Ahh...April of 2020. Unfortunately, because of the COVID-19 breakout, there is not much to look forward to this month. Over the passed three weeks of camping out at my parent's house in Connecticut I decided that I needed to keep as active as I possible while being forced to stay inside. Fortunately, my Dad gave himself the title of 'Dad of the Year' because he purchased a Peloton bike for the house about two years ago. With the bike and some free weights, I knew I had something to work with, I just had to think of a plan to get to started.
I quickly decided that in order for me to stay motivated and accountable I was going to create a calendar for myself to map out what my weeks ahead were going to look like. As a very visual person this was helpful for me. It was a Saturday night, so naturally, I poured myself a Tito's + seltzer (with cran, duh), found a large poster board, and started drafting for the next hour or so. I decided that it would be best to take the planning week by week, rather than creating an entire month of workouts. Overall, I'm really happy I made this decision, because once I was about mid-week I started moving certain exercises around because my body was either too sore, the weather didn't permit, or I realized that the exercises weren't leveled out. As you can probably see from the picture below, I was crossing things out and writing in what I ended up doing each day.
So, after having learned a few things about scheduling from my last week, I wanted to show how I planned my activities for the week ahead. As you will see, everyday I've been trying to get cardio and some weight lifting in. My current goals are to lose weight and to run a 5k without having to stop (this is big for me).
Week of April 7th, 2020
Sunday, 4/7 - Rest, yoga or family walk
Monday, 4/6 - Run outside, legs + butt
Tuesday, 4/7 - Run outside, upper body + abs
Wednesday, 4/8 - Spin 30 minutes, HIIT
Thursday, 4/9 - Spin 30 minutes, legs + butt
Friday, 4/10 - Run outside, upper Body + abs
Saturday, 4/11 - Run outside, HIIT
TIPS:
1. Make sure to look at the weather for the week ahead so that you can determine if there are better days for an outdoor run.
2. Cross out each day as you go...cause it makes you feel GOOD.
3. Use different colors to code different tasks. I put my work outs, to-do's, holidays, or phone calls with friends to look forward to.
4. Place your calendar in a spot that you will always walk by or see while you are exercising at home. I've decided to place mine on the back of the door right in front of my Peloton bike. As I am riding it gives me a boost and reminder of what I am accomplishing that day or for the rest of my week.
5. Feel free to be flexible with the schedule! If you worked your ass and legs too much the day before, make sure to give those areas a break and focus on your upper body or another area for that day. It's okay to move things around...it's YOUR schedule.
Overall, I am still in the process of figuring out what types of exercises are best for me. I always want to somewhat enjoy what I am doing and get a good sweat on. I've learned so far that a journey to better health and wellness is trial and error!
PLEASE NOTE: I am not a certified nutritionist, fitness trainer, these is just a method that works for me that I am sharing with all of you!
Does anyone have a similar way of keeping yourself accountable when staying active? Please share!
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