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Life happens, motivation comes and goes, and we can all tend to fall into the occasional workout slump. I'm here with EIGHT TIPS to help you work your back to prioritizing your physical and mental health. Let's dive in!
To try a free week of my signature Fit for Hiking program to get you fit from the trails (gym AND at-home options) start HERE.
To try a free week of my signature Fit for Hiking program to get you fit from the trails (gym AND at-home options) start HERE.
For next level fat loss strategies, hormone/gut health help, serious performance goals and unparalleled support, apply for Mountain Metabolic coaching. Learn more HERE.
For more free wellness resources, hiking/travel guides, and other blog posts, check out my website HERE.
What is Fit for Hiking?
Where fitness and outdoors meet. In this space we chat all things hiking, exercise, wellness, adventure, motherhood, and metabolic health from a female perspective! Get ready to learn + be inspired to live your fullest, most adventurous life!
Hi, my name is Brady and I'm a longtime fitness professional and Midwest girl turned mountain living hiking addict. In combining my knowledge of fitness and passion for hiking, I've helped hundreds of women get lean and strong for the trails. Think of this as your one stop shop for both education and inspiration on all things female wellness, trail talk and adventure. Hiking, female metabolism, motherhood, nutrition, travel and fitness are all topics you'll hear discussed here. If you are outdoorsy and active, looking to level up your health, unlock your potential, and become inspired to live your most vibrant life, you're in the right place. You're listening to the fit for hiking podcast. 1s Hello and welcome back to the fit for Hiking podcast. I am so excited to be with you guys today and chatting about a topic that I've actually been personally experiencing some of lately, and that is what to do in an exercise slump. Or if you're just kind of in a rut with your routine, struggling to do the things that maybe you sometimes even enjoy, what do we do in those situations? And I've been in, I would say, kind of my own personal routine and fitness rut off and on for a while now since having juniper, and so I thought it would be kind of prevalent to talk about it, because it's something that I've been currently experiencing and kind of experimenting with some different ways to get myself out of this, still trying to show up and do the things that I know are so important for my physical and mental health, but not necessarily feeling the exact same excitement and motivation and joy around those activities that I normally do. So, you know, if we're being real, we aren't going to carry the exact same excitement and motivation for exercise in all seasons of life. Inevitably, there are going to be times when we're more fired up than others. Even for like, you know, people like myself who have spent a really good majority of their lives building these good habits, exercising and enjoying it, like, there really hasn't been a time in my life when I haven't been an active person. I started working out with my mom when I was super young, just to jump in and do some fun at home workouts with her, because I thought it was fun to to do that with her, and that really sparked my joy for it. And I was always in sports and I was always in gym classes and and I actually really always have liked it. So, you know, even individuals who are quote unquote fitness people still are going to probably experience these from time to time. So. Just here to say that it is normal and common. It's honestly to be expected. 1s So don't feel like there's something wrong with you if you are experiencing one of these fitness slumps. Because humans are not static, nor are our lives were very dynamic. Things are always shifting and changing, and our priorities and interests and excitement around things are going to change. You know, one day you're in your 20s with plenty of time to work out, and then the next you're struggling to find even ten minutes for yourself each day between work, kids, exhaustion, and other responsibilities, I can personally say I'm there. Like, if that's where you're at right now, I get it. I'm experiencing it for the first time in my life. You know, I used to kind of think I would be a person who worked out no matter what. Nothing would change my routine because I had the habits so dialed in. And while it's so true that. Having those habits prior to like a big life event, like having kids is so important because they're going to carry you through at least somewhat in this hard season of so many things shifting. But I can't say that my, you know, rock solid routine has remained through this process, and that's normal. So, you know, and having my daughter juniper last year, it's really given me a deeper respect for people who do continue making these healthy exercise and lifestyle choices a priority after having kids, because I really can tell you firsthand that it is not easy. So here are some of the other life situations other than just having kids. Maybe you're like, okay, I don't have kids. I don't really relate to that yet or not going to happen. For me, that's totally fine. There are a lot of other life situations that can lead to lacking motivation or just kind of getting into a workout slump, so things like pregnancy and new parenthood are obvious ones. Also, things like anxiety, depression, mental health issues, or having a, you know, some sort of season where you're really wrestling with your mental health, big life changes. These are going to be things such as moving or even relocating to a new place, a job change, getting married, getting divorced. Things like grief. Grief can have an immense impact on our motivation to do the things that even we really do enjoy doing. Similar to, you know, anxiety and depression, overwhelm and burnout and even just boredom in our routine. So there's a lot of different things that can contribute to getting out, of falling out of love. I guess with exercise for certain seasons, or just having a hard time maintaining a schedule that has worked for you in the past. So now I want to kind of get into the solutions because obviously