Everyone makes mistakes. It’s part of life.
Exercise just happens to be one of those areas where mistakes happen all of the time for many people.
Here’s one of the mistakes that I made when I first started getting serious about my health as a graduate student and mom. It was Exercising Instead of Training.
(My other mistake was thinking I could eat whatever I wanted and that working out would balance it out–but that’s another topic for another day).
What do I mean by exercising instead of training?
There’s a big difference between exercising and training. The vast majority of people simply exercise. Here are some common examples:
- The typical 60 min class that you find at gyms
- Spin sessions that last 20-30 minutes
- Follow-along workout vids
What do they all have in common? They get your heart rate up, and burn some calories. Which for some people is perfectly fine–I love that you are out there DOING something! But training is different.
Training is a dedicated effort performed for the purpose of accomplishing a long-term goal, a lifestyle. To get the most benefit out of exercise, you need to know WHY you’re doing it. Do you want to lose body fat? Do you want to build muscle? Do you want to improve performance? By how much? By when?
And most importantly, what are you going to do to get there?
You can’t just wing it.
You can’t expect to have measurable progress if you simply workout and do not have a plan. Every time you workout, you should know what you’re training that day, why you’re training it, and how much you’re training it. This way, you can have an objectively measurable way to determine if you are getting closer to your goal or further away from it.
As with all things in life, you need a process, not a random workout class that gets you sweating but no results.
I had to create a process for training for my lifestyle. Block scheduling has been a huge part of my success both physically and mentally. You can request free time blocking resources by emailing me at alex@dralexrosa.com
Many of you are in the same boat as me: kids, school, work, a home, a significant other, sick parents, and not a lot of time to exercise. So what’s a girl to do?
When I first started scheduling workouts 30 minutes a day, I thought that it wouldn’t be good enough, or I wouldn’t see results…but I wanted a lifestyle, one where I was physically active and sticking to it. Not going all out for a few days, then crashing…and then quitting and feeling bad.
My main goal was to just maintain progress. But let me tell you, I was shocked! Not only did I get leaner, but I also got stronger and built more muscle and flexibility than ever before! I was feeling so much energy and happiness, the vibes were flowing!
So I encourage you to record and document your own journey. You don’t have to post your updates on Instagram or Facebook. They should be first and foremost for YOU! Pictures are a great way to SEE how far you have come. But, I will say people are inspired when they SEE others who are just like them making REAL changes.
The bottom line is: figure out your vision, make a goal, create a routine for yourself to get you to that goal, stick to it, and document your progress!
Alex
