Have you ever heard of the 12-3-30 workout? If you follow health and fitness trends, you may have. I am sure you are aware that when it comes to health and fitness trends on social media, there is hype, and then there is the real deal. So, is the 12-3-30 workout hyped up or legit?
I only heard about it recently in an article published by the American Council on Exercise (ACE). 12-3-30 is a fancy name for something simple. It is basically walking on a treadmill at a 12 percent incline at 3 miles per hour for 30 minutes. Apparently, it has been popular since 2019. I may not have come across it because walking on a treadmill is not my thing. However, walking on a treadmill or outside is generally safe, effective, and doable for most people, and I promote it wholeheartedly!
The ACE study on the 12-3-30 workout
With this research, the ACE wanted to find out if this workout works by answering the following questions:
1. Is it safe and effective?
2. Does it make your heart beat faster, increase your breathing, and help your muscles burn more energy and fat so you can get stronger and experience an improvement in your health and fitness?
3. Do people enjoy doing it?
The results of the ACE study
1. The 12-3-30 workout is pretty safe!
You only need to work out for 30 minutes, and you do not need to perform any complex moves to reap all the health benefits of exercise. Besides, walking on a treadmill is generally considered a safe and effective exercise for most people. It is low-impact and puts less stress on your joints than running, so it can be suitable for people with joint pain. Moreover, walking on a treadmill effectively targets the key muscle groups that older adults need to strengthen to improve balance and endurance, such as quadriceps, calves, glutes, and hamstrings.
2. The 12-3-30 workout makes your heart beat faster, increases your breathing, and helps you burn more energy and fat.
In fact, the 12-3-30 workout meets the criteria for moderate exercise. Remember, research has shown that exercise can help you stay healthy and reduce your risk of chronic diseases (e.g., heart disease, diabetes, cancer, hypertension, obesity, depression, and osteoporosis). To get the full health benefits of exercise, you should engage in moderate physical activity for at least 150 minutes a week. So, if you can commit to doing the 12-3-30 workout five days a week, you are well on your way to better health! For more on how exercise can help you stay healthy, check out “Exercise: A Path to Better Help for Women Over Forty.”
3. People in the study reported feeling good and enjoying the exercise.
For me, the most important question we all need to answer when planning or deciding to start a new exercise is, “Do you enjoy it?” If the form of exercise you choose is not fun for you, the chances that you will stick to it are very slim. That is why I don’t walk on a treadmill. To me, it gets very monotonous. On the other hand, I have friends who absolutely love to walk on the treadmill. One even told me they get a high when walking on their treadmill. I don’t understand how! However, I respect their feelings. Different strokes for different people, right?
I tried the 12-3-30 workout!
You know how it is when you see something hyped up on social media. At the beginning of this year, I promised myself not to waste any more money or time on the “coolest” new thing on social media. However, the 12-3-30 workout is free for me, and it won’t cost me more than 30 minutes of my precious time, sweat, and maybe potential boredom. Apologies to my treadmill lovers. Anyway, I didn’t have much to lose and potentially had much to gain, so why not give it a try? So, I did exactly that! Like the researchers, I asked myself the same three questions:
Is the 12-3-30 workout safe and effective?
Yes. I did not trip or fall and had handrails to support me should I stumble on the treadmill. I broke out in a sweat after the first ten minutes, and I felt fully exercised by the time I completed the thirty-minute workout. Indeed, if I keep this up, I will get fitter and healthier.
Did my body respond adequately to the 12-3-30 workout?
Yes! My heart rate ranged from 60% to 80% of my maximum heart rate, which is pretty good. And I was breathing a lot faster within the first few minutes of starting the workout. Overall, I burned 200 calories in 30 minutes. The recommendation is to burn energy up to 150 to 400 kilocalories per day (kcal/day) to prevent chronic diseases. So, I met this goal by performing the 12-3-30 workout.
Did I enjoy the 12-3-30 workout?
Hmm.. It really wasn’t that bad, after all! I was not bored (this time) because I had a goal in mind since it was more of my personal research. Moreover, I was rocking to my playlist, so the time went by fast. Will I do it again? Yes, most likely. Can I commit to doing it 5 times a week? Nope. Not because it is not doable but because I don’t have unlimited time and will miss doing other forms of exercise. However, I think most people who like walking on a treadmill can definitely commit to doing this 5 times a week.
Final thoughts
Back to the question: Is the 12-3-30 workout hyped up or legit? The research and the result of my little unscientific experiment show that the 12-3-30 workout is legit. Now, is it the ultimate form of exercise? Nah. It is simply another way to keep you motivated to stay active and healthy. And what is the ultimate form of exercise? The one you will do and stay consistent with. So, the 12-3-30 workout may just be the perfect exercise for you. But you won’t know until you try it. Right?
So, why don’t you give it a try, like I just did? And if walking on a treadmill is not your “thing,” then do your “thing” to stay active. If you are new to practicing an active lifestyle and don’t know where to start, check out “Change Your Mindset Toward Exercise” to jumpstart your fit and active lifestyle. Remember, exercising will improve your heart and overall health, prevent many chronic diseases, and can help you live longer.
Finally, and simply, friends, let’s keep moving!
Please feel free to share your comments below and share this article.
Yours in health and fitness,
Doctor Abi
