Making any home fitness program like Les Millls Pump work for you depends largely on listening to your body and the instructors, of course. Although the pre-designed workout schedule is certainly effective if followed, making adjustments according to your current fitness level will let you get maximum benefits and optimum results.
If you are an absolute beginner you should follow the Les Mills Pump workout schedule to a ‘T’ and try the first workout without weights. If it seems easy, use the lightest weight possible (5 lbs-discs) next time.
Feel free to increase the weights throughout the first month whenever the workout seems too easy. Basically, you need to feel a burn and should be somewhat sore afterward for continued progress. So increasing the weight is the best way to achieve that for beginners while sticking to the schedule.
Intermediate to advanced fitness fans should, of course, apply the same rule, but they can also make adjustments in the schedule. For example, phase one of the Les Mills Pump schedule can be shortened by 2 weeks if the workouts don’t produce the desired after effect of soreness even after the weights have been increased.
It’s also important to keep the big picture in mind of total workout time for the week. So, if you can’t find the time to squeeze in a 30-minute workout during the week, double your workout time on the weekend for example, by doing the 55-minute Pump Revolution workout.
Patience is a virtue, though. Don’t skip ahead in the schedule to see faster results–LMP is already a fast-paced program that delivers quicker results than most other training approaches. Listen to your body and only make the suggested changes when the workouts feel like a walk in the park, so to speak. Your goal is to feel challenged, not completely exhausted and bruised like you got run over by a truck.
Personally, I started phase 2 of LMP after 2 weeks because my body was already pretty used to tough workouts after Insanity, P90X2 and Brazil Butt Lift. What I like best about LMP is the increase in strength and speed in such a short amount of time. I also noticed that my appetite grew along with my muscles due to my metabolism running in high gear long after the workout is done. So, I really love the benefits of LMP all across the board.
