JiggaRoo

A groupon offered in Socal today inspired me to write this post.  The groupon featured the great deal shown below:

“If you went to work out the moment you thought about working out, you would be back by now”  - Nike

If you’ve been working out regularly, sooner or later you’ll hit that wall we fondly call “the workout rut” or “workout plateau”.  You’ve been using the same machines, going through the same routine, and every time you think about working out you have a long debate about it in your head (then end up on the couch).  Not only that, but you aren’t even losing any weight!  Is this you?

Common Symptoms of Rut-ville:

-  Working out doesn’t excite you the way it used to.
-  You usually get lost in your music or TV, but these days all you can think about is the clock, and how much longer you have on that treadmill.
-  You feel lethargic after working out and you’re tired all the time.

So how do you get out of this annoying predicament?

1.  Change up your routine. Variety is key to keeping your body challenged.  When I first started working out all I did was run because that’s what I was comfortable with, and that’s what worked for me.  I still love to run, and I hope I never stop, but it bores me to tears at times.

Recently, my friend asked me to take a bootcamp class with her.  I didn’t know if I’d enjoy it, but bootcamp has been surprisingly fun and challenging.  I’m not great at it, but it’s something new that my body enjoys.  That Groupon deal is also something my friend and I decided to do together.  Pole Dancing sounds craaazy and a little bit risque, but to each their own!  I’m excited to let loose and just go with it.  These activities are a welcome change from my first love – running.

This leads me to my next point…

2.  Find a Buddy! As a runner, I always preferred running alone.  These days, that mindset is changing.  I checked out a yoga studio with one friend and went to bootcamp with another.  At first I went for the chance to bond with the girls, but it’s also been a great way to keep me accountable to working out.  It’s hard to bail on a workout (no matter how lazy you are), when a commitment is made to a good friend.

3.  Do something you love. If you don’t love what you do, you’re not going to stick it out for the long run.  Kickboxing wasn’t for me, but yoga and bootcamp is.  You would never find me in a dance studio (two left feet at a dance studio?  Nuh-uh), but I’m all for a rough bike ride through the back country.  One workout doesn’t fit all.  Find the one that fits you.

4.  Rest. Sounds counterintuitive doesn’t it?  The workout world calls too much exercise overtraining.  Symptoms of overtraining include chronic fatigue, chronic muscle soreness, irritability, headaches, and an overall decrease in workout performance.  If you’re overtraining that means you’re not giving your body enough rest in between workouts.  Your muscles need time to recover.

Taxing out your body may even have the opposite affect on your fitness goals and actually stall weight loss.  The solution?  Take a week off if necessary and start fresh the next week, or make sure you incorporate recovery days in your week to prevent overtraining.

The bottom line? LISTEN TO YOUR BODY.  It will tell you what it needs.  Love it, nurture it, keep it healthy.  Treat it well and it will treat you well.