these things are going to happen. Our lives are going to change so many times we're going to experience so many different seasons. So what can we do about this? Yes, we can acknowledge that this is a reality, but how do we continue to prioritize our physical and mental health, which is so linked to exercise during these times? Because oftentimes the times when we don't want to be doing it are the times that we really should the most, because we're usually struggling a little bit mentally or just experiencing a big identity shift or something of that nature. So being tethered to these healthy habits can be so, so beneficial, even when it's a bit more of a struggle to make them happen. So I recommend trying out a few of these and seeing kind of what works for you in your current exercise slump. Some of these are for the person who is really super strict and currently just not enjoying the routine that you're in, and then some of these are going to be for the person who's struggling to stay consistent right now because of maybe one of the things I mentioned above. And it's important to note that, like throughout the ebbs and flows of life, one of these solutions might work really well for you. And then in another season of life, you might need to experiment with something else. I've definitely been going through these and experimenting with them since having juniper and some of the hurdles that I've experienced with her, which I think I'm going to do a whole nother episode on motherhood and fitness, because that's a whole different beast. So okay, let's get into the solutions. I have eight for you. So the first one is to change your workout environment. So prior to having Jenny, I really found that I loved going to either group classes or the gym and doing my own workouts, but I liked leaving the house and going and doing these things. However, when I had her, I realized very quickly that it really wasn't super realistic for me to be going to the gym all the time. Like I have such limited time. I don't have childcare very often, the childcare at the gym, I give it a try. It just wasn't great. The hours were kind of wonky with what I needed and I just realized, okay, this is almost a bigger barrier than it is, like a means for me to get fit. If I want to continue just doing what I can for my fitness, I might have to change the environment in which I usually work out and just do some at home stuff for now. Not to say I never go to the gym, but I would say right now. Honestly, I go to the gym maybe like 2 to 3, maybe four times a month. Like it's not super often. It really depends on the week, what's going on, if she's sick, how much childcare. We have a lot of different factors. So I had to really change my workout environment to set myself up for success. So really looking at with your new life changes or whatever's kind of causing your slump, is your workout environment creating more barriers for you, or is it an easy low barrier to entry type of situation? Because when we're facing a lot of different obstacles mentally or physically, whatever it might be, having a low barrier to entry is so important in order to just show up and do what we can, even if it's not perfect, even if it's not the best workout of your life. You know, obviously at the gym I have way more equipment. I like going to the gym. I like being able to use the different machines and equipment. You know, that's really awesome for my mental health. When I can do it, I love it, but it's not super realistic for me right now. So I have to kind of adjust and be willing to roll with it so that I can still do at least a few workouts a week at home instead of only working out, you know, 3 to 4 times a month, which would be so much worse on my health overall. Okay, the next one, number two, is removing some of your rigid guidelines around exercise. So usually in our minds we have kind of these guidelines of like this is a good workout. If I don't achieve x, y, z if it's only if it's not 30 plus minutes, if I'm not going to this specific environment, if I'm not drenched in sweat or superstore, some of these different things that we kind of equate to a either a good or not good workout, right? In our minds, some of these guidelines that we have around exercise, what I found is that deconstructing these has been absolutely essential for me in this season of life. And this is something that I talk about with my mountain Metabolic clients as well, when they find that they're just in a rut and they can't figure out why, they don't want to show up to their workouts in a certain season of life. So what this means, and what this can kind of look like on a practical level is looking at your workout. And if typically you say, okay, well, I would really need to do like a 40 minute workout in order to feel like that was successful. But you don't have time in the day to do a 40 minute workout. Then what? What would that look like? Could you potentially break that up into maybe ten minutes of the workout in the morning, ten minutes later in the day, or 20 minute workout and that be enough for you, and you spread your workout across two days. Instead of doing a 40 minute workout one day and then taking a rest day the next. Looking for ways to break it up differently and remove some of these strict guidelines. Even just having like five exercises that maybe you rotate through two times, like some really good foundational exercises such as goblet squats, push ups, a core move, you know, a reverse lunge, a deadlift of some sort, and then you just go through them a couple of times and maybe it only takes you ten minutes, but you're still stimulating your muscles, you're still keeping a habit alive. And something is always better than nothing. And that's, I think, a massive barrier for a lot of us is that we put these mental guidelines and rigidities on ourselves, and we think, if I can't do what I deem as a proper workout or the thing that I feel like is effective, then I'm not doing anything at all because it's not good enough. If we can remove that, then there's going to be again a lower barrier to entry, and we're going to find that we can still make progress sometimes without doing all the things that we think we need to be doing. I know personally, like I