After having finished 80 Day Obsession, I gave myself a week to recover, then decided it was time to start my next programme. I debated what to do, and eventually settled on something that in many ways, couldn’t be more different: Focus T25.
The workouts are short (25 minutes, hence the name) where 80DO’s were long, they’re cardio-focused, where 80DO’s were varied, but skewed towards strength, and they require no equipment whatsoever, where 80DO required not just the usual weights, but the special sliders and bands.
I made this decision quite deliberately.
Firstly, 80DO did an amazing job of increasing my strength, building my bum, tightening my abs, and increasing muscle tone. But I didn’t lose much weight, and while that’s not my primary concern, I thought it’d be great to lose a few pounds so all that extra muscle can really shine through.
Secondly, I really don’t have time to work out for an hour 6 days a week. I made myself do it for 80 Days, and my body thanked me, but I only achieved that by prioritising the workouts over almost everything else, which isn’t viable in the long term. I want to keep my exercise routine ticking over, while spending more of my very limited non-working hours on my writing.
Thirdly, I’ve always shield away from cardio. I’m much more of a weights and yoga girl. Following 80DO to the letter forced me to do more cardio than I’ve done in a long time, and it’s left me feeling better at it, more positive about it, and hoping to build on that foundation. So I thought it would be interesting to do a programme that really focuses on that side of things, by an instructor known for his challenging cardio routines. Who knows, maybe I’ll give Insanity a whirl afterwards…
I’m a little less enthused about the total lack of equipment. I trust Shaun T to keep my legs in great shape, but I’m nervous about losing all some of the work I’ve done on my shoulders, backs and arms, without some weights to help things along. I’m also worried I’ll simply miss playing with my weights. This will, however, make it easier for me and my husband to work out at the same time, as we only have one set of adjustable weights, so if he’s doing Body Beast and I’m doing something strength based, we have to do one after the other, which is another timing constraint.
It’s a ten week programme, split into two phases, Alpha and Beta, with an optional Gamma add on that you can either do afterwords or do in place of the last two weeks of Beta. Incidentally, I find that naming system incredibly confusing. I’d expect Alpha to be harder than Beta – Alpha men and all that – but it’s basically just alphabetical ordering.
Each week, you do five days of “proper” workouts, and then have one day with a stretch routine and one day totally off.
For the first phase, the workouts are: Cardio, Speed, Total Body Circuit, Ab Intervals, Lower Focus, and Stretch.
The second phase has: Core Cardio, Speed 2, Rip’t Circuit, Dynamic Core, Upper Focus, Stretch, and Core Speed – so similar, but more of a focus on the core throughout, and an upper focus instead of a lower one.
All the workouts are 25 minutes long, but the idea seems to be its intense movements and no breaks at all, so that you’re effectively getting the best part of an hour’s workout done in the time available. Which would be nice. It’s all very cardio focused, but with lots of body weight strength work and core stuff thrown in.
Review of each workout to come…
Munday Morning Fitness 