I haven’t done a workout review in a while so I felt like doing another one! For this week, I found a Fitness Blender workout to try out. Read on for more information and to see if I liked it or not.
I love my current workouts
My current workout routine has been incredibly enjoyable for me. I have taken it back to the routine I used to do when I first started out on my journey to being as consistent as possible when it comes to workouts. All I have done is tweak each workout so that it conforms with my current level of fitness.
The last workout routine I had only lasted three weeks, versus the six weeks that I usually do. This was because I was just not into the workouts at all. If I am not into my workouts, there are high chances that I will start skipping days as I won’t be motivated to do them.
Since I knew that to be consistent with exercise, one must find workouts that they feel are tolerable- I reacted quickly. I looked back on all of the workout plans I had written out before and tried to think about which ones I found the most enjoyable. That is how I got on my current routine!
My routine consists of upper and lower body days that have me doing one minute of cardio before each weightlifting move. I do two sets of each of the moves. After I have completed all the moves/sets, I then do some bodyweight stuff if I have time and/or feel like it. My cardio days consists of cardio ladder HIIT and bodyweight cardio movements.
I am loving it!
What I chose and why
Admittedly, it was really tough to choose a workout to do that would replace one of the ones in my current workout plan. That is how much I love my workouts!
I looked at the most recent workouts that were on Fitness Blender and decided to go with a lower body workout that had a HIIT component to it. The following are the reasons as to why I went with it:
- My lower body needs more work than my upper body (doesn’t respond as well).
- Has cardio in it which means it will boost the calorie burn above what it would be with just strength training.
- Has a different structure than what I am used to.
- Has different exercise moves than what I am used to.
- Has you using dumbbells, resistance bands and a step. This to me meant that it would be tough and I would feel it differently.
- The whole workout is less than an hour.
- It includes a cool down and stretch which is something I have been loving lately.
So even though I was apprehensive about switching out a workout, this one looked really intriguing.
About the workout
The official name of this Fitness Blender workout is, Lower Body Strength & HIIT Workout with Dumbbells, Step and Resistance Band. As stated before, it is one of their most recent ones.
The workout involves using dumbbells, a resistant band and step (or stair). They make sure to mention that if you are going to use replacements for those things, you need to make sure that they are safe.
The following are all the parts of the workout:
- Warm Up- This is five minutes long and includes 10 moves (each one done for 30 seconds).
- Resistance band strength- This is eight minutes long and includes eight different strength moves. Each move is done for one set; 45 seconds on and 15 seconds of rest.
- HIIT- This is five minutes long and includes 10 moves. Each one is done for 20 seconds with a 10 second rest before going onto the next.
- Step and dumbbell strength- This is 17 minutes long and includes 17 different moves. Each move is done for 45 seconds with a 15 second rest before moving onto the next move. The moves alternate between step and dumbbell.
- Cool down and stretch- This is eight minutes long and includes 10 different moves. Each move is done for 30 seconds before moving onto the next one.
This workout has a duration of 47 minutes and is rated as being 4/5 on the difficulty scale. The calorie burn range is said to be 261-432.
My review of the workout
I followed the workout to a “T.” Here is how each part of it went for me:
- Warm up- This was pretty straight forward and easy to follow. A couple of the moves were new to me but I did like them. For whatever reason this part kind of felt like a workout to me.
- Resistance band strength- For this part, I used a band of light resistance since I am not used to this kind of exercise. Whew! These moves were pretty tough for me and my legs were feeling fatigued after the fourth one. I am glad I chose the light resistance band!
- HIIT- This type of cardio is my favorite. I have not done a few of the moves before so that made this part of the workout interesting. While this provided a good heart pumping, I do think that I could have done this part a second time through.
- Dumbbell and step strength- This part was a great experience for me because I have never done a step workout before. I unfortunately do not have a real exercise step so I stacked two bins filled with heavy books on top of each other. My lower body was definitely worked hard doing these combo of moves as my muscles were very fatigued afterwards. As far as the amount of weight I used, I chose to go with the amount close to what the Fitness Blender trainer went with. I couldn’t be exact because of how my Powerblock set is.
- Cool down and stretch- As stated before, I am loving doing a cool down after my workouts. This eight minute one felt really good after all the lower body work I did. It really completed the workout!
The total calories I burned during this workout was 300. This is within the calorie burn range they put for this one. My maximum heart rate was 155.
Overall, I really liked this workout and I am glad I chose it. I think that I can push a little harder than what I did so I will definitely do that the next time do this workout. Quite a few of the moves were new to me so I will most likely be adding them to the workouts I create for some variety.
I give this Fitness Blender workout a 4.5/5.
Do I recommend it?
A thousand times, yes! Here are the types of people it would be great for:
- Someone who needs a variety of moves in their workouts otherwise they get bored.
- Someone who is used to doing strength training and HIIT.
- Someone who doesn’t live above someone else and has thin floors.
- Someone who has home gym equipment (dumbbells of different weight, resistance bands and an aerobic step or stair).
- Someone who wants a workout that is less than an hour.
Here is some equipment that would be great to have around for this workout and just in general:
- ProsourceFit Adjustable Dumbbell and Barbell set– This is a wonderful set that ProsourceFit offers as you can easily turn the dumbbells into barbells if you want to.
- ProsourceFit Loop Resistance Band Set– This set has three bands that are light (10-15 lbs.), medium (15-20 lbs.) and heavy (25-30 lbs.) in resistance. They are sturdy and versatile.
- Aerobic step– You can do what I did and put heavy books in bins to make a step but getting a fitness one is your best bet. The one I linked is what I have coming but there are so many other ones out there that you can get.
In conclusion
I enjoyed this Fitness Blender workout even though it meant giving up a day of doing my regular lower body workout. It is one I will be coming back to again soon.
If you are looking for a new lower body workout to do, I would highly recommend this one. It just might help you get the results you are looking for!
What lower body workout are you doing, currently?
Thanks for reading!
You can find the Fitness Blender workout here: https://www.fitnessblender.com/videos/lower-body-strength-hiit-workout-with-dumbbells-step-and-resistance-band
Here is my last Fitness Blender workout review: This Week’s Workout Review: Fitness Blender #3
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