My results using Kayla Itsines’s Bikini Body Guide (BBG), have far exceeded my expectations. I feel strong, empowered and confident.

The knowledge and form I have built through using the SWEAT App as well as the support from other women in the BBG community has truly changed my life.

Starting My Journey Using Kayla Itsines’s BBG

In January 2015, I was at an all time low when it came to my weight and overall health. I felt tired, fed-up and lacked a lot of confidence. I had no idea how to eat food free from feeling restricted, or how to enjoy exercise. All I knew, was that I didn’t want to carry on feeling overweight and lacking energy anymore. I needed to make a change.

Late one night that January, I was scrolling through Instagram and stumbled on some truly amazing transformation photos of women who looked confident, toned, and most of all happy. I quickly learnt that these were the progress photos of women who had completed Kayla Itsines’s Bikini Body Guide (BBG); a twelve week programme including resistance training and a nutrition plan.

There and then I made a decision to throw myself into both the workout and meal plan and start my own journey using Kayla’s BBG.

The BBG Programme

Back in 2015, there were only 12 full weeks available to purchase for the BBG programme through an eBook. This included:

• 3 resistance workouts a week which are each only 28 minutes long
• 3-5 Low Intensity Steady State (LISS) workouts a week
• 1-2 High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) workouts a week
• Healthy eating plan with quick recipes using normal, staple ingredients

The resistance workouts included plyometric training (also known as jump training) such as jump squats and burpees. This really got my heart rate up, and caused my muscles to exert maximum force in a short period of time. I found this was a really great way to quickly exhaust my muscles, build up my strength – and introduce me to delayed onset muscles soreness (DOMS)!

The Low Intensity Steady State (LISS) workouts included low intensity cardio such as walking or cycling for a sustained lower heart rate. I would make an effort to walk as much as possible as well as use the new indoor cycling machine I borrowed from my boyfriend at the time.

The High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) sessions were added from the fifth week, and were designed for a quick 10-20 minute workout where I could work at my maximum ability for 20-30 seconds, with a 40-30 second rest every minute. This was a really quick way to build up my fitness levels and also to fit in a workout in when I was short of time.

My Results Using Kayla Itsines’s BBG

When I first started out, I didn’t have many photos of myself as my confidence was at an all time low. I do however, have a very vivid memory of how I felt, and this feeling of hopelessness and lack of control in my life propelled me forward to continue with the programme.

At my heaviest recorded weight, I was 10st 10lb. At 5ft 5inches, I was therefore overweight, and a lot of the fat I had gained from an unhealthy lifestyle was sitting in my face, my arms, my torso and my chest. This made me look top heavy and made me feel incredibly uncomfortable most of the time.

During the first week into the programme, I felt painfully bloated as I started eating more vegetables and even introduced new grains (hello quinoa!). I discovered a love of herbal tea to ease my digestion and find something sweet to enjoy in the evenings. From cooking at home, I began to fall in love with preparing, cooking and enjoying a healthy, nutritional meal from scratch that wasn’t pre-packaged and pumped full of chemicals.

The workouts were so tough for me, and I would regularly wake up during the night because my muscles ached for days at a time.

But despite all of this, there was a passion building within me to keep going. To keep taking each day as it came. To plan ahead where I could and keep committing to the programme.

BBG Gave Me The Tools For Long-Term Health

While my journey has included many challenges, the changes I have made have far exceeded my expectations I had over five years ago. From using bottles filled with water or tins of food as weights, to working out at the foot of the bed just to squeeze in my 28 minutes of exercise, I am so proud of the person who continued to battle on even when it was incredibly tough.

Those 12 weeks in 2015 came and went, and over 5 years later I am still a huge advocate for using BBG. This programme gave me the fundamental tools to learn good nutrition, exercise and self-care that I am to this day, so grateful for.

Your 7 Day Free Trial of the SWEAT App

If you fancy trying out BBG or one of the other SWEAT programmes for yourself, you can grab yourself a 7 day free trial of the SWEAT App. The BBG programme has expanded so much since it first came out, and there are now a lot more weeks you can continue to do, as well as other programmes from Yoga, lifting weights and HIIT sessions.

Not sure where to start with your own fitness journey? Read my tips on how to get started.