“Yes, We’re Still Out Here Crushing Our Fitness Journeys! — Part 2”

How are your fitness and nutrition journeys going?!

Like many of you, I incorporated fitness into my 2021 goals. And I know so many people habitually make hitting the gym or dieting as a new year resolution. But sometimes, not everyone sees those resolutions and goals through during the entire year. Trust me, I’ve been there way too many times!

But listen, “no matter where you are on your fitness journey, just know that you CAN achieve your goals if you stay motivated and just keep moving.” That was the last line of my Crushing Fitness Part 1 post; click the link if you missed it. That post was back in October. Since then, I have stayed pretty active, but my weekly spin classes decreased around the holidays with travel and all. And then I craved more community, so I tried a few small-group weight training classes. Those weren’t giving me life and keeping me consistent either. But then I got Covid so I really couldn’t hit the gym. So I was back to square one — in my home trying to not fall completely off of the wagon.

I didn’t intentionally wait until the new year to get back into the swing of things, but that’s what ended up happening. I want to make working out something that is consistent in my life and not just a 3-month endeavor. So, I took note of the key items for a successful fitness journey (listed below), and I created a new workout plan! I know that I don’t like my workouts to take up a lot of time out of my day; I like to go in knowing what I’m going to do; I don’t like lengthy cardio sessions; and I like feeling challenged and liberated once the workout is over. So one Sunday afternoon I took the time to look up various movements and workouts that target different muscle groups, and I wrote out a few workouts for the week in my fitness journal (linked below). And then I did the hardest part — I finally got my butt to the gym!

Remember what I said in Crushing Fitness Part 1 — just keep moving! I hopped around a little bit after my breakup with CrossFit, but I realized that no matter what kind of workout I was doing, some things remained true. And I came up with the following 7 key things you need to crush your fitness journey:

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1. Know and commit to your “why.” WHY are you wanting to workout? WHY are you doing this specific workout? For me, my WHY is to reverse this “pre-diabetes” and lower my A1C level. The doctor said lose weight, and that’s what I’m doing! I get my A1C checked again in April, so yall pray for me!

2. Choose a workout or fitness routine that you ENJOY. This should be #1 really because it’s so important! If you recall, I do NOT like running. But I did it (while constantly complaining lol) during my CrossFit workouts because I wasn’t doing it alone and it usually wasn’t for long distances. Now, I incorporate my cardio into my workouts with either a short jog, long walk, jump rope sessions, or rowing intervals (I love the rower!) So if you’re trying to get your fitness routine started and do not enjoy running, don’t set a schedule to run 5 miles a day because you will hate it and we can’t be having that negative energy in our day! Fitness is about full-body wellness, including your mind. Figure out what it is you enjoy doing and if it causes you to move more often than you normally would on any other day, then stick to it and challenge yourself with it.

3. Schedule your workouts into your daily routine. Those of us who have to go to work usually show up on time and don’t skip days “just because.” We have a set time to be there, so we show up and put in the work. Scheduling a specific time to get the workout done and preparing for it by packing our gym clothes the night before, help make it easier to check the workout off for the day. And if you’re working from home, write the workout time in on your calendar and stick to that time of day as if you were heading to a gym.

4. Somewhat related to #3, don’t choose a workout time that just isn’t realistic to who you are. I am NOT a morning person. I struggle to get out of bed at 7:00am on workdays, so I should not be scheduling a 5:30am workout into my day. Now there were a few (short) time periods in my life where I did do early morning workouts, but it wasn’t easy, and it wasn’t fun, and I was constantly questioning my WHY lol. I used to do the 6:15pm spin classes, but now I am trying to hit the gym a couple of times a week before work and once on the weekends. Also, if you do choose evening workouts, do not spend too much time between when you get home from work and when you get to the gym; once we get too comfortable we ain’t leaving to go to that gym lol.

5. Somewhat related to #4 lol, choose a weekly workout schedule that is manageable with your life and responsibilities. I would do 4 spin classes a week, and before that, I was going to about 5 CrossFit classes a week. But I had to work my way up there. (I also do not have any children and am not married so I probably have fewer at-home responsibilities than those of you who take care of families.) If you’re just starting out, start slow. I am a firm believer that if you start doing “more” than what you were doing before when your daily activity level was at 0, you will start to see and feel the results. Fitness and wellness have to be lifestyles and sustainable, so you don’t want to come out too hot, get overwhelmed, and fall off the wagon.

6. Get an accountability partner or group. At CrossFit I worked out with the same group of people mostly, so they held me accountable. Now, I have a group text message with a few family members, and even though we all live in different states, we are able to share our progress and results, and we encourage and motivate each other. Some days our bodies don’t feel like working out, and that’s okay, but find a person or a group of people that you can trust to hold you accountable so that you both can reach your goals (Facebook groups are great for this!).

7. The last, but probably one of the most important things, STAY HYDRATED. Water is slick the cure to a lot of things that go wrong with our bodies. Got a headache? Go drink some water. Tired? Go drink some water. Hungry but can’t eat right now? Go drink some water. Body sore? Go drink some water and get some rest. Our bodies need water to recover and get fueled for the next workout. Yall might think I am throwing too many Amazon products at you, haha, but I live on Amazon, and it has truly provided tons of things to help me get to where I am in my fitness journey, so why not share them with you?! I got this one-gallon water bottle off Amazon last year. It has encouraging quotes on it with time goals, which I really love. The times help when I don’t realize how long I’ve been sitting at my work desk and haven’t taken a swig of water. Yes, I drink one of these every day! They suggest you drink a gallon of water a day, and especially if you’re crushing workouts and sweating, you need to replenish and rehydrate your body with enough water!

8. We all love a freebie, so here is another one: GET SOME REST! Listen to your body, and know that it is okay to take a rest day! Remember, a healthy lifestyle is a marathon and not a sprint.

So bottom line is: if it aint bringing you joy, don’t do it.

Yall, my routine hasn’t been unicorns and rainbows, but it has been something. I am constantly remembering my why, looking at how far I’ve come, and getting excited about what’s to happen next. My body and mind have transformed and it’s so liberating. I have committed to a healthier eating lifestyle, which I have not truly ever done before, so that has also helped with the results. They say that fitness and wellness are 80% nutrition and 20% workouts. I agree with that, and here is the post about it if you missed it.

Wherever you are on the fitness spectrum, from non-existent, to ehh sometimes, to regularly, to fitness junky, I believe these 7 tips are useful and will help you move forward and remain consistent with those 2021 goals! Are there other tips that you think are important to fitness journeys? Please share them! I know that working out and eating “right” are important to fight off ailments and feel your best, but I also know that they’re not always easy to do. (Because if they were, we would all be doing them, right?) It will take time, and you will have to understand that your fitness journey is going to look different from someone else’s, but you cannot get discouraged! Get out there and crush it! You CAN do this! Choose something, find joy in it, and commit to becoming a healthier, better version of you!

“For bodily exercise profits a little, but godliness is profitable for all things, having promise of the life that now is and of that which is to come.” — 1 Timothy 4:8 NKJV.

Moni Jay, Off the Record