It wasn’t so long in the past that fitness challenges here at Freestyle Fitness in Reno lasted eight weeks. That was a snappier version of our old UFC – Ultimate Fitness Challenge – which lasted a full twelve weeks. So why are offering 30-day fitness challenges now? And can you actually accomplish something in 30 days? We’re telling all and getting real. Here are the pros and cons of 30-day fitness challenges. Even ours.
The Pros of a 30-Day Fitness Challenge at Freestyle Fitness
- A realistic timeframe that doesn’t overwhelm but motivates – you can do anything for 30 days, right? Plus, you’ll actually feel like you’ve accomplished something when it’s all over.
- Enough time to begin developing positive habits, and more importantly, to start curtailing bad habits.
- Enough variation that you aren’t overly stressing the body or increasing your potential for injury.
- A motivating carrot that’s reward based.
- A nutrition plan designed to show you the value of prepping your food and eating clean.
It’s the last bullet point that’s really critical. Anytime you’re looking to change your shape, nutrition is the lynchpin. You can’t out-train a bad diet. And that means you could live in the gym, but it would do you no favors if you fueled up empty carbs and too much sugar (or not even calories).
THE cons of a 30-day fitness challenge (even at Freestyle)
- It’s not long enough that you can expect to drop huge amounts of weight – but you wouldn’t want to, anyway. Biggest Loser-style weight loss is a recipe for disaster, and our focus is on sustainable, gradual weight loss through nutrition and effective movement.
- It’s kind of a trendy thing, and those 30-day squat/plank/push up challenges are giving ours a bad rap. Committing to thirty days of increasing squats may be effective for you, but not for me, just because of factors like age, gender, activity level, genetics, nutrition habits and health history.
- Those same factors will affect someone’s response to any kind of fitness program – there’s no one-size-fits-all result that should be expected, no matter what you’re doing.
the big takeaway
A lot of it comes down to perspective. If you’re signing up for a 30-day fitness challenge at Freestyle Fitness in Reno and you’re hoping to drop some bad habits, eat clean for a month, commit to working out and maybe earn that free month, then you’re already setting yourself up for success.
and about that freestyle switch…
So why did Freestyle Fitness make the switch from twelve weeks to eight weeks to thirty days? Ultimately, we found that twelve and even eight weeks was just too long for most people to complete. Even the most gung-ho participants tended to lose their enthusiasm and give up. As a team, we decided that it was more effective for our members and challengers to begin developing positive habits, and that was much more manageable in a shorter timeframe.
good news!
We’re telling you all of this now because Spring Training, our next 30-day fitness challenge, starts in just a few weeks. Orientation is April 1 and if you join with a friend, you’ll save $25 each off the $150 enrollment free. For that price, you’re getting a comprehensive nutrition plan, unlimited classes, weekly support emails, access to our nutritionist on a locked Facebook page, and you know, a group of personal cheerleaders.
If you’re ready for a change, you just found one. Come in with the right attitude, and your experience with a 30-day fitness challenge will be one long list of pros. Sign up today.