What do you do when you are burnt-out?

Burnout. It happens to everyone. Work, relationships, hobbies, and definitely when it comes to exercise. For some, burnout happens after the excitement wears off, the results aren’t happening as fast as you expected, or you have been doing the same thing for too long. We all experience it, so how do we deal with it?

I am always talking about results coming from consistency. When I started working out I would be focused and motivated for three to six months and then I would stop for a week which would lead to several months, and I went through this vicious cycle for several years. As you should expect, I never got any real results from this (at least that stuck) and a lot of it came from burnout, my burnout was from doing the same thing over and over.

Switch it up, find a new routine, or a routine that offers more variety. You might be following the best program in the world but if you are not into it you won't get the results you want. Effort is a huge part of results and allowing a program to work. As much as I hate to admit it, even a bad program can work, as long as you believe in it and put your effort into it you can see positive results.

Workout with friends or a group of people. As someone who truly enjoys exercising, even I have days that I am not feeling it. But, if my training partner or partners are there, usually one of them is ready to go and they can help push through the rough days. Try out a group class and see what you think if you have not tried one. There is something magical about another person or people being in the same room doing the same thing as you- it doesn’t even matter if their abilities or goals are not aligned with yours, I guarantee you will work harder than you did by yourself.

Set a new goal or focus. Pick a skill, movement, lift, anything and focus your energy on getting better at it. Become the best at body weight movements (those people doing amazing body weight tricks on internet have spent countless hours working their way up to those skills), spend more time on weightlifting and the finer details of the lifts, focus on becoming a better runner, or learn how to swim for example. Learn, research, practice on your own or find a coach and apply it in the gym.

Tried all these? Sign up for a race of some kind of competition. Try a local 5k, a sprint triathlon, a fitness competition, a weightlifting meet, a half marathon, an obstacle course race, a mud race, or a group challenge. These are just handful of the many opportunities that people are participating in every weekend. Some of us have general goals which can make training daily become a challenge and signing up for an event will refocus your goals and add motivation to your training. Pick something that will challenge you, maybe even scare you a little! Signup several months in advance and get training.

Remember- fitness and health is about consistency, and burnout can affect consistency by throwing us off our routine and get back into lazy habits. It happens to all of us, but the key is finding a way to get through the rough patch. There are countless ways to exercise and get healthy, find one that you are excited about and you will see results.

Looking for guidance or for a positive place to start or continue your fitness journey. At Defiance West we offer one on one personal training and group classes that are appropriate for all fitness levels. Contact us today to get started at cory@defiancegym.com

...Next week look for our article on how to make time in your busy schedule for exercise.