Each week we are blessed with the opportunity to start fresh with a brand-new week. The sins of our weekends are washed away with the ringing of our alarm and we get another shot at being our best selves by serving up an awesome Monday.
In reality, most of us don't feel that way, not even me. My alarm goes off on Monday morning and I'm left with a choice: stay in bed and delay the inevitable by snoozing the alarm until I HAVE TO get up, or roll over, get in motion and start chipping away at my rituals and responsibilities for the day.
The first thing I do before ANYTHING happens is make our bed. Sure, I can just wander into the bathroom and assume my wife will take care of it, but it's an easy WIN to knock off with little to no energy and it sets the ball rolling for the days' accomplishments.
Coffee and planning are on the docket next. Like most, I indulge in caffeine to get the gears going and I look at my day to see what appointments I have, what my priority tasks are and what gaps I have available to get my own training in.
Most people assume that since I own a gym, I get to work out all day or its just generally easier for me to do so but that is actually NOT the case. Yes, I do have a smaller activation barrier being that I have zero commute to the gym and there is fitness equipment constantly staring me down taunting me to play. Like you, my day gets filled overwhelmingly fast and all those opportunities to train get smaller and smaller with the blink of an eye.
What I can appreciate about fitness is that I'm not trying to change the world with every workout. My goal is to deposit more loose change ($) into my fitness "savings account" because frequent small deposits over the long haul will add up to a much bigger balance 1-2 years from now. By making small, regular investments now I can prevent having to take large withdrawals down the line, like healing an injury that will set me back.
If I don't feel like getting my workout in, I think of it as a job…..a job that feels fulfilling and rewarding. Regardless of what my occupation is, I cannot expect any progress, growth, financial or emotional reward if I skip every Monday and show up sporadically at best. No manager is going to reward an employee who isn't consistently producing let alone consistently coming into work.
Making change whether it be building a new habit or changing a bad habit begins with our Gym Rule #1….. SHOW UP. If you don't show up, how can you expect anything else to happen. Yes, as adults we have the ability to rationalize anything but we will discuss that on a deeper level next week.
If you feel like you are in a rut, you are not alone. At EDX, we help out members with regular goal setting meetings to help create a plan of action and to keep you on track. How will you hold yourself accountable?