Looking to TikTok for some fitness motivation or ways to spice up your fitness regime? While social media is a great way to look at viral trends of workouts, do they prove to be effective? They may have thousands of likes, reposts and shares but do they have sound results behind them?
Hear my views of the current fitness movements and a trip down memory lane on previous trends in this month’s blog post!
What is trending on TikTok right now…
The Trend: The 12-3-30 Workout
Probably one of the most viral TikTok videos of its time ( it’s had 250 million views so far) and all you need for the 12-3-30 workout is access to a treadmill. The numbers stand for:
- 12: set your treadmill incline to 12%
- 3: set your treadmill pace to 3mph (miles per hour)
- 30: set your timer for 30 minutes
What are the pros and cons?
Well you probably guessed the pros already as you guys know I love to get my clients to up their step take and this is a perfect way to get you moving more. Other benefits of trying the 12-3-30 workout are:
- It’s low impact
- It doesn’t require you to move from machine to the gym floor back to the treadmill like a Barry’s bootcamp style workout
- It’s safer to walk on an incline on a treadmill rather than in the outdoors as there’s a lower risk of tripping over
- You don’t need some fancy machine to partake, every gym has a treadmill…even hotel gyms so no excuses!
And with any form of exercise there are some small risks, here’s some considerations for the 12-3-30 workout before you go running for the treadmill:
- As you’re walking on an incline it can put pressure on your lower back so avoid doing this daily
- If you’re fitness levels aren’t great then you should work your way up to this
What’s the verdict from me?
As mentioned earlier, any method of getting your daily step count in is a plus for me. If you’ve given this workout a try and it’s something you enjoy then I’d definitely recommend implementing it into your regime once or twice a week.
And if you didn’t enjoy it, no sweat, there are so many other ways to get your steps in. You can look for other ways to get your cardio in such as walking outside or choosing another cardio machine like the rower.
The Trend: Reformer Pilates
Pilates just got interesting. With over 184 million views reformer machines may have just got the 2023 spotlight and is loved by celebrities from Margot Robbie to Miley Cyrus.
Reformer machines are essentially a way of adding extra resistance to your Pilates moves and you can make it more challenging by using different coloured springs (resistance) – the reformer beds aren’t as scary as they look I promise!
What’s so good about Pilates reformers?
Just like a classic mat Pilates session, the reformer can give you muscle and joint strength as well as making you more flexible and encouraging core strength.
What should I be aware of?
- Unlike any of the other TikTok trends mentioned, reformer Pilates studios can be quite difficult to locate and a class membership can be quite pricey depending on the equipment used.
- As you need your focus on the class instructor – progress can be hard to judge in a class, as it’s not like a standard gym session where you or your trainer would know your levels and abilities.
- No class is the same: you might find one class that focuses on flexibility more than strength and vice versa, so try a few different classes or different instructors as their techniques and class teaching can vary.
What’s my views?
I’d definitely recommend giving reformer Pilates alongside a sound weight resistance training programme as the two can really compliment each other.
The Trend: Plank Dances
Look away now if you avoid planks at all costs! What can make a plank more bearable? Adding some choreography teamed up with your early 2000 pop music, time to dust off that Nsync CD! This trend has almost 22 million views and can be a great little finisher for your workout.
What are the benefits of adding choreography to an isometric exercises?
Isometric exercises are positions you’re required to hold for a certain amount of time such as a plank, wall sit or glute bridge to name a few. Here’s a few perks of switching them up:
- Works your core: there’s no doubt you’ll feel this in your abs the following day. Even if you’re moving your legs or tapping your hands from shoulder to shoulder, you still need to maintain a stable position by engaging your core.
- It mixes things up: if time passes extra slowly when you’re doing a plank then this is a perfect way to spice it up your planks.
- All you need is your body: you don’t need to invest in any fancy equipment and you don’t need to wait for a free machine at the gym to give this a try.
Just a few things to consider
- Avoid isometric movements if you’re pregnant, have high blood pressure and/or heart disease as these type of muscle contractions can give you a sharp rise in blood pressure.