used to think that I needed to do, you know, 5 to 6 formal workouts that were like 40 minutes at least and a super long hike every week in order to maintain my fitness and be as lean as I wanted to be. And it was very eye opening for me when I did go through a time of pregnancy bedrest, postpartum and realized, hey, you know, I can actually maintain this physique pretty well and still get stronger and still get the mental health benefits and the physical benefits without working out as often as I used to think, I needed to. You know, now my workouts are more like maybe 3 to 4 times a week with more walking and things like that. But I'm not as rigid as I used to be. And guess what? I'm still the same weight that I was pre-pregnancy, and I still feel pretty good in my skin. No, I'm not like crushing PRS and I'm not doing the most that I can right now in the gym. But that's just not the season of life. That's not my priority right now. My priority is more of just maintenance. So just something to think about, if that's something that you tend to do, is kind of go to the all or nothing. So when it comes to your exercise all right. Number three is adding in a week or two. So this is especially if you're kind of falling into the camp of being really strict with your exercise. But you're just like not feeling it. Maybe you're extra tired right now. You're not enjoying things. You might need a break. Like oftentimes if you are that type of Type-A person, then you are pushing yourself to the max. You are not really taking a whole lot of off days, maybe even work out on your vacations. Sorry, a little bit of coffee there, but it's important to add loads for both the physiological and the physical benefits. Like there's so many benefits to taking a couple of weeks off of exercise. If it's something that you do super consistently, and I don't think that's talked about enough in the fitness space, like the whole no days off mentality is super big. But not only does this lead to like massive burnout, you're also going to not recover super well. It can lead to increased inflammation levels, not actually achieving the strength or like body composition metrics that you want because you're doing too much, which I've definitely like, very much experienced myself personally in the past by thinking more was always better. So don't feel like you're going to lose any strength gains. There was actually a study that was done on this. I can't remember the formal name of the study, but there were two groups and they followed the exact same program for the exact same amount of time. But one of the groups had a week off after every three week block of like completing exercise, and the other group had no time off. And when they got to the end of the study, they found that the strength, gains and benefits were the exact same for the two groups, even though one had taken off several weeks throughout the duration of the study and the other had taken off no time. So if this can just do anything, I hope it encourages you that time away from exercise is not a bad thing, especially if you're feeling mentally and physically burnt out. If you're experiencing signs like just being always sore, always tired, dreading your workouts, not having any sort of progress, like you just feel like you're not really progressing even though you're working out all the time. I think that those are really good signs that it's time for a good week. So this is something that you can implement. Every 12 weeks or so. I like to implement this about every 12 to 16 weeks with my clients. I find that it's a really good break, especially if they are the type that hits it hard and doesn't really miss a ton of days. Now, if you're someone who just like casually exercises, maybe you're not super consistent. You're only going like once or twice a week. You miss some weeks, then you don't need to worry about a week. Like if you're already taking some natural times to like, go on a vacation, take time off, or you just miss a week of workouts randomly. There you go. That's your load. I'm talking to the person who feels like they can't ever take a day off or a week off, that it's important to schedule these times in. And that's exactly what a load is. Okay. Number four is experience experimenting with new forms of exercise. So if you are someone who always, always, always does cardio or you always go to classes or you always like strictly strength train, try implementing some other modalities of exercise into your routine. So maybe you always work out inside, like at the gym. Maybe you try working in some outdoor workouts to just get something different again, changing the environment, doing something a little bit out of the norm for you. If you always are doing cardio or hit, maybe you work in some slower strength days. Not only is this going to like provide a new stimulus for your body, which typically leads to changes because our bodies respond to stimuli, not just exercise, right? So if we're adding in a new stimuli, that's going to be more likely to create change in the body. But you're also going to probably just reap the mental benefits of doing something a little different and mixing it up a bit. Now, I'm not saying to do like a new type of workout every single day. It's important to have structure. You know, within our Mountain Metabolic program, we repeat the same workouts for several weeks because it's so important to not just throw random stuff at your body in it, your muscles that it never gets efficient at. So you're never really going to effectively progress within those workouts. If we're always just doing new random workouts every single day or week. But what I am saying is like mixing something in. So maybe you still have three days a week of doing like a solid strength program, but then the other days, instead of lifting, you mix in some fun classes that are more cardio based, maybe some dancing, Zumba, or a little bit of jogging hiking, getting outside, look for some other forms of exercise and see what sparks your interest in what could be fun. Just to get over this mental barrier of feeling like you're in a slump. Okay, so let's get into number five. This one is finding a workout buddy. So unfortunately, this isn't one that I've really been able