2288: Getting Back Into Shape by Mark Fisher of Mark Fisher Fitness on Track and Maintain Physical Progress

[00:00:00] [SPEAKER_01]: This is Optimal Relationships Daily. Getting Back Into Shape by Mark Fisher of MarkFisherFitness.com

[00:00:07] [SPEAKER_01]: Hello everybody and welcome to our weekly bonus episode of ORD, brought to you each Sunday.

[00:00:13] [SPEAKER_01]: I'm Greg Audino and this time around you'll have the pleasure of hearing some previously

[00:00:17] [SPEAKER_01]: aired audio from our health show, Optimal Health Daily. So with that let's check in with Dr. Neil

[00:00:22] [SPEAKER_01]: in this article about getting back into shape should you have fallen off the wagon a bit,

[00:00:26] [SPEAKER_00]: as we optimize your life. Getting Back Into Shape by Mark Fisher Fitness of MarkFisherFitness.com

[00:00:39] [SPEAKER_00]: I'm just, I'm just so embarrassed. The ninja looked down at the sidewalk,

[00:00:45] [SPEAKER_00]: the hustle and bustle of rush hour 9th Avenue Manhattan swarmed around us.

[00:00:49] [SPEAKER_00]: I assured the ninja, we've all had those moments. You're not alone. I can't tell you

[00:00:55] [SPEAKER_00]: how common it is for folks to fall off the wagon for periods of time when starting their

[00:00:59] [SPEAKER_00]: fitness journey. The ninja let out a sigh and played with the earbuds of their iPod headphones.

[00:01:06] [SPEAKER_00]: So how do I get back on the wagon? I smiled. To get back on the wagon, you just have to

[00:01:13] [SPEAKER_00]: get back on the wagon. The ninja sank into their right hip and tilted their head to the

[00:01:18] [SPEAKER_00]: side like a confused puppy. Get back on the wagon. How? I've mentioned this before,

[00:01:25] [SPEAKER_00]: when folks start the journey towards making fitness a lifestyle, it's not uncommon to have

[00:01:29] [SPEAKER_00]: periods of getting derailed. Sometimes these periods are a couple of weeks and in some cases,

[00:01:35] [SPEAKER_00]: they're periods of a couple of months. Regardless of how long it's been, there's a distinct

[00:01:40] [SPEAKER_00]: feeling of shame that can accompany losing your fitness mojo. Your clothes are fitting tighter,

[00:01:46] [SPEAKER_00]: you're frustrated that you've thrown away all your hard work and in some cases,

[00:01:51] [SPEAKER_00]: you're dreading even being seen by the very folks at the gym you love. Here are some logistical and

[00:01:57] [SPEAKER_00]: emotional strategies to ease back into the waters of fitness glory after a few weeks or a few months

[00:02:04] [SPEAKER_00]: hiatus because sometimes returning to the gym feels like a daunting mountain to climb.

[00:02:11] [SPEAKER_00]: Focus on behavior. If you've put on a few pounds, this is where you'll do best

[00:02:16] [SPEAKER_00]: to put your head down and focus on pure behavior. Getting the fitness ball rolling again will always

[00:02:23] [SPEAKER_00]: take some time. Since it will likely be at least a couple of weeks before your clothes start to fit

[00:02:28] [SPEAKER_00]: differently again, it's best to focus purely on getting the workouts in instead of obsessing

[00:02:35] [SPEAKER_00]: over how far you've fallen, which is usually not as bad as you think anyway. You'll be

[00:02:39] [SPEAKER_00]: served to just get it in, make a schedule and stick to it. After two to four weeks,

[00:02:46] [SPEAKER_00]: you should start to see some progress and this will inspire you to keep going. But in the beginning,

[00:02:52] [SPEAKER_00]: your focus needs to be on behavior not results. Easing back in. Based on how long you've been

[00:03:00] [SPEAKER_00]: away, we'll want to be mindful about how much activity we do when we start. Since soreness

[00:03:05] [SPEAKER_00]: just means something different has happened, immediately going back to old workouts will be

[00:03:11] [SPEAKER_00]: detrimental in a number of ways. For starters, you may find yourself unable to walk if you try

[00:03:16] [SPEAKER_00]: to replicate workouts from the peak of your conditioning. Usually one to two sets of an

[00:03:22] [SPEAKER_00]: exercise are plenty the first time back after a long period away from the gym. Don't go as hard

[00:03:28] [SPEAKER_00]: as you can. This will leave you super sore and you may have a hard time making it in for

[00:03:33] [SPEAKER_00]: the next workout. Additionally, appreciate that your strength and conditioning levels will have

[00:03:38] [SPEAKER_00]: diminished to some extent. Be patient and focus on consistency and just getting the workouts in.

[00:03:46] [SPEAKER_00]: Other quick tips. One, you'll really be served by focusing on the environmental cues for success.

[00:03:54] [SPEAKER_00]: This includes things like laying out your workout clothes the night before

[00:03:57] [SPEAKER_00]: if you have to be up early in the morning. Two, if your clothes are bumming you out because they

[00:04:03] [SPEAKER_00]: don't quite fit the same, you can and should consider this when choosing your clothing.

