Weekly Workouts + How to Stay Motivated

I’m using this week’s Friday Favorites as a way to share my workouts. I have no idea if you guys want to see this but figured since I did some traveling and time out of the gym this week it might be helpful for you. If you like seeing this kind of stuff let me know I’m happy to post more of what I do because as the running joke goes with my friends…

“I’m like really into fitness” – Sassy

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A Bump in The Road to Fitness

I had a moment at the gym last Friday. It was one of those moments where I felt like I could completely blow up, crumble, cry or just laugh. The good news is I’m in a good spot with my fitness that I just laughed. I was lifting weight (doing a Squat Snatch to be exact) and everything was going wrong, I mean everything. You know how that just happens sometimes (apply this to any aspect of your life)? Yeah it was a trainwreck at best.

I had a few options, as always. I could keep going & push through it, get frustrated & be defeated by it, OR go home and rest the body like it was telling me to do. While all options were on the table, the third option was the most logical. A few years ago I may not have been able to do such a thing but the more I get in tune with my body and respect it instead of punishing or belittling it, the better I get at my recovery, fitness and overall confidence.

It wasn’t that I was a bad athlete or that I had failed something terribly. It was honestly just that I was having an off day, and hey that’s okay. The issue becomes when we let it get the best of us OR we quit. So I felt my motivation wavering and I decided to take a weekend off from the gym, it was much needed but unfortunately, I can still feel that notion of “why do I do this again?!” When you feel yourself get to this point it’s good to acknowledge it and move forward as opposed to ignoring it and letting the fitness get away from you.

Motivators Everywhere

Here’s the thing you have to find motivation even when it’s not 100% clear. My motivation at the end of the day is that I want to be fit and healthy for as long as possible. I want to be able to run, hike, skip, cartwheel, etc. until I’m in my 90s. However, that is not always the thing that motivates me day to day. It certainly should be what motivates me, but for the short-term, I need to draw on other sources of motivation.

Some of my favorite motivators:

1. Friends. Find a group of people who are willing to call you out when you haven’t worked out in a day (yes, mine are brutal in the best way possible).
2. People around you. I didn’t want to work out the other morning, but after watching the athletes I was coaching, I gained motivation from their motivation. I worked out later and although I didn’t want to I remembered what one athlete told me “the hardest part is over, we showed up!” Yeah, there’s something to that, just showing up is a huge part of the battle…
3. Performance goals. This is one that ebbs and flows for me but when I have a performance goal in mind it motivates the heck out of me. Right now, I don’t have any performance goals and I’m thinking this is a wake-up call to set some goals for myself.
4. Aesthetics/Feelings. Okay I hate to rely on this one and don’t often do it but hey we’re all human and sometimes you need to know that what you’re doing in the gym is paying off. I tend to focus on my shoulders, back, & lats. As far as feelings I don’t mean the mushy gushy ones that make you emotional, I mean the feel-good feels you get after working out aka endorphins.
5. Schedule/Routine. Sometimes the motivators and motivation are just not there. So what do we do?! We schedule whatever we need to get the work done and make it a routine. For me, I do that with food and fitness all the time. Make fitness and food an appointment that you can’t miss!
6. Quotes. Ever walked into a gym and wondered why there are seemingly meaningless quotes scrawled across the wall? Well, for some people, these quotes are enough to inspire them, especially if they were said by an icon of theirs. If you’re lucky enough to have a home gym, get your favourite quote turned into a neon sign using a site like www.neonfilter.com. You might be surprised by how much it motivates you every time you read it.
7. Yourself. This for me tends to be the hardest thing but you are allowed to be your own motivator. You are allowed to encourage and empower yourself to be better at whatever it is you want. Give yourself that power and run with it. I don’t feel like I have this one right now with my fitness and I’m hoping by relying on the others it will come back!

This Week’s Workouts

I found the motivation through friends, others, and schedule/routine this week. Let’s see what I did for my workouts and whether they have the potential to get your pecs huge, improve your overall health and wellbeing, as well as helping you on your way to achieving your fitness goals. Don’t forget to let me know below if you like seeing this.

Saturday

Active Recovery: ~ 3-mile jog + light squats (5×5 back squat)

Just needed to move 🙂

Sunday

At Home Workout (inspired by Carrots ‘n’ Cake & PaleOMG)

Warm up:

3 rounds
10 dumbbell (DB) deadlifts
10 bent over DB row
10/side single leg jump onto stair
20 kb Russian swing
20 box jump overs
20 weighted glute bridge
15 leg raises
10 hamstring walkouts/ins

Workout:

100 air squats
90 ab mat sit-ups
80 alternating lunges
70 burpees
:60 plank
50 KB Russian swings (44lb)
40 push ups
30 hollow rocks
20 light RDL (18lb kb) + pistol
10 strict pull-ups
(finished around 23 minutes)

Monday

CrossFit Aevitas Workout

5-3-1+ Front Squats
(135-145-165@3 reps)

For Time
100 Alternating DB Snatch To Front Squat (35s)
50 Strict Pull-Ups
25 Handstand Push-Ups
(finished at 16:15)

Tuesday

9/11 Tribute WOD

For Time:
2001m Row
11 Box Jumps 30?
11 Thrusters 85#
11 Burpee Chest to Bar Pull-ups
11 Power Cleans 120#
11 HSPUs
11 KB Swings 53lbs
11 Toes to Bar
11 Deadlifts 120#
11 Push Jerks 85#
2001m Run (1.25 miles)
(finished @ 27:45)

Wednesday

CrossFit Aevitas Workout

5-3-1+ Push Press
(105, 125, 135 @ 2 reps)

6 rounds
500m row
10 back rack lunges @95#
10 Toes-to-bar
(finished at 21:49)

Thursday

Rest Day.

A day like this will still entail walking the dog and staying active but no intentional workouts or intense exercise. I will be at Expo East drooling over the food and probably getting as many samples for time, so I guess we could call this active recovery.

Friday

TBD.

I will be at Expo East this Thursday-Saturday so I may try and sneak a workout in but not really worried about it since I will be on my feet all day and prioritizing finding new and old brands alike to partner with!

Find your motivation and your why and be okay with it changing over time! What do your weekly workouts look like!? Let me know below and let me know if you are interested in me posting more about this.

xoxo,

Sassy