People seeking to heal their relationship and relationship with fitness is a theme that I have seen in my time as a fitness instructor.
Many people want to get rid of extreme, all-or-nothing behaviors and punitive exercise regimes. Instead, they want to enjoy their bodies and feel great again.
This article is designed for those who can relate and want to build a better relationship with fitness. Below are 6 healthy habits of people who exercise in a balanced way.
1. You decide what terms you prefer
Sometimes, simple scheduling issues or conveniences can keep us from completing our daily workouts. You can exercise where you like and when it suits your schedule. Everybody has their own opinion on where and when you should exercise, but yours is the most important.
It doesn’t really matter what you do, whether you run outside, on the treadmill, or in the evening. You can also strength train at home or in the gym with dumbbells or bodyweight. It doesn’t matter how you train.
Find what works for you and then work around it! Working out on your terms will make you a lot more productive.
2. Find out what workouts you like
To make them stick, you have to enjoy what you do! Running is not something you can hate and expect to make it a part of your daily routine. It’s easy to become ensnared in a routine that doesn’t fit with our ideas, fitness trends, or even our own idealism.
You may have stopped enjoying your exercise routine. Instead, think about what makes you happy and what brings you joy. There is no one way to achieve your fitness goals. There are many activities that can help you get moving for the day.
Sometimes it can be difficult to find the right thing. You might find yourself in this situation. Think back to your childhood to recall the best ways you moved back then. Perhaps you were a fan of swimming, soccer, or rolling around in the neighborhood.
These aren’t the same as structured cardio exercises we’re used to, but they can be a fun and effective way to get a good cardio workout. Find the activities that bring you joy.
These outdoor workouts are great for anyone who wants to have fun!
3. Mix it up with your workouts
The best exercise relationships are those that combine high and low-impact activities, cardio and strength, lower, and upper-body, with varied workouts. Although it might not be what you are looking for, a general balance in your exercise routine will decrease your chance of injury and make you more able to do the things you love.
Being a college track athlete, I can honestly say that early morning weights and after-hours stretches were not my favorite parts of the week. They were important things that I knew I had to do to keep my body healthy, avoid injury, and improve my performance on the track. So I went.
To encourage you to have more balance in your life, use your passion for what you love to do. If running is your passion, but strength training is not something you enjoy, then find a strength-training program specifically for runners.
If you can see the direct benefits it will have on the parts of your routine that you enjoy, you will be more motivated to mix things up.
4. You can rest for days
You know when to stop sweating! You can’t have too many good workouts. Both mentally and physically, rest is as important as work.
It is important to allow the body to rest to allow it to adapt and recover. Regular rest days will allow tired muscles and your body to recover and be ready for the next workout.
I recommend at least one day of rest per week.
5. Do not work out to eat, eat to work out
If I could get a dollar for every time someone said ‘I earned these tacos or ‘I do this for the donuts,’ then I would be rich!
You don’t need food to motivate you to exercise. For survival, our bodies need a minimum of calories. Exercise requires more energy.
It is important to see food as fuel, not an enemy when we include exercise in our daily lives. To maximize your calories and power up your workouts, focus on a healthy whole food diet.
For best results, you will also need to ensure that you’re eating healthy foods before and after your workouts.
6. Be patient with yourself
It takes time to build a healthy relationship with your fitness. Your fitness philosophy is not something you can build in one day. You are constantly changing and learning about yourself.
Do more of what makes you happy and keeps you coming back for more. You’ll be closer to a healthy relationship and fitness if you can do that.
This post was written by Darryl Johnson, Co-Owner of Apex performance. At Apex performance we are a community of highly trained experts looking to provide performance enhancement and a permanent lifestyle change for our clients in a fun and interactive environment. Members can take advantage of youth sports performance training near me, one-on-one training, small group classes, and specialized courses for a wide variety of athletics, sports training, and body goals!