Going through times of low passion? Mind wandering and losing focus? Perhaps you are traveling and want to train, but not sure what to do or how to do it, or struggling to find time? We all have to deal with times like this and it’s my hope this helps to find YOUR solution as well as gives you the reasoning to just train and “let” things be less structured.
Even though you may not be necessarily progressing the load on the bar, or the number of reps you can perform for a time, doesn’t mean you’re not progressing. In the grand scheme of things, just going to the gym and doing the program and getting the repetitions in, is progress.
I use the term compound interest a lot. With every training session, you’re putting pennies in the bank, you’re doing something. Sure, with a workout where you aren’t at your best, demotivated, going through a tough patch, training around injuries, or having to cram multiple sessions into a few days, you might not be putting dollars in the bank, but even pennies add up over time. I call that building your compound interest.
In times where you are losing motivation and struggling, be it contest preparation or a tough time in your life, it’s important to view just getting to the gym as progression. There’s always going to be times like this. You’re going to find there will be times when you’re not as focused on your training as you could be. Shoot, that happens to me weekly! Sometimes I watch a football game or help my son with a paper in between sets. Other times, I’m completely focused, thinking about the next set or even next block of training in between sets.
The big thing to keep in mind is that when things are not ideal, you must adapt your training to the environment. If you are traveling for example, and training in a gym you aren’t accustomed to, you still know the repetition targets, so use RPE to help you estimate loads. If you can maintain the overall purpose of the program, even though it might not be perfect, that’s okay. Remember we aren’t after perfection, just progression, so do the best you can with the hand that life has dealt you at any given time. There will be a time soon where you can get back to your structured outline, where you can get back to tracking and seeing progress in a quantifiable way. But remember, even when you can’t see progress in a quantifiable way, that doesn’t mean you aren’t putting in the work that will lead to progress. Hell, even when you are following your structured plan you may find yourself grinding away without much visible progress for a few weeks. Then, you find that the numbers do start going up. That progress didn’t just happen overnight, the work you were putting in during the weeks prior to the visible increases are what got you there. The same thing applies when you are traveling, or away from your normal environment, or going through a tough patch. If you can keep the goal the goal, push yourself just enough, and stay consistent, even if it isn’t “perfect”, the numbers will eventually show the fruit of your labors once you’re back to your normal environment.
Remember, so long as times like these are the exception and not the rule, brief periods like these are normal and will NOT deter us at all. The only real sin would be giving up and not doing anything. Trust me, while you may not feel like training, training can be like your anchor in a storm, because without it you would be even worse off.
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