I'm going to start the 30DS on Friday, but I had a couple of concerns about when I finish it. For those of you who have already finished it, did you continue doing any sort of weights/circuit training, or did you just stop? Did the inches you lost come back? I talked to a trainer at my gym about starting the 30DS (always a terrible idea to talk to them, because whatever I'm doing is ALWAYS wrong according to at least one of them and that is so infuriating) and he said it's a quick fix and whatever I lose will come right back. I said I wanted to use this as an introduction to a circuit training routine, but of course he didn't listen to me.
Quick summary about me: I currently do intense cardio 4 days a week, calorie count (1340/day), and since May 2011 I've lost ~45lbs (I honestly maintained through most of 2012 but have lost about 10lbs since I started actively trying to lose again). Do I need to worry about gaining the fat back after the 30 days are over? I would love to hear from those of you who have already completed the program!
I will complete 30DS today and then I plan to move on to Ripped in 30 and then after that I'll pick my next challenge. While I agree with the trainer that if you do something for 30 days and then proceed to sit on the couch, your results will be short lived, just like with anything else. I, like you, viewed 30DS as a stepping stone to get me back into the circuit training mode (something I did during my more fit years), but I won't stop at 30 days. I will just keep changing up the routine so my body doesn't get used to it and I don't get bored. I've had success with 30DS (in inches and to a lesser degree pounds) so I'm all for it. I'll post my results (non-picture) tomorrow.
i didn't lose much weight while i was doing 30DS... only about 3-4lbs. but i gained a sh!tload of muscle. i really visibly toned up and became a lot fitter. i would recommend it, but it won't make you shrink. it'll just tone you up.
after i finished i moved on to Body Revolution and i have been doing that for 3 weeks. i think it was good that i did 30DS before because it is more challenging and i feel 30DS prepared my body to be able to do that.
good luck with the attempt! and screw what your trainer says, haha...
Here is the final outcome of my 30DS journey (completed yesterday)
The biggest difference is my tummy area and the improved muscle tone in my arms and legs is very apparent. My arms and legs decreased in fat and gained in muscle. I think the weight loss was more diet related since I've been very diligent about that piece as well.
Weight: 158.8 to 152.6 - 6.2 pounds lost
Chest: 1.75 inches lost
Waist: 1.25 inches lost
pooch/gut/paunch: 2 inches lost
Hips: 1.5 inches lost
Thighs: Down 1 inch and 0.75 inches
Arms: Up 0.25 and no change
My 30 day results only 2 weeks worth. They are in my sig I am on day 20. I am eating healthier too. I've lost 6 pounds so far but those pics in the sig it's the side by side ones. The set. The first ones which are darker were taken on feb 7 and the lighter right side was feb 21 that is only 14 days and i skipped a few days of 30 shred too. It gets boring but I love it and though the scale hasn't changed much hopefully you can tell from my pics that I am losing inches like crazy. I was 181 when I started it only 176 now but feeling great. When I'm done I'll do more of Jillian's videos but I'm going to switch them out whenever I feel like it! I love 30 day. I did it at 250 as well, it's what got me to 190 and then I quit working out and sat at 180 for a yer. Now I'm back and starting again! Which is what the most event pics are. I vote do it!! All the pics there are from the 30ds. Me at my almost highest weight Andy body changing from 30 day. I didn't put on weight I have an active job, but working out is toning me up. Just try it I yu want! I love it.
Last edited by ButterCup85; 02-28-2013 at 09:37 AM.
Never stop with circuit/weight training! It's a great way to tone up! You're doing cardio 4 times a week? Perfect! Just start weight training. Do you go to a gym? You could do cardio on a machine then immediately go to lift some weights then hop back on a cardio machine. It's basically the same principle that the 30DS is based on. Mixing up cardio with lifting to burn more calories.
When I was doing 30DS I didn't lose a lot of weight, but that's because I didn't follow the diet plan. I think some people forget that the 30DS is a weight loss programme, not just a fitness DVD. There are calorie limits and a set meal plan. It's designed to help you lose weight fast - which is probably what your personal trainer was referring to. Some people just can't live on 1200 calories for the rest of their lives and will pile the pounds back on after something like 30DS! But as I said, I didn't follow it, so my weight loss wasn't that dramatic.
Jillian Michaels's fitness programmes tend not to burn that many calories either. I'm currently doing Body Revolution and I burn on average like 250-300 calories per workout. For me, who used to run almost every day and was burning 450+ calories per day, it's just not enough. So I'm going to implement Zumba after Body Revolution to bump up my calories burnt in a day to around 500.
So in conclusion to my long winded post, definitely continue with lifting or circuit training if that's an option for you. Personally I love Insanity and that was the second at home fitness DVD I tried after 30DS and I lost about 15 lbs on it (without following the diet plan). I would recommend it to anyone who wants a challenge! You can download it if you use torrents.
I did several cycles of 30DS when I was in the 200s and I always really liked it. I started off doing the easy/beginner forms of the exercise and moved eventually to the harder versions. When I was done with 30 Day Shred, I moved on to a Jillian Michaels-inspired schedule called 30-Day Slimdown, which involves her other videos (No More Trouble Zones and Banish Fat, Boost Metabolism). You can do a search for that on here or google it.
Why I like circuit-training workouts especially schedule-based ones like Jillian's is that they force me to train in a way that is not natural to me or that I wouldn't otherwise train in. For example, I do not like working with personal trainers, I don't like to lift weights, I hate ab exercises, I'm inflexible and I don't "do" classes. So obviously, if I do only the things that interest me (running and kickboxing), I'm limiting myself tremendously and limiting my body in all the fab ways it can get stronger.
After I finished 30DS, I did NOT revert to flab or lose fitness as your trainer suggests. If anything, I gained strength (went from only being able to do modified pushups to being able to do one-legged ones after a couple of cycles and also went from 3-lb weights, to 5-lb weights and so on, increasing my weights as I went on) and aerobic fitness (made gains with my running). In fairness, I also did not stop working out just because I finished 30DS, I moved on to other things, and in fact did other things (like walking, running and yoga) whilst doing 30DS.
As to worrying about regaining fat post 30-DS, I think you'll be fine as long as you keep eating right and working out. I certainly didn't regain fat post-30 DS. But post-30DS, I did the 30 day slimdown, and after that, I did Turbo Jam, then I did Billy Blanks, then Cathe, then got some MMA training videos and did those for a while. Right now I just started Insanity, which I'll say is a lot more Jillian Michaels-esque than what I've been doing the past year or so, but it's a change and I do like it. Have no fear, as long as you keep moving, you'll be fine.
Thanks for all of the answers! I've started a list of circuit training/weight training videos to do after the 30DS. I'm a big cardio person so I like having someone tell me exactly what to do with weights and for how long. I'm on day 6 and so far I like it!
Post-30DS Questions
