When you’re trying to “get back in the swing of things,” it’s going to do a lot more for your motivation and consistency if you set your goals in a place you feel like is very attainable. When we follow through with a planned workout, we get a dopamine release, reinforcing that healthy behavior, chemically.

If you plan four total workouts in a week and only do three of them, does that make you feel empowered? No. That feels like you let yourself down, again.

But if you set your goal for the number of strength workouts to be 2x a week this month, and you can make yourself show up twice a week for 4 weeks, no exceptions, that gives you self-confidence, period.

Consistency in the gym is hard, but implementing healthy habits that you ENJOY as part of your training plan allows for more flexibility, which is important because you have a lot going on. You will always have a lot going on; let’s just anticipate that.

Make a list of things you can consider “low-intensity steady-state (LISS)” cardio that you like to do:

• Walking outside (treadmill will work, but outdoor walks are better since serotonin is released more when you are in nature. )

• Bike riding (not spin class, that’s high intensity)

• Yoga (by yourself or in class)

• Pilates

• Water aerobics

• Browsing TJ Maxx just because you can move around while doing it can count-ish.

• Enjoyable type yard work/ gardening

That looks like this:

Monday : strength workout for 30-45 min

Tuesday: LISS activity for no less than 30 minutes

Wednesday: strength workout #2 for 30-45 minutes

Thursday: walk 15 minutes straight during your workday, twice before you leave the office

Friday: if you missed M,T,W, or TH here’s your planned makeup day that you can use for whatever you missed from earlier in the week because life will happen every mother fucking time!

If you didn’t miss at all during the week: HOLY SHIT YOU CAN MAKE A THIRD STRENGTH WORKOUT THIS WEEK!!! You’re EXCEEDING YOUR OWN EXPECTATIONS, doing the things you thought only other people could do.

That gives you the confidence to do that again, bc you did it before.

When you succeed with your totally reasonable and attainable goal and feel proud of yourself that’s serotonin and dopamine. Serotonin improves your self esteem. Dopamine is your motivator. You’re MUCH more likely to keep going next month.