Going to the gym hasn’t been part of my life since I was in university, which depressingly is over a decade ago now. I’ve managed to stay in shape with regular running and cycling to work (not buying a car was the best health decision I’ve ever made). This has kept me from getting fat (the plant-based diet helps too) and given me a strong cardiovascular system, but I know I would benefit from a more well rounded fitness routine.

Having a baby has definitely made working out harder (I have less time and energy now) but it’s also exposed my weaknesses. It only took a few days of bouncing a newborn baby to get a sore back and wish I had a stronger upper body. And she’s only gotten heavier since then.

The solution – the Whole Life Fitness Manifesto Challenge. A co-worker invited me to join a few months ago and I’ve now gone through two of the 28-day fitness challenges. It’s definitely helped me get stronger and I’ve been really happy with the results.

How it works:

• Sign up at www.JoinWLFM.com (it’s free and the next 28-day phase starts on Monday, October 17th)
• Receive daily emails from Coach Moose
• Everyday there’s a 15-minute workout, plus 10 minutes of personal development and 5 minutes of meditation
• The workouts don’t require a gym or any equipment
• A typical workout: for 15 minutes do as many reps as you can of:
  • 5 push-ups
  • 10 sit-ups
  • 15 squats
• There’s also a lot of lunges, plank, and burpees
• After each workout, you’re encouraged to post in the Facebook group for extra accountability and motivation
• There’s also tips on healthy eating (drinking a lot of water and eating more greens)

The program is very similar to crossfit. The intensity of the workouts is whatever you make it. If you’re feeling good, you can really push yourself. If you’re having a low energy day because the baby didn’t sleep last night, you can take it easy.

Looking back over my tracking sheets for the past 2 phases, I did 75% of the daily workouts (I missed a bunch while travelling) but rarely did meditation and focussed personal development. I think over the next phase, I’m going to intentionally skip some of the workouts and do some longer, harder runs instead.