Consistency…why is it so hard?

I did a social post about what your biggest challenges were about staying consistent and got a unbelievable response and collated the top 5 most commonly given responses. From that I’ve broken them down and am going to try and give you hints and tips of how you can help you beat those challenges and keep your training consistent.

So here goes…

#1 - Being in a Training Rut

Your progress has stalled and y our performance isn’t improving as you’d like. What can you do?

1 - make sure you’re having enough rest. I know that sounds crazy but if you’re training too much it can be hugely detrimental to your performance. Running or training on fresh, well rested legs can make a whole world of difference

2 - Do some interval training - whether that’s running intervals or some kind of circuit at the gym. Mix up your training and add something like this in every week

3 - For runners - add some strength training into your routine to support your running economy. If you do nothing else, focus on Squats, Hip Thrusts and Deadlifts and if you’ve time for more, some core focused movements will be huge. For gym only trainers - add in more cardio, get that heart rate elevated for sustained periods of time and see how your fitness increases

#2 - Not Enough Hours In The Day

Time - by far the biggest barrier for us all. It’s a vicious circle in that lack of time = inconsistent training = zero motivation but you can break that circle. How? I hear you all ask…well

1 - do shorter, more intense workouts to make yourself more time efficient

2 - make a routine and stick to it - run after school drop off, plan the gym after the kids have gone to bed, nip out for a run when the kids are doing activities. Plan your time, block your diary and make it non-negotiable

3 - buddy up - arrange it and go with a friend. You’re way more less likely to bail on a friend even when life is insanely busy - plush you kill two birds with one stone in that you get active and catch up with your mates!!

#3 - Lost your Mojo

It’s so hard when you lose you “why” but what you need to do is try and rediscover your purpose. Set yourself a new goal - a proper, long term one that’s meaningful but also achievable. Find something that fuels your passion and that will keep you on track

Or, try something completely new. Add some cardio into your strength training or vice versa. What about trying to increase your speed on a km row over the next 6 weeks - add it into the middle of your gym workout and see how you get on. Or try a 10 min core blast workout everytime you come back from a run

It’s about challenging yourself and finding that new motivation

#4 - Burn Out…

Doing too much for too long and feeling physically drained and when even the thought of exercise makes you feel tired…we’ve all been there and it’s not cool. You need to take a break

Rest…with your own permission! Take a few days, refresh your mid and body and get your mojo back (see #3!!)

Then once you’ve rested, you need to adapt - change up your training plan if it’s too intense. The plans aren’t one size fits all so change it and make it fit for you and your lifestyle. If lifting heavy is giving you DOMS for days after it, lift lighter and do more reps. If running long runs is sending you under - take it down to shorter runs and maybe do some intervals for a few weeks to get you to start enjoying the longer runs again.

Make sure you feel like you’re achieving rather than failing and that doesn’t have to mean stopping entirely (unless you want to) but adapting is key to success

#5 - Injury Woes

Finally - injury - bloody rubbish but if you’re injuries aren’t fixing and are constantly rearing their ugly heads then you need to look at training differently. 3 tips are…

Focus on Recovery - look at doing stretch series post run, add in yoga or Pilates to your weekly routine. Focus on hydration and fuel so everything comes together holistically

Strengthen those weak areas - focus on problem areas eg if it’s always your calf that goes wrong when running - do specific calf strengthening exercises. Its the same with hamstring/glute/ankles, etc

Get Help - if the above 2 tips aren’t helping and you’ve rested, heated and stretched to no avail, it’s time to get professional advice. Some manipulation of the injury and a rehab plan will work wonders alongside everything else.

So I hope the above helps you achieve your goal of consistency. As we’re ending the year maybe think what the year ahead looks like for you and what you want to achieve. The line to your goal will never be linear but it’s about how you can manipulate, change and adjust to get you over the line and to complete what you set out to do.