BACKGROUND
If you happened to read my post a while ago about some changes I’ve made in regards to fitness, you may know that I was doing Natacha Océane’s workout program Cut. I feel like I’ve said it time and time again, but Natacha is my fitness inspiration! I’ve been watching her on YouTube and following her on Instagram for years, but I’ve never tried one of her many programs before this fall. So near the end of August, I wanted to do something different with my fitness routine and thought I’d give her program a try.
The Cut. program was around $60, and the process of buying it was really easy on her website (natachaoceane.com). All you had to do was purchase it, then a link was sent to the email address you used to access the pdf files and set up an Aflete profile, which is the fitness app used to access the workouts. Aflete is an app that you can download for free, so as soon as you create an account and download the app, the program you buy should automatically pull up when you open the app.
I chose the Cut. program because I wanted to focus on toning my body and fat loss, and this seemed like the perfect fit. One reason why I love Natacha so much is because she doesn’t do the cookie cutter exercises you think of, she mixes it up a lot with different and fun moves. I would say it is an intermediate level, but the program comes with a training and nutrition guide to go into detail about the science of it all and what to aim to eat throughout the program and workout tips. To be completely honest, I only (virtually) flipped through it a handful of times because I already know the basic nutrition stuff and I’ve been working out for a while now. But if you are a beginner, I’d definitely go through the guide page by page because it is really informative!
THE PROGRAM
Now that I gave a little background, I have to say, I loved these last 10 weeks. I loved the versatility of the workouts, and I loved how the app tracked the amount of reps and what weight you used from previous times doing one specific exercise. With each move, she even had a video showcasing what the move was. I will say though, I thought having a bench, free weights and some resistance bands would be enough, but this program utilizes a lot of gym equipment, thus meaning you definitely need access to a gym if you want to do the program move for move. Think leg extensions, weighted balls, TRX bands, boxes to jump on, everything! The gym I went to didn’t have a few of those things, so it became normal for me to substitute workouts working the same muscle from time to time, or do a quick Google search to see what other move I could do instead. It was really easy to make those substitutes though when needed.
For the program, you workout 6 times a week, but one of those days is an active recovery day, or you could take it as just a rest day, and for me it was mostly a rest day. Even though I said I loved this program, it was a time commitment that’s for sure. You have some plyometric days and strength training days that last for 60 minutes or more for 4 of those days, then 1 day with a 20 minute HIIT workout. While I did every single workout, I wasn’t perfect in doing it day by day. Most of the time, I had to combine my full body strength training workout with a 20 minute HIIT workout. So I would workout 5 times, but maybe I’d do those workouts in 4 days because it was really hard to fit in a 60-minute workout on super busy days.
While I was 100% in on the workouts, I wasn’t 100% in on the nutrition side, maybe 60%? Nutrition is really important, and while I do mostly eat healthy, I wasn’t perfect throughout these 10 weeks. If you’ve read my what I ate in a day, you’ll know I wasn’t perfect and needed to get back on track. But…it’s the holiday season! You can’t expect me to eat perfectly when there’s seasonal donuts out there that are waiting to be consumed!
HOW I FEEL
This program left me feeling incredible about my body. Although I don’t weigh myself, I feel amazing coming off of this program. I don’t weigh myself because I don’t want to fixate unhealthily on a number and be discouraged when it doesn’t change. This year I’ve focused more so on listening to my body and how I feel, and I feel strong. My legs have always been an insecurity of mine just because I felt like I could never tone up around my thighs. What I’ve learned from this program is that I can lift more weight than what I think I can. I realize now that before I was doing too light of weight for my legs, and I can up it a little more! My legs didn’t drastically change, but I know if I continue lifting more weight, my legs will gradually get leaner and stronger.
While I don’t know if there were many physical changes, I do feel like my body composition has changed. It may be just me, but the way my pants and leggings fit feel different! But like I said, I feel so much stronger. What I’ve learned from this program is that I’m stronger than what I thought I was. I loved the style of training from this program, and I’m really going to miss doing it week to week. I’m definitely going to be doing it again in the future, and I may even have to buy Natacha’s Cut. Reload next year! I want to keep up this workout split going forward though, with plyometrics, strength training, and HIIT, but I may have to incorporate more running days going forward for my source of cardio because on Saturday I signed up for a 5k this month, and I’m gonna have to start quickly training for it!
I’m sad that this workout journey has come to an end, but I’m excited to continue forward with a bunch of new exercises I’ve learned from this program! If you want a revamp in your workout routine, I definitely recommend this Cut. program. I’m already trying to think of when I can do it again in the future!