Yesterday we talked about finding the motivation to push through your daily home routine and find the time to get yourself moving.
Today, let’s talk about what you can do with limited space and equipment. As with a lot of things during this period of isolation, you’re going to have to occasionally adjust your mindset.
- Forget Your Gym Goals – Well, don’t forget them, but put them away for now. They are still here at the gym and will be here when you get back. In the meantime, no one is going to PR their deadlift or strict pull ups. That’s OK.
- Pick New Goals – Pick a “benchmark” (a workout, a movement, a running/biking distance/trail, etc.) that you have all the materials to test right now. Test it, then plan to test it again in 4-6 weeks (depending on what the goal is). It’s easier to feel motivated when you have a goal because each time you train, you’re one step closer! My personal favorite: 1 mile run time.
- Create a Challenge With Other People – Annti and Elan have a Push Up Challenge going in preparation for Murph on Memorial Day. Richard Lloyd and I are seeing who can accumulate 500 miles on his bike first. (He’s currently over 100 miles ahead of me, so I’ve got him right where I want him.) Do we need to do the Burpee Challenge again? (Please say no.)
- Move Better, Not Faster – Now is the time to master your movement. Work on slow air squats while standing a few inches from the wall. They will get better! Focus on a perfect push up. And then two. Get your first pistol squat. Your coach can help you figure this out. Not all workouts have to be high intensity…focus on better movement so when you come back, the hard stuff is a little easier.
- Work On Your Mobility – Starting next week, the workout in SugarWOD will have a mobility component from Kelly Starret of The Ready State (formerly known as MobilityWOD). The first one is the Couch Stretch and he really gets into the nuance of the how and why. If you only do one thing all day, do the mobility!
- Shift to Endurance – I come from a triathlon background so when I use the term “endurance,” I mean longer, slower exercises like running, biking and swimming. Hate to run? Maybe now is a good time to try to make friends with it. Have an old bike in the garage, get it tuned up (professionally tuned…seriously) and hit Beach Drive in Rock Creek Park. They closed it during the week so you can do that. Want to get serious and train for something like a marathon or half-marathon? We can help.
I know this isn’t easy and we all want to get back to moving barbells and cheering each other on.
We will.