What Is The Most Effective Workout I Can Do?
Like you, sometimes I don’t want to have to think about my workouts, I just want to show up and be guided by someone else. So, last week I went to a class at my local gym.
The guy leading the class was around 25, muscular and well, you know the rest. There was only 2 of us in the class as it was in the middle of the day, we were both Mums to toddlers, we told him this before the class began.
He asked me if I had ever done a class at that gym before, the thoughts flashed through my mind ‘lie to him, lie, lie, lie’, but my face gave it away and so I foolishly said ‘yes, I am a Personal Trainer and I used to teach group classes.' I honestly felt like I saw a look in is eyes that said ‘I am going to break you’! And he did.
To give some caveat to what happened next, it is fair to say that it’s impossible to pitch a group class to the right level for a lot of people, for some it will be too hard, and for some it will be too easy, but… there were 2 of us and I would say we were both of a reasonable fitness albeit tired mums!
The ‘warm up’ was 2.5 minutes of squat jumps followed by 2.5 minutes of walking lunges. Then it went on in a circuit style with the assault bike, heavy kettle bell swings, med ball slams, burpees, sled pushes etc. etc. There were several moments that I questioned if I might be sick and/or pass out.
Of course I could have stopped at any point, but it’s hard, it’s hard to show weakness in that situation. It wasn’t his fault either, no one forced me.
I felt ‘off’ for the rest of the day, a bit sick, weak, shaky and more than just tired, a kind of empty. There were no endorphins to speak of. That was Monday, today is Friday. I have struggled to walk this week, to hold my child for long periods and one night the pain between my shoulder blades was so intense that I had to take pain killers in the middle of the night just to sleep.
Personally, I do not see the merit in this level of exertion for the majority of people. People often ask me ‘what’s the most effective exercise for x, y, z?’ and my answer is always the same ‘the one you enjoy, and therefore the one you will do’.
If you get the buzz after you’ll get addicted to the endorphin hit. If you have a little soreness that gives you the message that you’ve done something and you’re making progress, you’ll want to to do it again. And, if you work out to the right intensity so that you can recover in a day or so, you’ll be able to work out frequently and then you’ll get results. Most importantly when working out becomes enjoyable, you’ll keep doing it.
That’s where I make the difference, I’ve helping people achieve all of those things, when you fall in love with the process the results happen all by themselves. The problem is most people don’t know how to make a workout enjoyable, they’re not sure how to stricture it effectively and they don’t have the confidence and commitment to keep doing it regularly enough that they see results.
If you’re afraid to work out and not see the results you’re hoping for, get in touch and let me help you get the best from your precious time! I promise, you’ll love it!