Last updated on March 18th, 2019 at 06:41 am
This is the 10-Day at home workout plan I did during my morning exercise challenge last month, it’s perfect for women! It will help you wake up and feel great for the rest of the day. No equipment needed.
Okay, so not to say that I feel like a failure right from the start, but I haven’t been as consistent as I could’ve been with my 30-Day Morning Workout Challenge.
There have been WAY too many days I said: “I’ve got no time for this.”
Then I’d go straight to my phone or computer instead of doing my workout.
But the first 2 weeks, I was perfect.
I would wake up early, put on my workout clothes and go out or do an at home workout. Even if it was just 10 minutes.
I didn’t follow the workout split exactly, I did whatever I felt my body needed that day. So one day I had stretching, I did a 15-minute dance workout instead (talk about it later!).
Here’s the 10-Day workout plan I started with.
Free 10-Day Workout Plan For Women
For This Workout Plan You’ll Need
- a good, thick yoga mat, you can get a high-quality super affordable yoga mat here
- comfortable sport shoes
- a chair or sturdy furniture
Day 1. I did a 10-minute run and this Standing Abs Workout By Barre Fitness, which is one of my go to quick workouts.
Day 2. I did this Barre Sculpting Workout By Popsugar Fitness. LOVED it!
Related Article: 9 Barre Workouts To Tone EVERYTHING
Day 3. I was already feeling kiiinda sore everywhere, but managed to do this Full-Body/ HIIT Workout that also tones the lower body.
Related Article: The 5 Best FREE Workouts To Get In Shape FAST
Day 4. Yoga & stretching – this is all I ever needed after 3 days of awesome, but challenging workouts. Loved this Full-Body Stretch Yoga Routine by YogaTX.
Related: 10 Yoga Poses To Practice Daily To Feel Better Than Ever
Day 5. I stayed at home and did my Flat Belly Workout, which is a combination between HIIT & abs workout. It was just 10 minutes and more than enough to make me feel strong and happy!
Day 6. I went out for a run (around 10 minutes) and did Barre Fitness’ Upper Body Workout (which I ABSOLUTELY LOVE and mention every time!).
Day 7. I, again, went out for a 10-minute run (that’s all I can do!) and did a simple mat workout to tone my butt.
Day 8. Okay, so this day I actually was supposed to do yoga, but still felt strong and kinda wanted something more uptempo. I wanted something quick and fun, so I did this 15-minute dance workout by Popsugar Fitness. It was awesome – I had fun, I was sweating – really all I wanted.
Day 9. This was my Pilates Day!!! I love Pilates, more than yoga and more than “normal” strength training. It’s right there next to barre on my list of favorites, because it makes me relax, but also makes me feel strong. This pilates workout is one of my go-to’s and it’s a 20-minute Pilates routine for a leaner and stronger body by Dreamingreen.
Related: 8 Pilates Workouts To Tone Everything While Lying On Your Mat
Day 10. I didn’t feel like doing much that day, but I still went out for a 10-minute run and did a super short arm workout. I’ve shared this workout in my list of favorites before – it’s a 4-minute NO equipment workout for women by Popsugar Fitness and it’s awesome!
Related: 5 quick workouts for tight arms
What happened after?
After the first few weeks I slowly fell into a slump and most days just went out for a walk. Which is better than what I’d do on some mornings: get up and stick myself to the computer.
However, I’m used to walking a lot, so it did not make me feel as great as a more intense workout does.
I’d say what I did each day depended on 1) how much I’ve slept and 2) my to do list.
If I have a lot of things on my list I feel overwhelmed, stressed and just skip taking care of myself or getting organized altogether that day.
I simply rush through the day. I’m not very productive – I’m just being busy. I’m refusing to make the right choices and am kinda destructive on those days (even though I believe you can turn every day around!).
Stress is never a good advisor.
So, note to self: Always take care of yourself first! That to do list can wait.
Related article: 11 ways to reduce stress naturally even when you’re crazy busy
The last three days I’ve been doing really good again and I finally bought a swimsuit and am going to go for a morning swim from now on. Super excited about it.
Things I learned & loved
Cardio 4 president. So this is not really new to me, but it just confirmed that I need to do cardio in the morning. I do. I feel so much better than after just doing yoga or strength exercise. Don’t get me wrong – I love morning yoga on most days – it’s relaxing and wakes me up as well.
But doing cardio and breaking a real sweat makes me feel INCREDIBLE.
Even if I wake up and I’m kinda down, 10 minutes of cardio put me in the right place – mentally and physically. After that I could do some strength training or stretching. But I need my morning cardio, where I give it my all.
The other thing I loved: Upper body workouts and barre. Anyone who works at a desk know what true neck and shoulder pain is. What I’ve been really loving these last weeks have been workouts that strengthen the upper body – especially neck and shoulder muscles. I walk taller and I have less pain. Amazing. I talked about how much I enjoy doing barre already, so I’ve incorporated barre workouts into my workout routine more often now. Some barre + cardio in the morning = probably my favorite thing right now.
Things I didn’t love
Rushing. Slow down and do the important things first! Rushing actually makes me slower & confused.
Being still full from late night eating. So in preparation for this challenge I knew I shouldn’t eat much in the evening. But it’s summer, days are longer, so I eat late. I’m now definitely considering cutting off eating at 5 pm, so I can tame that “appetite” and be more mindful when I’m eating.
Related Article: How To Lose 10 Pounds In A Month
Not getting enough sleep. Some days I’d only sleep for 5 hours. I’m not saying it with pride – not getting enough sleep is no fun and it’s also one of the most harmful things you can do for your health. You’re messing up your hormones, you’re not thinking straight and you’re eating like there’s no tomorrow. Plus, you don’t have much energy to do your workout. So getting enough sleep is something I’m working on right now.
Easy. I really don’t enjoy doing “easy” full-body or too short workouts anymore. True, I might sounds like a pretentious workout idiot, but I need AT LEAST 20 minutes to really feel good.
I’m now almost at the end of this challenge and I really want to make morning exercise a habit. So I’ll keep doing the workouts I actually enjoy in the morning even after this week.
This has been my biggest goal – make morning workouts a regular thing.
Feel free to try the workout plan I did – the workouts aren’t longer than 30 minutes. Also, I wouldn’t say that this workout plan is too intense, but it was great for the morning. Remember to always listen to your body and to do what you enjoy, not what someone else tells you is effective. Because you need to keep doing it in order to see results. The most effective workout won’t bring results if you just do it once.
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