of my favorite places & the type of workout!
YogaHop in Santa Monica: They play pop & hip-hop music in these yoga classes. OBSESSED!
The Studio MDR in Venice: Similar to pilates but in my opinion, much harder lol. Maybe once I get the hang of the machine/moves it would be easier?
SoulCycle: Spinning classes that are offered in most major cities
CycleHouse: Spinning
Speir Pilates: Typical pilates in what’s possibly the most stunning studio ever. This place even had a Stone Cold Fox pop-up shop in it so yes, I was in heaven.
LoveYoga: Yoga with a heavy focus on mediation

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21 DAYWORKOUT CHALLENGE

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