Starting a 30 day fitness challenge is a great way to shift to healthier habits and get a jump start on your fitness goals, in a way that’s fun and motivating. You could even start a 30 day fitness challenge with a friend or family member, so that you have the added advantage of an accountability buddy.

Your 30 day fitness challenge could include scheduled workouts such as a personal training session on mondays and wednesdays, a hot yoga class on thursdays and fridays, a spin class or a hike every saturday, and some at-home weightlifting whenever you have time. 

Implementing a healthy, balanced diet and cutting out junk food is another part of the challenge that’s important to stick to.

While it’s true that you’re not going to meet all of your fitness goals in 30 days, nor are you likely to see super dramatic results in 30 days, a 30 day fitness challenge is still a great way to get yourself on the right track. Hit the ground running with an organized fitness challenge that will start to help you form healthier habits. 

Forming these healthier habits during your fitness challenge will help you continue your healthy lifestyle even after the 30 days are up. This is crucial, since it’s very easy to undo all of your hard work if you don’t keep it up after 30 days. However, 30 days is a sufficient amount of time  to train your brain to permanently shift to healthier habits, as long as you remain motivated.

Many people are seeking a quick fix to get in shape, but the truth is, being fit and improving your physique is a lifelong journey. The best part about a 30 day fitness challenge is its ability to change your habits for the long term.

If you want to see noticeable results after 30 days, it’s important to consider the following tips on how to do it right:

1. Your Lifestyle Should Be Very Active

The number one component of a 30 day fitness challenge is to try to be active every day. Keep yourself very active each day during your 30 day fitness challenge, and beyond. On a daily basis, you should be in a caloric deficit of at least 300-500 calories. This can be achieved by walking an hour or more every single day, in addition to your weightlifting or workout routine. 

You can wear a fitness tracker watch to ensure you’re getting at least 15,000 steps per day. Whenever possible, walk instead of drive, and plan walks or hikes with friends or family members. 

Your weightlifting routine will be determined by your experience in the gym. If you don’t have much experience weightlifting, the best option is to hire a personal trainer. Even if you have experience, hiring a personal trainer will always be the best option if you want to see results. However, if you want to do it alone, aim to do your weightlifting 4 days per week. Include full body workouts with a combination of compound and isolate exercises. Rep range should be in the 10-15 rep range. 

Include HIIT in your workouts as well. Intervals are a great way to tone your body and burn extra calories.

Cardio can’t be neglected either, so find a form of cardio you like that you can commit to regularly doing. Perhaps you enjoy going for a run, a spin class, or a challenging hike. 

In general, your lifestyle should be very active, which brings us to our next tip.

2. Schedule Your Workouts and Mark Them in Your Calendar 

During a 30 day fitness challenge, you’ll want each week to incorporate a variety of different workouts to keep yourself active each day.

While it’s true that you do need rest days, it’s completely fine to go for a walk or a gentle yoga class on your rest days. 

Below is a sample week to give you an idea of what level of activity you should be aiming for:

Monday: Personal training session (weightlifting) and a 1 hour walk afterwards.

Tuesday: Hot yoga class and a 1 hour walk afterwards.

Wednesday: Personal training session (weightlifting) and a bike ride.

Thursday: Spin class or outdoor hike.

Friday: Rest day. Hatha yoga class and a leisurely walk.

Saturday: 2 hour walk and weightlifting on your own at home or at the gym.

Sunday: Kayaking with a friend, followed by a walk and some at-home weightlifting.

Scheduling your workouts and marking them in your calendar makes all the difference. Try to plan active outings with friends, and mark them in your calendar. For example, plan a kayaking day with one friend, and plan a hike with another friend for a different day. 

Active plan with friends helps keep you accountable, so that you’re much more likely to stick to those plans.

Similarly, weightlifting with a personal trainer instead of on your own is beneficial as it helps keep you accountable, ensuring that you will actually show up and do your workout. Accountability is one of the top benefits of personal training. 

You can also add fun daily additions to your fitness challenge, such as planking for at least 1 minute, at least 3 times per day (except for your rest day.) Or, you could incorporate a squat challenge and do 50 squats per day except for your rest day. These types of bonus additions can be done while you’re watching TV or while you’re waiting for your laundry to dry. 

3. Change Your Diet: Go Paleo 

The paleo diet is a great diet to try if you’re attempting to eat healthier. The paleo diet is a high-protein and low-carb diet plan, where you eat whole foods that were available to your Paleolithic ancestors 10,000 years ago. Nothing processed, but rather eating foods like lean meat, seafood, fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds.

What to eat:

• Fruits
• Vegetables
• Nuts and seeds
• Eggs
• Healthy fats such as avocado and fatty fish
• Lean meats, especially grass-fed animals or wild game
• Fish, especially fish rich in omega-3 fatty acids, such as salmon, mackerel and albacore tuna
• Cook with healthy oils from fruits and nuts, such as olive oil, avocado oil or walnut oil
• Limited complex carbs that are whole carbs such as sweet potato

What to avoid:

• Simple carbs such as bread and pasta
• Legumes, such as beans, lentils, peanuts
• Dairy products, such as milk and cheese
• Refined and added sugar
• Added salt and high sodium foods
• Starchy vegetables, such as corn, jicama, peas and white potatoes
• Highly processed foods, such as chips, cookies, and packaged foods

4. Keep Yourself Motivated

Below is a list of tips for keeping yourself motivated to be active daily:

• Keep a fitness journal where you log your food, activity and daily steps.
• Post words of affirmation in your bathroom that help you remember your ‘Why’ and keep reminding you of why you’re doing this. 
• Tape a sign to your TV that reminds you to do squats, planks, supermans and other exercises that are easy to do at home.
• Schedule and book your workouts so that each day of the week has an activity plan.
• Make workout plans with friends.
• Tell your friends about your fitness challenge and encourage them to invite you to outdoor activities that will get you moving.
• Set a reminder on your phone that it’s time to go lift weights, or time to go for a bike ride.
• Add an outdoor walk to your morning routine to ensure you start your day with activity. 

What Kind of Results Can You Expect?

After a 30 day fitness challenge, where you’ve committed to these healthy habits for 30 days, you will see results. The results will be noticeable, but likely not dramatic.

Your body will look and feel more toned, with less body fat. In 30 days, you can expect to lose between 4 and 8 pounds. You should not expect to lose more than 2 pounds per week. However, you will still notice results after 30 days, and this will encourage you to keep your healthy habits going.
When you start making healthy changes like the ones required for a 30 day fitness challenge, you’ll notice some incredible mental health benefits, an improved mood, and of course physical benefits as well.