Maintaining consistency with an exercise program
I often hear clients express frustration, when they are unable to maintain a consistent schedue of exercise/activity for themselves. As we discuss the situation and dig a little deeper, I often hear the folllowing:
“ I just got busy with work/life”
“ Family issue/situations arose”
“ My kids have been really busy with…”
“ I am planning…”
All of the above are legitimate. Life does keep moving forward. The common theme with almost all of the situations that often prevent us from sticking to our orginal exercise plan, is the amount of emotional labour expended in our lives recenty has been significant. All of the above examples may not have been terriby taxing physically, but they do involve a lot of mental energy expenditure. Look at the following by way of example: planning a small holiday…
think about destination options; discuss with family or travel companion
consider viable & safe options given current pubic health guidelines/restrictions
investigate and review public health restrictions in this location
what venues are open; are there restrictions to consider
investigate accomodation options; possibly communicate with a few
finaize travel dates, accomodation, pre-book activities
make arrangement for pet care & yard care while away
arrange for work coverage while away…..
You get the idea. The list is varied and long. Yes, the above takes time, but more importantly it takes a lot of emotional labour to make it happen. Thinking, evaluating, perhaps increased stress. When our emotional labour is high it will affect our physical being. We often feel depeleted and lack the energy for any physical activity, and yet, physical activity and temporarily escaping our emotional stress, is just what we need. Sometimes though, the thought of completing a full exercise program or going to the gym is too much; it increases our stress even more. So, when these situations occur, how can you be more consistent with your well intentioned plan of regular exercise/movement? Have a back up plan, a plan B. This concept was introduced to me by Molly Galbraith, creator of Girls Gone Strong.
A back up plan is what you will do, when you can’t or don’t complete your planned exercise or activity. Your back up plan should be considerably easier (time & physical requirements) but involve some type of physical activity. Perhaps a 10 minutes walk, brief stretching session, 10 minutes of yoga, walk up and down the stairs 10 times. Your back up plan should use minimal equipment, be readily accessible and be physically comfortable for you to complete. Having and completing a back up plan allows you to still complete some type of movement, be in control & feel empowered. Often clients will tell me, they went for a 10 minute walk, but it easily stretched into a 20 minute walk once they started. Their body and mind felt better once they started to move.
Our mind is a powerful thing and often we can become caught in a cycle of expending large amounts of emotional energy day after day, and neglecting the physical needs of our body; exercise and nutrition. Accept that this will happen, show yourself grace & patience and have a back up plan. We all need a plan B sometimes.
