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a fresh take on my fitness journey

health and wellness

February 9, 2022

For those of you out there who swore to step up your game in the fitness and wellness areas for 2022… how are you doing??

You know I am not one to set the lofty [and most of the time unrealistic] goals when a new year debuts, but I’m proud to say I’ve been really hitting it hard with my workouts for the past month and I’m sharing all the details of the new program I’m doing with you today, but before we start chatting about that, I wanted to answer a few questions that have been coming my way about Faster Way:

fitness journey shared by top Nashville lifestyle blogger, Hello Happiness.
bliss racerback sports bra | high rise leggings | brushed zip hoodie

why are you not doing faster way?

I think a lot of people are curious why I’ve stepped away from all things FWTFL seeing as I’ve been doing it for so long. And that’s exactly why: I’ve been consistently doing Faster Way for 3 solid years now and I just need a break. [you can see all my posts about FWTFL here].

I feel like I got lazy in the gym with my workouts because I had seen and done it all. Their team is great for showing new moves + keeping you engaged, but if I am being honest, my schedule right now makes it difficult to carb cycle and then ramp up with lots of carbs based on my eating habits and eating windows [with all the girls’ after school activities mixed in] and so I’ve opted to pause — it may be a few months, maybe longer, forever = I really don’t know the answer so I’m just going with it and seeing what happens.

Do I still recommend FWTFL? Heck yes. But only if you’re using Allie Janszen AKA the world’s best coach! I’ve had incredible results from the program and I’ll always say a big huge YES to anyone who’s considering it. And you may see me back in the future!

fitness journey shared by top Nashville lifestyle blogger, Hello Happiness.

OK, so what are you doing?

Drumroll please… haha just kidding! I’ve been really curious about the Madeline Moves program for a long time, especially after I’ve seen the success my friend Jenny Hall has had with it. And yes, I asked her a ton of questions and did a ton of research before I signed up.

Here is a bit of info on Madeline Moves: like Faster Way, MM has developed her own app which details daily videos, access to her Move. Sweat. Shred workout plans, and the best part is that it’s only $20/month, so it’s substantially less money as well. I often get feedback that FW is pricey, and I love that you can have everything you need within Madeline Moves for just $20 each month or $200 for the entire year when you go ahead and pay for a year in full.

Having said that, before I began doing the Madeline Moves workouts, I paid for a Personalized Macros Consultation so I could determine where I needed to be for ultimate optimization including fitness, food and overall lifestyle. And yes, I do think it’s worth the $$$ because of the detailed summary I was given based on my age, activity leve, body type and goals. And I’m sharing those below for reference:

fitness journey shared by top Nashville lifestyle blogger, Hello Happiness.

I love a good chart because it breaks it all down in easy-to-understand language and helps me plan my meals throughout the day, so I can tweak my macros to fit into each section and yes, I still use MyFitnessPal to track my daily macronutrients and calories consumption. And when you get your personalized macros calculation, MM also sends a helpful instructional manual as well as sample meals + planning templates to help you plan your food intake as well = these tools are help me to stay on track and check those boxes off daily!

Just know that even though tracking your macros can seem overwhelming at first, it’s truly not science, just takes practice and educating yourself… as always, give yourself some grace and know it doesn’t have to be perfect 100% of the time for it to be effective.

what are the workouts like?

One thing I love about this workout app is how easy it is to navigate and I love that the workouts are doable at the gym ore at home. For beginners, they offer videos to visually demonstrate each move so there is no reason to be anxious… they also break down the warm-ups, circuit training moves [sets x reps] and cool downs, so that you can execute everything without having to navigate out of the app.

AND they recently finished a new app update in December so there is a community tab and a more refined interface. Here are a few snapshots of the workout screens and coordinating move videos for reference:

fitness journey shared by top Nashville lifestyle blogger, Hello Happiness.

In terms of the workouts, I’ve found most of them to be between 40-60 minutes in length which is a win and great for all of us with limited time on our hands! There are beginning workouts for those just starting out and a few times a year she offers a Tighter Together Challenge, a 30-day reset that I plan on doing later this spring.

Another thing that helps me… you know I’m old school and I still write down my workouts in a notebook, so that I can access them easily and still listen to music without having to constantly check my phone during a workout.

what workout equipment do you need?

Everyone is always asking me for my top recommendations for the necessary exercise essentials to have on hand for at-home workouts and with MM, you don’t need much at all! Invite a friend over and knock them out together because everything is beter with a sidekick!

dumbbells | a variety of pounds [I use 5/10/12/15 and 20lb the most]

resistance bands | these bands are hands down my favorite piece of at-home equipment… easy to take with you when you travel and they are versatile for arms, legs and core

resistance pull bands | to replace a rowing machine, chest press, etc.. I highl recommend these bands = fantastic for resistance training, assisted pull-ups and helps with a bigger range of motion. Again easy to travel with!

bosu ball | Not only do I use this for pushups, those dreaded burpees and frog jumps, but it serves as a chair/step up as well. And yes, I then use it when laying down for ab crunches, too

kettlebells | another must have in my mind are a few single kettlebells = for swings, walk through lunges, goblet squats… this set is a fav and a great pricepoint!

other add-on options: medicine ball, perfect pishup sliders, flat weight bench, thick yoga mat, TRX, ab roller

fitness journey shared by top Nashville lifestyle blogger, Hello Happiness.
bliss racerback sports bra | high rise leggings | brushed zip hoodie | flyknit sneakers

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2024 favs

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colorful life + style blogger | native nashvillian | wife and mom to two darling little ladies | bringing you all the happy you can handle

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