My Personal Routine & New 12 Week Workout Program

The final chapter in my Self Love Series has finally made its way it’s way to your mobile screen. I have no idea why, but if I’m being totally honest this post was so difficult for me to write. I think it’s because I feel like I’m pretty boring so if this post doesn't tickle your fancy (I love that phrase ha!) then I do apologize in advance.

So as many of you know for over a year now I have been struggling with a sever hormone imbalance. If you’re like “umm what is she talking about?’” you can read my Hormone Horror Story blog post here. The whole thing has thrown my body for a loop and I haven’t been able to really see any progress in my physique for an entire year. After LOTS of testing, I’m finally on the right path to getting things back to normal (yaaaasssss). My doctor has put me on bio-identical progesterone and a low does of T3 & T4 hormones in order to even me back out. So now that we’ve been playing around with my dosages in order to find my body’s hormonal “sweet spot” I am beginning to FINALLY seeing some progress!

I feel like now that my body is beginning to respond to proper nutrition and workouts I can make a plan for myself and really get after it. It’s not that I haven’t been eating right and exercising but I do have to admit that all of my training has become stale. I’ve been going through the motions so much that I just need a change. I also do so much better with a plan. It keeps me focused and able to track my progress. One of the things that my doctor mentioned to me was making sure I am eating enough in order to help my thyroid to start working a little more efficiently. Our thyroids are in control of our metabolism. Since mine is working at a less than optimal level I need to make sure I am doing all I can to help my rev up my metabolism. I decided that instead of eating 3 square meals a day (breakfast, lunch & dinner) that I would go back to eating 5 times a day. This has been something that I’ve done for years and my body responds so well to it. Eating 5 or 6 times a day helps keep me full throughout the day as well as help kick my metabolism into high gear.

As for my workouts I am focusing on really hitting each muscle group hard in the gym. Like I said before, I’ve just been going through the motions so I completely changed my entire workout routine up. I decided to do a push/pull split. Basically what this means that one day I focus on a muscle group where the exercises are mainly focused on a “pushing” motion and then the next day the exercises are mostly a “pulling” motion. Still confused? That’s okay I was too at first. For example: on Mondays I work my shoulders. If you think about it most exercises that work your shoulders are a “pushing” motion. The next day is arm day which involves a pulling motion. Make more sense? Good!

I’ve mentioned that I’ve created a 12 week program for myself. If you’ve read my blog post on How to Lose Weight & Keep Your Progress Permanent then you know I am ALL about consistency. I do best when I am consistent for longer periods of time. I have also learned over the years that if I want good, solid progress it is going to take more than a 30 day fix. I decided on 12 weeks because I don’t want to rush my progress and try to accomplish all these goals and ambitions for myself in a short period of time. That is just too much pressure. My body responds slowly and I know that the best results take time.

Now that we have established a base of why I am doing what I am doing below you can find my personal workout plan for the next 12 weeks along with my daily routine. My nutrition will not really change over these next few weeks. I plan on listening to my body and adjusting things as I move forward.

Daily Routine & Nutrition Schedule:

6AM: Wake Up

6:05AM: Quiet Time & 16 oz of Hot Lemon Water

7AM - 7:30AM: Coffee & Egg White & Veggie Omelette

7:30AM - 8:20AM: Get Ready For Work

8:20AM: Leave for the office

9AM: Work

12:30PM: Pre-Workout Snack (homemade protein bar - recipe coming soon)

1PM: GYM TIMEEEEEE

2:30PM: Post Workout Snack (protein shake & scoop of greens)

4:30PM: Lunch (chicken & roasted veggies)

6:30PM: Dinner (lean meat of choice and 2 cups of greens - essentially a salad)

9:30PM: Bedtime (make sure I’m getting 7-8 hrs of sleep per night)

Workout Schedule:

Monday: Shoulders (push)

Tuesday: Arms (pull)

Wednesday: Chest (push)

Thursday: Back (pull)

Friday: Legs (push)

Saturday: Rest Day

Sunday: Rest Day

Weeks 1-4 Rep Scheme: 4 Sets 15, 12, 10, 8 Reps

Weeks 5-8 Rep Scheme: 4x8

Weeks 9-12: 4x15

* Over the next few weeks I will listen to my body and adapt my program as I go. This is just a tentative plan that I have tailored specifically to MY BODY. Everyone’s body is unique so the “one size fits all” approach to nutrition and workout plans do not work for all. Having a plan created specifically for you and your bodies needs will allow you to reach your goals and keep your progress permanent. If you would like a nutrition plan and workout routine tailored for you and your specific goals and needs feel free to send me an email (kaili@measuremewhole.com).