to do super well just due to our proximity to people with where we live in the mountains. However, in the past I have absolutely loved having workout buddies and I feel like it can add an added level of not only accountability, but just enjoyment because you're actually getting to socialize and kind of build in like these friend get togethers, which as you get older, like, let's be honest, it just gets a little bit harder to see friends anyways. So if you can see a friend, go do a workout together and then maybe go grab coffee or catch up, it's kind of like a win win. And this doesn't even have to be formal exercise either. This can also be in the form of walks and hikes and activities that are active, and not just like going out and eating and drinking, because I feel like that is the common go to when it comes to getting together with friends. And nothing wrong with doing those things. I love doing those things with friends. However, we also want to make sure that we're balancing it out with some activity as well, and it's just going to be better for you overall to mix some of that into your friendships. So that is number five. Number six is allowing the ebbs and flows of life instead of feeling like you're failing. So this one really is more of a mental shift. And it's something that's been on my mind a lot lately because like I said, I've been in this. You guys like the past. Um, what's it been like 15, 16 months since I had juniper? It's just been this off and on roller coaster of feeling like I'm getting into a good rhythm with things, and then getting slapped in the face with the next obstacle or the next leap of hers, the next development that causes new issues. Or I feel like we're getting in a good rhythm with sleep, and then we're thrown back again. And it has really thrown off my routine and the things that I normally am so good at, and it's made me kind of question myself at times. One thing that's helped me in this phase is instead of feeling like I'm constantly failing and letting myself down, like if I say I'm going to work out in the morning and then we're up all night with her, and then I don't, and I sleep instead, allowing those ebbs and flows, allowing lack of rigidity, and just knowing that every week, every month is going to be different, every season is going to be different. And I can't expect the exact same thing for myself all the time. This just is unfair to myself and my mental state, and it takes the joy out of these healthy habits that are really supposed to be life giving. So it's more of a mental shift of allowing yourself not to feel like a failure when things don't go perfectly, and rather just accepting ebbs and flows during different seasons of life. No matter if you're a new parent or you're just going through a rough time in general, or something totally different. Okay. Number seven is habit tethering to something that you currently enjoy. So if you're unfamiliar with the concept of habit tethering, it basically means when you're trying to either revamp a habit, start a new habit, or something like that, you are tethering that new habit that you're trying to implement to something that you're already currently doing that feels second nature, and it's something that you enjoy. It's something you don't have to force yourself to do, because a lot of the times, creating a new habit is a massive mental hurdle because we have to convince ourselves to do these things day in and day out that are not second nature yet. We might not really like them, but we don't have those patterns established yet the same way we do with other just day to day habits like brushing our teeth, making our bed, you know, doing these things for our, our health or whatever it might be that maybe we have dialed in and now we don't have to think so hard about them. They're just second nature, right? So when we're establishing those habits, habit tethering is a really awesome tool. So an example of this would be if you're trying to get yourself to start working out in the mornings, for instance, and you're not a morning person, you know that as soon as your alarm goes off, you're going to. Second guess it and decide, no, I guess I don't need to do this. I can do it later. You need to tether that habit of waking up early in the morning to something that you're already doing in the morning that you enjoy. That way, you're more likely to get out of bed. So that could be something like a coffee and journaling practice first thing before you exercise. So maybe it's something that you absolutely look forward to. Maybe you read a little bit in the morning, or maybe you go for a morning walk with your coffee. And these are things that you just naturally love to do, and you already have them established as habits in your life. How can you tether that to this new habit? How can you work in your workout to that? Maybe it's afterwards, or maybe it's the reward after you do the thing that you're not wanting to do, which is maybe that workout. Another thing that has helped me is I really like to listen to podcasts. I know, shocker. So I have a whole bunch of different podcasts that I love to throw on. They are very motivating to me. I feel like I'm hearing from a friend, you know, if it's someone that I listen to consistently. And so if I don't feel like working out. I put on a podcast because it kind of helps get me into like usually a productive state of mind, because usually the podcast I like to listen to are informative. They're inspiring. I'm hearing from other women who are crushing it in different areas of life, whether it be, you know, fitness, hiking, business, the things that I'm interested in. And so it kind of gets my mind moving that way. And it's something that I enjoy doing. So if I can just go ahead and do my workout while listening to that podcast, it kind of incentivizes me. So think about any sort of habit that you're really working on implementing in your own life, and what are some things that you could maybe tether that to that you're already doing around that same time of day? That would be natural for you to just kind of pair the two together and would incentivize you to make it happen on a consistent basis. And this isn't going to be perfect. You know, it's no like magic equation, but