When You Just Don't Feel Like Working Out

Appetizer
Make it to the gym more often.

Main Course
Some days, you just won’t feel like working out. Maybe you haven’t been able to get as much sleep as you need or you've been having some stress at work or in your personal life. No matter the reason, sometimes you just aren’t in the mood for moving and sweating. Whenever this happens to you, try these strategies for working up the desire to hit the gym:

Remind Yourself of Your Goals - Start thinking about why you started exercising in the first place and what the end results will be. Do you want to lose a certain amount of weight? Get more toned? Have more energy? A quick reminder of why exercise is important to you can be just the motivation that you need to eek out another set of reps.

Plan on Reducing Your Workout – If you feel that you won’t have the energy to do your complete routine, tell yourself that you will just do half of the work out. If you usually jog four miles, plan on just doing two. If you are weight-training that day, focus on just doing the compound exercises while leaving out the isolation exercises. Once you get going, you might discover that you actually have the energy to do your full workout.

Don’t Go Next Time - Give yourself permission to skip the next work out but not this one. If the next work out rolls around and you still don’t feel like going, you actually might be doing yourself some good by skipping it. Feeling consistently turned off by exercise is usually a sign of overtraining, and giving your body more time to rest can actually help you reach your fitness goals faster.

Dessert
The trickiest part of any exercise plan is motivation. You can know all of the exercises and the proper techniques, but if you aren't inspired enough to get to the gym, it won’t do you much good. Figure out what motivates you most, and make sure that you use that motivation to hold yourself accountable for regular physical activity. I'm not opposed to an occasional self-bribe either. It goes something like this, "If I workout at least 4 times this week, I'm going to treat myself to a spa pedicure next Friday after work." Just make sure that your rewards are not food-based, and you'll be good to go.

About Cafe Physique:
The mission of Café Physique is to help clients reach and exceed their personal fitness and nutrition goals. If you’re in need of an a nutritionist in Atlanta or an Atlanta personal trainer – Café Physique is the perfect solution. We offer Atlanta yoga instruction, Atlanta prenatal workouts, and Atlanta personal training. We also have private sessions of pilates that Atlanta residents are raving about. We invite you to let a member of our Atlanta registered dietitian staff or personal training team develop and implement a realistic and healthy lifestyle plan to meet your personal goals.

Jogging 101

Appetizer
Learn the best way to run to make your cardio as effective and injury-free as possible.

Main Course
Running or jogging is fantastic way to get your heart pumping and burn fat, but a large number of people don’t know how to do it properly. I know what you’re thinking: there’s actually a wrong way to run? Well, yes, actually. Like any exercise, you have to learn the proper technique if you expect to get the most benefit out of your jogs.

Don’t Slap Your Feet - Stomping on the ground on every step will just put a lot of stress on joints and make you run slower. The heel of your foot should be the first thing to touch the ground, and every step should be a smooth rolling motion.

Stand Up Straight - A lot of people, especially in the last few exhausting minutes of a jog, tend to slouch. If you keep your spine erect, you will get the most out your cardio by working to keep your core stable.

Pay Attention to How You Swing Your Arms - Really moving your arms to the rhythm of the run will help you burn more calories. It might also encourage you to bring your knees up more, which will burn even more calories.

Double Knot Your Shoes - It stinks to have to stop in the middle of run to re-lace your sneakers. Make sure you invest a really good pair of running shoes and lace them tightly before you go out.

And as always, take a bottle of water with you to make sure to keep hydrated.

Dessert
For my clients who like to jog but have difficulty finishing those last five minutes, I sometimes suggest using mind games to push through that last leg. For example, they might imagine that a magnet is pulling them forward, or that they are running away from a predator. It might sound silly (and trust me, sometimes they feel silly doing it), but playing pretend can be a surprisingly effective way to stay in the fat burning zone.

Do What You Love

Appetizer

Why torture yourself with activities that you hate? Will that really cause you to work out more? Or will that just make you hate exercise and be resentful of the skinny toothpick girl in the cube next to yours? Spend MORE time doing things that you actually enjoy.

Main CourseTip #5
Find Classes and Activities You Like – If you don't enjoy what you do, you won't stick with it. Check out a variety of exercise classes and fitness activities to see what appeals to you.

Read the June 20, 2006 Cafe Physique posting on this page for more information: Forget About Flying Solo

Continue to check out Cafe Physique throughout the month of January to catch the remaining 5 tips!

Dessert
I don't like to run. I don't like to run. I don't like to run. So why do I keep trying to run? Especially because...I don't like to run. In 2007, there will be no running for me. That's it.

About Cafe Physique:
The mission of Café Physique is to help clients reach and exceed their personal fitness and nutrition goals. If you’re in need of an a nutritionist in Atlanta or an Atlanta personal trainer – Café Physique is the perfect solution. We offer Atlanta yoga instruction, Atlanta prenatal workouts, and Atlanta personal training. We also have private sessions of pilates that Atlanta residents are raving about. We invite you to let a member of our Atlanta registered dietitian staff or personal training team develop and implement a realistic and healthy lifestyle plan to meet your personal goals.