BodyBoss Method 12 Week Fitness Guide Review

I am lucky enough to try new workouts on the regular. Some are trendy, shiny and gimmicky… others like BodyBoss Method, let the work do the talking.  It’s a straight forward, 12 week fitness guide that uses High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) as the basis to reshaping your body.

BodyBoss  explains, “The HIIT technique involves repeated bursts of brief, intense anaerobic exercise performed at maximum effort, alternated with short periods of recovery.”   BodyBoss HIIT days consist of 7-8 exercises done for 7-8 minutes and repeated for 3 rounds.  This is a total workout time of 24 minutes.  When you complete your workout, you continue to burn calories as your body recovers.  This is called afterburn or the #BossEffect.

A typical week with BodyBoss looks like this:

Monday

Your workout week begins with Legs and Booty HIIT.

My favorite BodyBoss Leg and Booty exercise is the squat with side kick.  You kill two birds with one stone lifting your ass while kicking out your aggression.

With your feet slightly wider than shoulder distance apart, do a squat without letting your knees go beyond your toes.  Try to lower yourself back until your thighs are parallel to the ground

Dig your heels into the ground and press back to vertical, shifting your weight to your left leg.  Kick your right foot as if you're busting through a doorway with your heel.  Return to squat and repeat.

Tuesday

Tuesdays are about keeping the train in motion with some light exercise.  The BodyBoss schedule reads my body’s mind and creates peaks and valleys in the week so you don’t get burned out.  Bike, swim, go for a walk or take yoga.

Wednesday

Arms, Abs and Core  HIIT days are Wednesday.  I find that working my core always re-energizes my body so hump day is the perfect day for this session.    I love V Sit Ups because they’re simple and there are so many variations to challenge yourself.

Start on your back with your feet and shoulders hovering above the ground,

Exhale while you engage your ab wall to lift your upper body towards your lower body.  You can keep your legs bent, straight or even twist to either side to work your obliques.

Thursday

Thursdays are for Cardio.   I use these days as opportunities to make a fit date.  Running, hiking, cycling and group classes are always more fun with with partner.

Friday

Fridays are the big finale.  Total Body HIIT days.  These days you rotate between only 4 exercises that usually correlate with what you did on Monday and Wednesday.  These days usually require less reps but more energy and explosiveness from you.  The BodyBoss book says, “Think of it as your Friday super power session!”

My favorite BossBody exercise for Full Body days is the Aeroplane Push Up.  A plank alone is a great way to engaged your full body, but with a twist and push up added on you’ll be the best kind of dead by rep 12.

From plank position, lower your upper body towards the ground.

Push your arms straight and shift your body weight onto your right hand.  Lift your left elbow towards the sky, opening your body outward.

Extend your arm and focus to the sky to form a straight line.  Return to starting position and repeat on the left.

My thoughts on BodyBoss

• Amazing for Beginners. This book teaches you how to work out.  Not only does it tell you what to do, it tells you how to do it.  The back of the book has a full glossary of how to do the most basic to advanced moves.  For someone just beginning their fitness journey who may never have done a squat in their life, they have a 4 week pre-training program to ease you into the motion before fully committing to the 12 week plan.

• Amazing for hardcore fitness fanatics.  There is an option to increase the intensity of every exercise in the book.  Adding weights, ankle weights, stairs etc, takes each exercise to the next level.
• BodyBoss budgets time for stretching. I also love that the book budgets time within the workout for stretching.  Long, lean bodies are created by working the muscle then stretching it.  Even as a dancer, I take stretching for granted.  The Body Boss stretches are simple, but seeing them on the page makes stretching before and after your workout a no brainer.
• Option to pick and choose. BodyBoss is effective whether or not you are following their 12 week plan.  I love to workout at home or while I travel, but I often spend just as much time thinking of exercises as I spend actually doing them.  The Body Boss book gives me a roadmap for my workout, wherever I am in the world.
• You can travel with it.  Many people skip workouts when they travel because they are away from their local fitness classes, regular running routes, or usual gym equipment.  BodyBoss HIIT days require nothing else but the book.  I like to take photos of the pages  I'll need while away so all I don't need to pack anything extra at all!
• Supplement my group class addiction.  I love group classes with a passion because you show up, do what you’re told and leave in complete exhaustion.  ClassPass has recently limited us to 10 classes per month which is not nearly enough. I supplement these group classes with BodyBoss sessions.
• -20% CODE: MEAGANBB
• Good through May 2017 via link above.  I make no profit on this, but let me know if you purchase and try!