THE 12-2-30 workout has been taking over the fitness corner of TikTok, with fans claiming to have lost hundreds of pounds with it.
The best part? It only requires one piece of gym equipment and takes no more than half an hour.
The trend can be traced back to influencer Lauren Giraldo, who shared the 12-3-30 treadmill on TikTok in November 2020, according to Cosmopolitan.
In the video, Lauren shows off her weight loss transformation and says she doesn't "diet" or "calorie count".
She "used to be so intimidated by the gym” – until she found her “game changer” workout.
And since it went viral, with the hashtag #12330 racking up more than 123 million views alone, Lauren has shared the results of dozens of other women.
They have shred belly fat and cinched their waists, and credit it entirely to the basic routine.
Lauren said: “Literally all you need is a treadmill. You put it on an incline of 12, a speed of three, and walk for 30 minutes as many times as you can a week.”
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In the UK, treadmills use kilometres per hour by default, compared to miles per hour in the US, therefore Brits will want to use a comparative speed of 4.8.
Beginners could start off with a reduced incline, while it’s important to warm up and stretch before and after embarking on each hike.
What’s so great about it?
The workout seems so basic, you’d be forgiven for wondering if (and why) it works better than other exercises.
For Lauren, it’s apparent that finding a routine that she enjoyed kept her consistently turning up at the gym.
And consistency is key when it comes to losing pounds, with experts recommending an exercise you enjoy is one that you won’t lose motivation for.
While Lauren revelled in the "me time" she got from her daily walk, others may get bored of it quite quickly.
Now into the technical stuff behind the craze.
Aimee Victoria Long, a personal trainer and Pilates instructor, says cardio is “great for weight loss”, and the 12-3-30 is regarded as "steady state cardio".
She said: “This form of exercise is very low impact so it doesn’t involve putting loads of force and strain through your joints meaning you can do it more often than say a HIIT session or a run.
“It’s a great idea for anyone who may already be suffering from lower body joint issues with their knees or ankles."
UK fitness coach Georgie Spurling, founder of online wellness platform GS Method, agreed the workout is easy and great for beginners who simply want to move more.
She told MailOnline: “LISS (low impact steady-state) is fantastic to add to your routine because it improves blood flow, helps promote a healthy heart, and can aid in fat burning.”
One study found that 20 minutes of walking per day lowered the risk of heart problems in later life by up to 52 per cent.
Women's strength training coach Caroline Idiens added: “Power walking can provide a great cardio workout- strengthening the lower body, building endurance and muscle.
“It will help with weight loss to some extent if undertaken alongside a healthy diet and will burn more calories walking on an incline than a regular walk for example.”
A side note…
Getting active is always beneficial if you currently spend all day sitting around.
But to really reap the rewards of the 12-3-30, experts recommend incorporating other types of exercise.
Caroline said that while you may initially see the fat melt away using 12-3-30, you could plateau once your body is used to it.
She recommended doing the 12-3-30 no more than twice per week so you can fit in strength or interval training other days of the week.
This will help to build muscle tone, while any form of cardio burns fat, resulting in a leaner frame.
Caroline warned: “In order to have maximum weight loss you need stimulus to challenge the muscles and work the body as a whole.
“I would recommend this as one of your cardio days but an interval running plan on the treadmill would be far more effective in the long run combined with an effective strength program.”
Caroline also warned that relying on the 12-3-30 workout, or doing it too often, could overstrain certain muscles.
She said it would “only be working the leg muscles but more importantly it is putting a huge amount of stress on the lower back, the knees and compromising your posture”.
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