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Signs of a workout rut…

Posted by Jennifer Campoli on June 16th, 2010
Filed under Motivation, Workouts | 3 Comments »

Morning friends!

Enjoying your day so far? I've been waking up a tad earlier this week to get my workout over and done with, followed by a few hours of coffee, chat time and wedding work with my mom! It's been so awesome to spend so much time with her AND get a ton done!

So yesterday turned out to be kind of a bummer day. Nothing happened, nothing went wrong but I was just in a funk and frustrated with the world. Those are so tough! I found myself at 4pm irritable, feeling overwhelmed and stressed. I immediately said that it was time to finally workout and sweat some of this out. But a workout was the LAST THING in the world I wanted to do. The thought of pounding my body, feeling my heart rate rise and sweating had no appeal. Signal one Jenn. But I went into the bedroom, put on my workout clothes and headed into the living room to do my Insanity workout. I sat down on the couch and contemplated, procrastinated, wasted time. Signal number two. I got up, pushed play and literally stood in front of the TV as the workout began but didn't move. Signal number three.

Finally, I turned the TV off. I abandoned my workout efforts and knew that my body needed something else to release my stress and relax.

Ever have those moments? Do you ever find yourself wanting to do everything BUT workout? Even when you know how good it will feel?

Sometimes I push myself, workout and feel amazing afterwards. But yesterday…it was not in the cards.

I think I am slipping into a workout rut. I'm not surprised either. I've been following the Insanity program for 8 weeks now (an extra week thrown in there). After this week, there is only one week left and my body is getting tired.

How do you know when you are in workout rut?

1. Avoidance. You will do everything to avoid the gym or your run.

2. The idea of it has no appeal and almost has a negative tone to it.

3. You feel bored. No spark, no excitement.

4. Fatigue. Your body may simply feel tired, out of sorts and not energized.

How to get out of a workout rut?

1. Take a BREAK! Yesterday, only one day was all that I needed. It was an unplanned rest day. It threw off my schedule for Insanity entirely but I didn't care. I simply will carry on as the schedule calls for today.

2. Change it up. Do you still have 3 weeks left of your running schedule but running is the LAST thing you want to do? Well, try something new. Bike, spin, try yoga, take a group fitness class, take up rock climbing. Just take a few days and do something new and different.

3. Rethink your goals. Maybe you are challenging your body TOO much or maybe you aren't challenging your MIND enough. Make sure that your goals fit your needs, your desires and your likes. If they don't, rewrite them! Make fitness work for you.

4. Find what you truly love. Workouts are work. Sweating smells. Pushing your body can be uncomfortable. But the ONLY way you will fit exercise into your life, for the rest of your life is if you are doing things that you LOVE! And what you love may be different next month than it is today. Just make sure you are doing things that spark your mind and improve your motivation.

5. Sign up for a race. Give yourself a new deadline and a new focus. Get your friend to sign up with you! Becoming involved with events may be just what your body and your mind needs!

This morning I woke up, put on my workout clothes and had one of the best workouts I have had in a very, very long time. I felt incredible! One day was all that I needed. One day with no guilt, no "I should have," no shame. Just one day.

And now I'M BACK!

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