So yesterday was a scheduled workout day for me. I scheduled myself for an upper body workout that included shoulders, chest, abs, biceps and triceps. I am currently on an upper and lower body split routine. Yesterday was also a busy day as I had to travel to meet a potential new client and then had clients until 8 pm. Now, buy the time I could finally get MY workout in, I was gassed.
While I was tired, I knew I needed to get my workout it. It can almost become a religion to work out after 43 years of fitness training. How did I remedy this situation? I simply sat down and asked myself TWO simple questions. I asked myself, DO I NOT want to train because I am being lazy, or does my body NEED an extra day of rest? This can be the key to success for you to have a successful healthy lifestyle.
You see, there is a difference between being “lazy” or unmotivated and your body saying, “I need a break.” This is what you have to determine. As I stated earlier in this post, I am currently on and upper/lower body split routine. That simply means on day one of the week, I train my upper body and on day two of the week I train my lower body. Then I take a day off and repeat and the last two days I take off. I then repeat over and over, however if I feel I need an extra day off I take it and then get back into the cycle the next day.
While that sounds simple, some days I really push myself requiring more rest in between workouts. This should NOT be a problem with any split routines you use. That could even be a five day split of more, depending upon your goals.
So yesterday, I asked myself am I lazy or unmotivated or does my body need an extra of rest? It turned out, I was being lazy! So I forced myself to press on and get my workout in. In the end, it turned out to be a powerful workout where I went up in many exercises.
We all get lazy, and all of us who exercise MAY need extra rest. Listen to your body! That will be the key to your exercise progress. If you don’t want to work out, ask yourself why and be honest with yourself. If you are being lazy or unmotivated, then hit the weights or whatever exercise routine you had planned. If in your mind you say to yourself, NO I REALLY need an extra day off, take it! I have been personally training for over 43 years now, and this method of determining if I needed a break has worked since I was twelve years old. Most people that regularly have an exercise program stick to it like it is the gospel. You do NOT have to do that. Get in tune with your body and let IT tell you what is needed. Once you find that mind/muscle connection, you will truly start to improve your health and also your feeling of well being.
If you want to know more, go to garanfitnessconsulting.com, or FB at Garan Fitness Consulting or Garan Fitness Tactical Training. Additionally, you can find video guides on Youtube at Garan Fitness Consulting. If you wish to contact me, go to www.garanfitnessconsulting.com or Garan Fitness Consulting at 330-554-1345. I also do one on one and online training, so reach out to me if you are interested in learning more.
Scott