[00:04:09] [SPEAKER_00]: Three, consider looping in a friend to be your accountability buddy. You'll be amazed how

[00:04:15] [SPEAKER_00]: much more willpower you have when you ask a supportive friend to check up on you,

[00:04:19] [SPEAKER_00]: particularly if you plan a workout together. And four, remember nutrition is always the biggest

[00:04:26] [SPEAKER_00]: player if you don't feel good about being shirtless. Go grocery shopping and prep some food

[00:04:31] [SPEAKER_00]: before you begin your work week. The really good news. There's an upside to getting back on the

[00:04:37] [SPEAKER_00]: fitness wagon. You will often find you can attain your previous levels of fitness far faster than

[00:04:43] [SPEAKER_00]: you had anticipated. The first time in your life that you start a fitness regime, it's a bit

[00:04:48] [SPEAKER_00]: of a mountain. It's all brand new. You have to do a lot of work just to learn the very basics of

[00:04:55] [SPEAKER_00]: exercise technique and how to eat properly for your goals. But for your second swing, you'll own

[00:05:02] [SPEAKER_00]: a lot of this information already. So not only will the body likely be able to respond more

[00:05:07] [SPEAKER_00]: quickly to recapture a previous level of health and hotness, the journey will ideally be easier

[00:05:13] [SPEAKER_00]: if you're retracing pathways you've already explored. As a final side note,

[00:05:17] [SPEAKER_00]: due to the quirks of motor programming, if not uncommon to see some technical improvements in

[00:05:23] [SPEAKER_00]: movement after some time away. Pretty neat, right? Seriously, get back on the wagon. Your transition

[00:05:30] [SPEAKER_00]: back to working out will naturally have some discomfort. No one likes to feel they're not

[00:05:35] [SPEAKER_00]: their best. But if you follow these strategies, you'll hopefully find some solace. All is not

[00:05:42] [SPEAKER_00]: lost. You have not thrown away all the work you've done. Focus on nailing your behaviors and getting

[00:05:49] [SPEAKER_00]: your workouts in. You'll be surprised how quickly your body responds. You just listened to the post

[00:05:58] [SPEAKER_00]: titled Getting Back into Shape by Mark Fisher of markfisherfitness.com. Dr. Neal here for my

[00:06:05] [SPEAKER_00]: commentary. Now, what's really great about Mark's advice is that this mentality of just

[00:06:12] [SPEAKER_00]: starting works for almost everything. I'll give you an example. There are many times when I struggle

[00:06:18] [SPEAKER_00]: to find the motivation to prep for a class I have to teach or check and respond to emails or yes,

[00:06:25] [SPEAKER_00]: even go grocery shopping. And yes, I'm a dietitian and still it's not always easy to get up and

[00:06:31] [SPEAKER_00]: go grocery shopping. What I have found is that putting these things off usually makes me feel

[00:06:37] [SPEAKER_00]: worse. I feel guilty. I feel less productive. I start feeling like a hypocrite. Then I start

[00:06:44] [SPEAKER_00]: feeling badly for myself. But when I spend even just five minutes on one of those tasks,

[00:06:50] [SPEAKER_00]: I feel so much more accomplished, even if it's just writing down a grocery list or planning

[00:06:56] [SPEAKER_00]: one meal for the week. It's taking that first step that's often the most difficult.

[00:07:02] [SPEAKER_00]: So again, maybe I spent five minutes checking email or just five minutes prepping for a class.

[00:07:08] [SPEAKER_00]: If I can do that thing, I will feel more accomplished. Plus the magic behind this approach

[00:07:13] [SPEAKER_00]: is that usually five minutes turns into 10 or 15 minutes and I feel even more accomplished.

[00:07:21] [SPEAKER_00]: Planning for one meal usually turns into me planning for the entire week.

[00:07:25] [SPEAKER_00]: All right, so let's bring this full circle and talk about exercise. In today's article,

[00:07:29] [SPEAKER_00]: Mark mentioned that making sure your workout clothes are ready to go the night before

[00:07:34] [SPEAKER_00]: is helpful to prompt you to work out the next morning. Now changing into your workout clothes

[00:07:40] [SPEAKER_00]: would be even better. Put on your workout clothes and tell yourself when you wake up

[00:07:45] [SPEAKER_00]: the next morning, you're only going to work out just for five minutes. That seems doable,

[00:07:50] [SPEAKER_00]: right? It's only five minutes. But what's great about this is you'll probably find

[00:07:55] [SPEAKER_00]: yourself working out even longer. It was just getting started. That was the problem.

[00:08:01] [SPEAKER_00]: So even if you do end up sticking to let's just say five minutes and you say, you know what?

[00:08:06] [SPEAKER_00]: I said five minutes and by gosh, I'm sticking to just five minutes. Guess what? It's still better

[00:08:12] [SPEAKER_00]: than zero minutes. All right, that'll do it for the Saturday episode. I hope you have a great

[00:08:17] [SPEAKER_00]: weekend if you're listening in real time and I'll be back here tomorrow as usual

[00:08:21] [SPEAKER_00]: where optimal life awaits.