The dangers of a few weeks off

For many of us, summer is the best time of the year! We get to spend more time outside, reconnect with family, enjoy delicious food, and soak up nature. With these incredible opportunities also comes ready- made excuses to stop taking steps toward our goals. 

I want you to think back to when you first started working out at Rise. Did you think you would still be here today? If you’re anything like me, the first few weeks of a new program or working out at a new gym can be intimidating, especially when you factor in the intensity of the workouts and the demands they place on your body. You made it over the hump and pushed through those barriers, and now you’ve found your groove. It’s easy to stay consistent with something you are already doing, but if you take a few weeks off, it will be tough to get yourself back into the gym. And as you might expect, all the progress you’ve made won’t stick around while you are not working out. Once you take a few weeks off, it’s easy to throw in the towel and go completely off course with what you are working towards in the gym. 

I want to acknowledge all the extra barriers that might exist for you during the summer. You may be hosting family who are filling up your time, taking the weekends off to go to the lake, or hosting barbecues with lots of delicious food. What other things will be coming up for you this summer that will make it a challenge to get your workouts in at Rise and stick to the goals you set?

Now that we’ve talked about some of the challenges that summer can present, let’s revisit why you go to the gym in the first place. If you are a 5:00, 6:00, or 7:00 am goer, what gets you out of bed in the morning? How about those of you who fit in a session after a long day at work? Why do you make time in your day to move your body? If you are able to identify this and keep it front and center in your brain as we head into the summer, it will help you stay consistent and continue to work towards your goals. 

My challenge for you is to make it to three sessions each week. You might have to move some things around in your schedule or fit in a morning workout before you head out of town, but your body will thank you. My mom had a great piece of advice when I was telling her about the topic for this blog. She said, “If you are doing something good for your body and mind, it is so much easier to just keep doing that thing instead of taking a break and trying to start back up again.” We’ve all probably experienced this before, even on a day-to-day basis. For example, if you have a post-exercise endorphin rush, you’re likely to feel proud of yourself and make more mindful food choices throughout the day. However, if you skipped your workout, you might end up feeling guilty about it, make poor food choices, and essentially throw in the towel on making healthy choices for the rest of the day. 

There will be weeks where you only get one or two workouts in, and during those weeks I encourage you to still get outside and move your body. Whether you are swimming, taking a walk around a park, playing a game of Pickleball with a friend, getting a jog in, etc., you need to simply find a way to keep moving your body. Then you can get right back to it the following week and challenge yourself to get one more workout in. 

Now that you’ve been properly convinced to stay consistent this summer, put your phone down, go enjoy the sunshine, and we’ll see you in the gym!