14 days, no equipment, and countless inspiring before and after pictures. The Chloe Ting 14 Day Shred Challenge has been sweeping social media since stay-at-home orders have been in place.
Chloe Ting is a fitness influencer with over five million subscribers on YouTube. One of her most popular videos on getting abs in two weeks has over 62 million views. Her workouts are high intensity and no equipment is needed, so they are perfect when gyms across the country are closed. I tried Ting’s Two Week Shred Challenge over the past 14 days of being quarantined at home.
Originally, I saw the workouts on TikTok and YouTube when some of my favorite creators talked about their experiences and the difficulty of the challenge. I originally wasn’t going to try it myself, but its huge social media presence made me curious about if it could really transform my body and strength level.
Day one of the challenge was extremely challenging. The first video I did was ¨Get Abs in TWO WEEKS¨ from Tings YouTube channel. The layout is two 30 second stretches of an exercise and then a 10 second break, which felt overwhelming at first. The hardest one for me was planking with hip dips, which left my core burning after 30 seconds. After weeks of not going to the gym regularly, my core strength was dwindling. The plank was also difficult for me, especially on day one.
Throughout the rest of the first week, all of the exercises were suddenly feeling more achievable, and my form improved so much. As I started to become stronger, my motions were more controlled, and I was getting more out of the workouts. After I was done for the day, my abs were sore and I felt more pain the next day during the workouts. It was uncomfortable, but all a part of building muscle.
The biggest change I noticed was my planking ability. Two weeks ago, I was shaking uncontrollably at 30 seconds. Now, I challenge myself to keep going and I can successfully plank for about two minutes now. Physically, I´m a bit more toned but I don´t look like a fitness influencer, and that is okay with me.
Though this 14 day challenge did not completely change my body, I also wasn’t expecting it to. Building and maintaining muscle takes time, and for me, two weeks wasn’t enough. But these videos made me so much stronger and made working out in my room not only possible, but easily accessible. The workouts were high intensity from the start, but there are adjustments you can make to make it easier to get started.
Overall, I would recommend Chloe Ting workouts to anyone who is looking for a difficult yet rewarding experience. It’s free, the videos aren’t ridiculously long, and you can do it practically anywhere with only a mat beneath you. You probably won’t look like a bodybuilder two weeks later, but you will feel stronger and accomplished.