Don't Beat Yourself Up!
Have you ever had a time in your life when even a short 15 minutes is just too much to spare?
This last week has been hectic! I am starting something new at work and home life is already busy during the summer. We are taking the kids to various activities, and with them home, there is more mess which means more cleaning and tidying. There was a funny commercial growing up that said back to school is the most wonderful time of the year! As a kid I disagreed, but I definitely agree as a parent!!
All of this is to say that sometimes we are just so busy that we cannot squeeze in that 15 minutes every day to work out. I found myself in that position this week. In fact, this week I have only worked out twice!
Shame on me! But wait… this is life. Sometimes issues come up that are simply all consuming. So I want to tell you don’t get discouraged and fall off the bandwagon. These things happen. But what remains more important is that you persevere to get back up and keep going.
Here are some tips to keep your momentum for those weeks when all you can manage is a couple of workouts:
Repeat the full body workout. This way you get the biggest bang for your buck by focusing on whole body training rather than individual body parts.
Keep up with your eating regime. Do your best to maintain your fast if you are fasting. This will help to mitigate the lack of exercise.
Try to walk. It can be tempting to drive, take the bus, Uber etc., but if you cannot work out at least by walking you are still moving your body!
Keep your water intake high. I struggle with this too, but try to drink at least 2 litres a day.
If you are staying up late like me, that becomes a killer for nighttime snacking. Instead of sweets and carbs, try one of these if you do need to eat something to stay up:
Protein shake
Boiled eggs
Popcorn
Water
Fruit
And if everything falls to pieces anyway… just get back up and keep going. Obviously this is not ideal or even desirable and if you are like me, then you will be upset! But the worst thing any of us can do is dwell on it. As much as I love working out, my family is more important and what I have to do for them simply needs to get done first.
I will end by saying this: our workout and fitness and goals are important, but they aren’t the most important. Ultimately, it is how we meet the core responsibilities of life like our commitments to family, work and friends, and how we care for our own spiritual and mental well-being that is of paramount importance. This workout journey is designed to complement those priorities and give you the best possible results while meeting your most important obligations. So when things get out of control, don’t stress! Just get up again tomorrow and make it work for you.