- Nail your form before levelling up: if you struggle to hold a plank with the correct form (nice stable line with your body, so no butts in the air!) then you should stick to focusing on nailing the basics before progressing onto something more technical.
- It is a challenging move: if you’re new to fitness then don’t be too disheartened if you struggle with this one, instead practice a static or forearm plank.
My views on this trend…
If you’ve got a little bit of energy left to burn then I would recommend adding into the end of your workout as a finisher! If you’re struggling to maintain correct form then I’d suggest trying different core exercises such as crunches or russian twists.
The Trend: Mindfulness and Meditation
There’s not many things I thank media outlets for, but I do think one of the advantages of taking time to reflect on our lives, especially in lockdown, was that we became a lot more aware of our mental health state. Which is why it’s no surprise that more holistic approaches to exercises have become a trend on social media.
The hashtag #mindfulness has a staggering 4 billion views so far. The videos range from yoga practices, guides to mediation and self-care and self-help books to try.
Mediation and mindfulness is an umbrella term and can carry different meanings to individuals. You may see more yoga or meditation sessions added to your gym class timetable, or you may see more people rolling out an exercise mat in the park rather than a picnic blanket this summer. Or you might see others interpret it as downloading a mediation app and take 10-15 minutes to disconnect with their working day and reconnect with their mind.
What’s the advantages of this trend?
Hopefully this is a trend that will stay with us for generations to come and will just become a part of our everyday lives. Here’s a few (of the many) reasons why I recommend everyone to incorporate mindfulness:
- Helps relieve stress: while it might not be a permanent fix for life problems contributing to stress, it will help make it easier to process and handle these situations. You can start by writing down your thoughts in a journal or you could confide in a work colleague or a close friend to help vent your concerns out. This avoids a build-up of stress and tension.
- Improves sleep: mindful exercises such as Yin Yoga have been proven to help improve your sleep as it calms your nervous system. Why don’t you give it a try? I recommend watching this YouTube video on a bedtime yoga practice on the highly rated Yoga With Adriene.
- Is your goal fat loss? Mindfulness has been proved to increase a person’s self compassion and self worth. If you’er someone who beats yourself up a lot and holds mostly negative thoughts about yourself, this will get in the way of achieve your goals.
Things to consider…
If you’re looking to see a body transformation such as a fat loss journey or building muscle then you will need to ramp up the workouts by using weights and resistance training, so meditation and mindful exercises should accompany this so you’re getting the results you want.
And trends that didn’t stick around for long…
100 Rep challenges
Who remembers when your favourite fitness influencer used to post a fancy looking graphic on their Instagram of 30 days worth of these 100 rep challenges? They usually started the first of each month, the first day was 100 crunches, followed by a second day of 100 squats and so on and so on.
It’s no surprise to me that these ‘challenges’ didn’t stick around for long as there were barely any substantial results from the back of them, plus, they become more of a chore rather than a workout to be enjoyed so I am personally glad to see the back of them!
Celebrity Workout Videos
I’m feeling a little nostalgic here but remember when reality TV stars all went through a phase of bringing out fitness DVDs? Celebrities used to go on intense crash diets and an insane amount of cardio to get drastic results and we were caught in the trap of ridiculous ‘drop two dress sizes in 6 weeks’ and ‘burn belly fat for good’.
Thankfully, those toxic taglines and we’re now more clued up about extreme dieting and how harmful and damaging that can be for our bodies, both mentally and physically.
Couch to 5k
Couch to 5k was on everybody’s radar during the 2020 lockdown. As gyms were shut and exercise equipment was impossible to get a hold of, everyone turned to training for a 5k run as an alternative. The initiative is backed by the NHS and it is designed to get even the couch potatoes up and running.
What happened to the couch to 5k buzz? Simply put, gyms opened again and we were able to go back into the gym or classes and use our favourite equipment (squat racks, leg press machines, cables…just to name a few!) This app is perfect though if you know someone who is sedentary and needs to get out and about more to improve their cardio levels.
I hope you enjoyed this month’s blog and if you’ve gave any of these trends a go I’d love to know how you found them. So feel free to DM me or send me an email!
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