Popular 12-3-30 workout may not be practical for you

Are you one of the more than 81 million viewers of the "12-3-30" workout, the brainchild of social media influencer Lauren Giraldo?

Through trial and error, Giraldo said she lost 30 pounds by following the self-developed personal workout that went viral. But popular isn’t necessarily practical, says one local physical therapist.

At least five days a week, Giraldo walks on a treadmill on a 12 percent incline at a three mile-per-hour pace for 30 minutes. Thus, the catchy 12-3-30 and the hashtag #12330 that now has a large number of views on TikTok and Instagram.

Cape Cod Healthcare Physical Therapist Stephanie Gradone, DPT, ATRIC, said sometimes social media looks like a good thing, but the trends that emerge may not be right for everyone.

Gradone has a chronic hamstring injury but is otherwise a well-conditioned athlete. She admitted she lasted less than five minutes when she tried the 12-3-30 workout because of the hamstring injury.

“For anyone trying this routine, especially if you have a pre-existing condition, the very aggressive 12 percent incline could be setting you up for injury,” said Gradone. She noted that 12-3-30 was created by Giraldo, who is a healthy 20-something, and those who fall into the older demographic on Cape Cod need to be careful about such an aggressive workout.

Gradone checked out Giraldo’s social media account and found that she began developing 12-3-30 in 2019 by doing the workout for about 10 to 15 minutes. But that’s not evident on the short TikTok video that catapulted her to fame. Neither is the fact that in other posts Giraldo said healthy eating is a very important part of her lifestyle. She eats organic, homemade food, and not a lot of processed foods.

Gradone endorsed Giraldo’s healthy diet and said it’s an important part of any weight loss success. However, from a physical therapy and exercise physiology viewpoint, the idea of doing the same workout five days a week is not ideal.

“You could be setting yourself up for overuse injuries because our bodies were made to move in multiple different directions, and when we do the same thing again and again, using the same muscle groups, there is a bigger risk of overuse injuries in hamstrings, calves and Achilles tendons, especially at the incline Giraldo chose,” she said.

Exercise Routine Tips

The following elements also should be part of everyone’s exercise routines, according to Gradone:

• Rest days should be incorporated into every new routine. The body needs time to recover, Gradone said.
• Strength training should include a combination of core, upper body and lower body work within your exercise routine. Most people can get away with doing a strength routine two or three times a week. It’s important to adopt a well-rounded exercise routine, Gradone said. Bone health is important and can be supported through weight training, walking or other activities, Gradone said.
• Remember to add balance activities, such as tai chi, to help reduce fall risk. There are several holistically-focused classes in various towns on Cape Cod which offer tai chi, senior strength training, and sit-and-fit classes, she said.

“Choose to follow a workout routine that fits you,” Gradone said. “On the Cape, we have a lot of really active seniors. It’s wonderful to see how active our population is.”