No Weekdays, Only Strong Days
As we get into this third week of Shreduary at Coachman Training Systems, the doldrums of winter are trying to bring us down, but there is a way to get out of your rut. I am guessing you know what it is, if you know me and know what I am about…lifting heavy stuff, raising your heart rate and making yourself uncomfortable via exercise! You know working out is that thing that you constantly put off because your bed is comfy, you drank too much last night, you would rather go out to eat, and/or you just simply hate working hard to get the results you really want! The average person lasts one month, when they start working out. Some last two weeks. Consistency and sticking to a schedule can be rough, but it is necessary. Here are some tips to help you achieve long-term results, for A LIFETIME, not for the upcoming beach season, but for the rest of your life.
1. 3x52: Let’s be honest here. We see every type of person at Coachman. 8 year olds to 81 years old, tall, short, skinny, overweight, strong, weak, out of shape, in shape, injured, etc. One thing that remains true is that the most consistent individuals are the ones that are constantly changing their bodies for the better. The individuals that take weeks off at a time (they still work out on vacation or when they travel for work) are the ones that continue to look the same. Tony Gentilcore (a fitness stud) once said that you should think about this scheme for life, 3x52. 3 days of working out, every week, for 52 weeks. There should never be a week that goes by that you simply don’t move. That doesn’t mean you need to workout for 2 hours, 3 days a week. That means you MOVED, you STRETCHED, you MADE YOURSELF WORK HARD for any duration, 3 times a week. It is too easy to sit around and wish for our bodies to feel better, look better and fit in our clothes better. We are all inherently lazy and mentally weak, myself included. I would love to sit around and eat pizza, sleep in every day, watch Netflix, but I know that if I do that, I will hate myself and hate how I feel.
2: Planning: Thinking about our future or plan ahead is another tough thing to do. Some people can’t even remember to bring their own water bottle to the gym, let alone plan out their week to fit in a workout. This should be one of your largest priorities. Simply winging your week-to-week schedule and not making workouts a priority means you will NOT see results. Same thing applies with your diet and meal planning. Winging your diet will cause failure. Knowing what you should eat and keeping it in line with what you want your results to be, will bring results. Jackie is amazing at this. She has a simple plan. She eats amazing and hardly strays away. If she goes out for dinner, she sticks to her plan. She doesn’t say to herself, “I worked out hard today, so I am going to get this triple cheeseburger!”
3: Know WHY you are training/working out.This translates into: you need a goal, a destination for your journey. Without one you are left to wander. Pick a goal, chart a course, keep your head down and get it!
4: Don’t fall for the Secret Grenade Programs. This is what happens late at night when you are scrolling through Facebook and you see someone mention an item that worked for them, but what they didn’t tell you is that this secret program will help you become the most unhealthy person on the planet because you are going to go on intermittent fasting 23 hours a day, while wearing a waist trimming belt and then you are going to eat four sticks of butter that one hour you can eat. Stick to the basics. If you don’t know what the basics are, then you need to give me a call NOW. 5: You need to make your warm up/prehab a priority. Warming up is key to raising core temperature and getting the muscles, tendons and fascia warm. You are warming up because you are preparing to train.
6:Live your life like a farmer, compared to a bartender.Farmers go to bed when the sun goes down and wake when the roosters crow. Bartenders hang out with drunks, don’t go to bed till 3 or 4 in the morning and sleep all day.
Lastly, we want you to live long, happy lives. Being out of shape and overweight does not bode well with that statement. I rarely see individuals that are overweight live past 65. They are like seeing a baby pigeon (Thanks Dennis). They are a rarity. Take that age into account for how old you are now. We all have an expiration date, but I am hoping we all end up being like the items we throw in the freezer to live longer than the expiration date states. Only way to do that is to make a plan and stick to it. Stop skipping your workouts or simply just choosing junk food because it is easy to grab or “tastes good”. BE STRONG (physically and mentally), EVERYDAY!