I do find that it absolutely can help get the ball rolling on new habits. Okay. Number eight. And our final tip today is to keep up with the basics while implementing new fun forms of exercise. So kind of similar with what we talked about with point number four experimenting with new forms of exercise. But it's important to still keep up with the basics of the things that you are already doing and you enjoy, and the things that you know are the heavy hitters for your health. So, for instance, lately I have not really been feeling my standard workout routine, like I've just been feeling kind of stale with it. And so. While I know that strength training is the most effective form of exercise, and has done the most for changing my body and allowing me to feel good in the activities I love, which is why it's the foundation of everything that we do with our programs for mountain metabolic coaching and the fit for hiking workouts. I just haven't been really enjoying it the same. And so I know in my head that I need to be doing strength training as my primary form of exercise, but lately I've been craving some different, more fun forms of movement. So I've been keeping those basics alive by still doing about 2 to 3 standard strength training workouts per week. You know, from the programs that I know are effective and what I should be doing. But I will either throw in a little bit of like dance cardio at the beginning of that to like, be my warm up, to kind of get me into it, to remove that barrier because I enjoy that right now. Or I'll just throw in a few workouts by themselves of that per week to mix it up. So obviously, I know that doing like dance cardio is not necessarily going to be the biggest thing that's going to change my body or allow me to get stronger. However, I find it really fun and rewarding in different seasons of life. I used to do dance. I've always loved dance. I just find it fun. It's not like a chore to me in any way. So whenever I'm in a slump, I find something like that that I know is going to be. Exciting to me to do in tandem with the things that I know I need to do. Okay, so it's a little bit of like tricking myself into doing the things that maybe I'm not enjoying as much in this current season, but I know they they reap the biggest reward for me from a physical standpoint, and I need to continue doing them. But I don't necessarily want to exclusively do those things right now. And again, these things ebb and flow. There are times when all I want to do is drink train, I love it, I have to kind of force myself to do other things. And then there are other times when I kind of feel like doing more cardio type of activities. And maybe that's outside, maybe that's inside. The point is, it's not going to be static. It doesn't have to look one certain way 365 days of the year. So finding some ways to enjoy your movement is so important because enjoyment is the number one predictor of adherence to any program. So if you're hating every second of what you're doing, as you're getting started with something, chances are you're not going to continue with that thing for very long because you hate it. So you need to find ways to sneak in the things that you love. This is one reason why the Mountain Metabolic clients are so successful is we like to incorporate for every single person. It's going to be different, but we like to incorporate the things that they enjoy in regards to their outdoor activities. This is very, um, you know, incentivizing for people because if I'm forcing you to do a program that you hate every second of, what's the chance that you're still going to be doing that one year from now? Right. So it's something that we definitely need to think about at all times when we're looking at our exercise. But definitely, definitely in those times when you're lacking that spark around your movement. Think about what will bring that spark back, and how can you weave it into your weekly workout regimen to to get that excitement going again so you can enjoy that active self care a little bit more? 1s All right, so that is all I have for you today. As always, the link is in the show notes for our coaching application for Mountain Metabolic. We are very full, and I imagine we're just going to continue to get more full into fall in the holidays because it's that time of year. So if you've been on the fence thinking about it, not really sure what it actually is, you just heard me mention it a bunch on here. Definitely take the time to fill out that coaching application, and I will be reaching out to chat with you more about it. You know, it's a great way to just kind of understand what it is that we offer. And if what I say on the show resonates with you in regards to wanting some support and the things that we offer for our clients, then give it a try. Apply now. It's not going to hurt anything. If anything we can get on the call and if it's not a good fit, it's not a good fit. So definitely encourage you to take some action today and do that. We also do have a free week of workouts from our fit for hiking membership, so this is a much more hands off type of workout approach. You're just getting some workouts and recipes every month, but for a really good price point. And if you already are pretty self motivated and you don't have any big issues or things that you're wanting to work through as far as body composition, hormones, metabolism, things like that, then the fit for hiking membership is an awesome option for you, so check out that free week of workouts in the show notes as well, and those will get sent right to your mailbox day by day. You can see what that looks like and see if you want to sign up. Thanks again for tuning in today and I will see you guys on the next episode. Thanks for tuning in to this episode of the fit for hiking podcast. As always, I hope it leaves you feeling inspired and informed on how to take your health and adventure into your own hands. For more content like this. Be sure to follow along with my daily posts at Ponytail Underscore. On a trail that's ponytail underscore on a trail. You can also stay up to date on my new episodes being released at Fit Underscore for hiking, and find more free resources at Pony Tail on a trail. Happy and healthy trails.