Chloe Ting challenges have been a huge fitness trend recently. Do they actually do what they claim?

When the pandemic officially hit the U.S. earlier this year, a lot of fitness schedules were disrupted. Gyms closed down, people had to stay inside, and Netflix came calling. However, many people decided to change up how they do their workouts, striving for at-home exercises. This led many to the fitness gurus of YouTube.

Personally, I fell down the fitness guru rabbit hole when I decided to go to the beach for a week. What better motivation to get in shape than a vacation, right? The problem, however, was that I wanted quick results — and I mean quick. We are talking about miracle results in two weeks for someone who has not worked out regularly in years. This led me to Chloe Ting.

Chloe Ting has been on YouTube since 2011, and has 15.7 million subscribers. Her content centers around workouts that require no equipment, but promise quick results. She also includes some healthy recipes and diet ideas as well as reactions to the fans that try her workouts. The comments on her videos were mostly encouraging, with many watchers attesting to the amazing results promised in the title. I mean, who would not try a workout called “ 10 Min Standing Abs Workout to get Ripped ABS?”

I took a look at her playlists, and quickly realized she had a website with different workout plans laid out so that you know which videos to follow along with each day . It was here that I stumbled upon just what I needed, my holy grail: the “ 2 Weeks Shred Challenge.” What could go wrong?

Let me just start off by saying that these workouts are actually great. Ting offers full-body exercises that only require an exercise mat and does the workouts with you in real time. She offers low-impact alternatives for those who have neighbors (hello, college students in apartments/dorms). She also has a bar at the top of each video that shows how far along in the workout you are, and a clock in the corner that counts down the seconds each exercise requires. Oh, and she also has an up-beat playlist going in the background of each video.

Did I look shredded at the end of the two weeks? No, of course not. The workouts are definitely high-intensity, and doing multiple a day according to the schedule made for a really sweaty hour, but abs did not form on my stomach. My arms did not start rippling with muscle. My legs did not become defined like a ballerina’s. I went to the beach looking just the same as I had before I decided to do the workout.

But did I feel healthier? Oh, yes! I woke up with more energy, and even though I would feel like I could not make it another second in the middle of the workout that day, I would look forward to it the next day. I felt stronger, and I began noticing how I could complete certain exercises that I had to give up on the first day. My endurance increased. Best of all? I had a routine in the midst of a pandemic and the dog days of summer, one that was good for my mental and physical health.

So, no, you will not get abs in two weeks with these workouts, or suddenly look like a bodybuilder after a month of exercise. You will get stronger, however, and paired with a healthy diet, you can reach the results you are looking for. It just takes a little more time, and the motivation to do it for you, not a vacation.