After exercising for a little while we sometimes feel like we are in a rut, like we aren't getting the results that we want. You may want to get stronger, change your shape, get slimmer, become more flexible and there seems to be no movement. This situation can be very frustrating.
Here are 4 tips that can get you back to getting the results you want.
Tip #1 - Add More Challenge.
Placing stress on our bodies makes them adapt. Muscle contractions, elevating heart rate, and muscle lengthening are all forms of stress placed on the body during exercise. Our bodies adapt to theses exercises the more they're exposed to them. If you don't continue to challenge your body it will stay the same. Try increasing your resistance or running an extra km. This added challenge is a great strategy to get your body to respond.
“I don’t count my sit-ups. I only start counting when it starts hurting because they’re the only ones that count.”– Muhammad Ali
Tip #2 - Increase Sessions
Whatever the number of exercise sessions you are currently doing each week, try increasing it by one or two. If your goal is weight loss, flexibility/mobility training, increasing your sessions is sure to spark a change.
Tip #3 - Schedule it.
Making time to exercise instead of finding time is definately a win. This is inline with goal setting theory which is a well supported area of research. Having the goal of 4 classes a wekk say is the first step. Setting your week or month up by booking your exercise sessions in advance the next step. This will get you focused and energized, irrelevant things in your daily life will get pushed aside and higher effort levels will be invested in your goal.
Tip #4 - HIIT
High Intensity Interval Training is a switch between high intensity intervals of activity and lower intensity intervals of activity. HIIT increases your metabolism for longer periods after exercise, increases the endorphin rush for better mood and motivation and is a great way to pull someone out of a rut. Cardio vascular training is super important for our health.
Adding more sessions and scheduling those sessions. Working harder and/or adding a little or a lot of HIIT are some practical solutions to getting you out of your exercise rut. You've got this!
References used for this article:
Locke, E. A., & Latham, G. P. (2019). The development of goal setting theory: A half century retrospective. Motivation Science, 5(2), 93–105.
Hughes DC, Ellefsen S, Baar K. Adaptations to Endurance and Strength Training. Cold Spring Harb Perspect Med. 2018 Jun 1;8(6):a029769. doi: 10.1101/cshperspect.a029769. PMID: 28490537; PMCID: PMC5983157.
Goal_Setting_Foundations_For_Success. (2023). NSW Office of Sport. https://www.sport.nsw.gov.au/sites/default/files/2023-05/Goal-Setting-Foundations-for-Success.pdf
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