When the gyms closed, I definitely under-estimated how much more difficult it would be to fire myself up for a home-workout. Not that there is anything wrong with body-weight training, but it doesn’t give me near the same level of fulfillment or enthusiasm that I was used to getting from throwing weight on the bar and giving it my best. I love different aspects of programming and structuring my training around different powerlifting templates. Training this way allows me to set micro-goals and I can feel myself getting stronger on a regular basis in one way or another. It is almost like running a race, but instead of waiting for the finish line at the end, you have mini-finish lines throughout and you can celebrate your progress at every turn because you distinctly remember how much longer it took you before to get to each checkpoint.

On top of all that, I had momentum. I was settled in nicely in my routine, and I never thought about going to the gym. It was just the plan, the routine, and a given. My husband and I would go every night during the week (scheduling about one day off per workweek) and that was what we did after dinner. We would see mostly the same people at the gym every night and it was nice. It felt good to get out of the house and put energy into something that was not only fun but contributing towards a better future for us.

Now that our training has shifted into the home-realm, I realize how much more difficult it is to pump myself up without the automaticity of my routine and the drive to follow up on the short and long-term goals that I was programming for myself. I am not much of a “sit on the sofa and eat junk food” kind of person to begin with. However, that doesn’t mean I’m not susceptible to slacking off in different ways. Slacking off for me is as simple as getting caught up in household chores, projects, and other distractions. Don’t get me wrong, all of these are great, but they don’t substitute the need to be active every day in order to be at my best. It is easy for me to brush training to the side when I feel like I have other things I need to do in order to bring productive, and maybe I am being productive, but it’s still slacking because I am putting off doing the right thing when I don’t do what needs to get done. I don’t want to be a “I’ll just workout tomorrow” person. It’s not me and it doesn’t feel good, but it is much easier said than done to avoid this route.

It’s taken me a few weeks to really establish my routine of discipline when it comes to the home-training blocks and the cardio. I am by no means perfect, and sometimes I still have to push through the motions, but I have found much more of my groove. I wanted to share with you all some of things that I think have helped me the most.

1. Planning. Even though I’m out of the gym, I started planning my training once again. I have planned out my muscle groups, exercises, rep-ranges, and feasible goals that I can work towards during this time off of the gym. Some of these goals are as simple as isolating muscle groups that are lacking and correcting imbalances using isolation exercises.
2. Accountability. My husband keeps me accountable as my partner and my competitor. Joe has always been consistent. It’s his gift. He is one of those people who can will himself to do anything at any time. He’s able to set goals for himself and just do them, regardless of how he’s feeling in the moment, it’s a non-factor. This is not my forte, and it’s something I’m still working on. Having him push me to train and dragging me along on runs is exactly what I needed, especially initially because starting can be the hardest point.
3. Seeking out inspiration. I wasn’t one to rely on external motivation previously, at least not in the sense that I would seek it out in order to make myself go to the gym. But there is only one thing that matters on the daily scorecard and that’s whether or not we do what we are supposed to do. If I don’t feel like training but watching a YouTube video or seeing an Instagram story gives me the additional fuel that can help push me out of the door, then I am more than happy to make use of it. Why wouldn’t we seek out those things if they help us do the things that we are putting off? I am very thankful for these people who share their content and it serves as motivation and positive fuel for so many people. Some of my favorites are @leanmachine21 @gainsbybrains @buffbunny @jenselter

On a separate note, one thing I have been using that has helped me through some of the resistance training is a band. At first, it was demoralizing to train with just my bodyweight. Even though I strategized that I could work on muscular endurance and volume during this time, it took so many reps of everything just to give me the slightest pump. The glute band has been a huge help in this regard and forces me to have a better mind-muscle connection during my reps so that I will have better muscle activation and muscle-fiber recruitment once I am back in the gym and on the bar. I am very confident and hopeful that I can use these new tools I have both mentally and physically so that I can improve myself once I am back in the gym and on the bar.

That is pretty much all for this blog post. I know it is short, but I really wanted to share my struggle with everyone in order that if you’re going through the same thing, you may be able to get something out of it and do better than me.

I know accountability partners are hard to come by, feel free to reach out to me ladies if there is anything I can do to help.

Thanks for reading.

Xoxo, Lexi.

Instagram: lexicristabelle