I am doing an intense exercise routine in my apartment this winter. One of the days is such a pain in the butt that I really have to psych myself up to mentally prepare for it.
The big challenge I have found with doing exercise at home is the ability to go easy on myself or finding an excuse to cut my workout short. It is much harder to justify cutting a workout short, when you drive to a gym.
I’d like to discuss this a bit as well as get your comments and tips that you may have regarding exercising at home.
[The benefits of working out at home is the time you save. The downside is that you are the only person holding yourself accountable. It is so easy to simply find an excuse to cut your workout short, skip sets, etc.]
Character = How You Behave When No One is Looking
My lungs are on fire, my skin is hot and I am already dripping with sweat. I am doing the last exercise of a 4 exercise circuit. My legs are shaking and my form sucks as I finish the last rep of 20 “pillow twists”. I am done…for now…I am going to rest for 60 seconds and begin the 4 exercise circuit again. Rough!
“How Am I Going to Be Able to Do 2 More Circuits?”
The questions and doubts enter my mind…”I probably don’t need to do the last 2 circuits since I am already lean”…”I might be over-trained”…”I can do a tougher workout tomorrow to make this up”…”Nobody will know the difference if I just skip this part of the workout”.
My mind is racing and working quickly to find the perfect excuse for me to skip the rest of my workout.
Your Mind Will Find a Suitable Excuse…Every Time!
The human mind works in mysterious ways. If you present a problem to your subconscious mind (like finding a suitable reason for not finishing your workout) it will deliver!
Your mind is so good at finding a suitable excuse that you can skip your workout (or any action that will move you closer to any goal) and you will feel great about it.
You have to gain the mental toughness to not listen to this part of your brain to get extraordinarily fit.
An Inspiring Video Made by the Guys Over At Gym Junkies
You just have to watch this. It shows my buddy Vic over at Gym Junkies failing time after time attempting to do high level advanced exercises.
It has some great music with Nine Inch Nails (thanks by the way…usually the guys making fitness vids use Heavy Metal…not a big fan). Vic has majorly transformed his body over the past 6-9 months…he doesn’t even look like the same person. Watching how hard he trains, it isn’t a mystery how he got in such solid shape.
[Justin and Vic produce some of the highest quality fitness content online. They have a slightly different workout philosophy than me, but they give away so much good value for free that I have no problem giving them my full endorsement on my site. These are two guys who are “adding value” to the internet…and their site is growing quickly because of it. Good job guys!]
How Do You Push Hard When There Is No One is Watching?
The only thing that really keeps me going is that I believe this:
1) Most people quit when things get tough
2) I want better results than most people
So the logical thing is to not quit, to get better results than most people!
It is that simple for me, but I don’t think this way of thinking will work for everyone.
I have always found it difficult to stay focused and finish what I had planned to achieve during my home workouts. Thank you for the inspiring and helpful read!
I have been working out at home for two years now. I find i am actually much more effective on my own since the gym can often distract me
I think why some people want to workout at home is because of the fact that they feel daunted by going to the gym, or feel lost when it comes to gym equipments. Therefore, working out at home seems appropriate, but again another evil hits them – lack of motivation to see their workout through.
@ Ruoall,
Your nauseous feeling could be caused by some unknown “glitch” in your body; if this persists even after a long time, go for a check up to rule out some other more serious cause. For example, diabetes type 1 onset can make it difficult to exercise without feeling a vague fatigue internally. But so can many other syndromes or disorders, os it’s best to rule out something serious.
The biggest problem I have is discipline. Damn, it’s so true that when you are alone, there’s no-one to push you.
I bought myself the Bodylastics system (Terrell Owens) and I am ashamed to say that I have only used it about 5 times in as many months. I know I know, I’m useless…
When I train, I get nauseous and feel like passing out… Why is that? I hate that…
I’ve been working out at home for years. What I miss from the gym is all the equipment — some days it’s nice to have 120lb dumbbells on hand. But I’ll echo the point about variety — different types of pushups, for instance. As for getting going and skipping workouts, sometimes I’ll fake myself out — say, “OK, just bust out 50 pushups and 24 curls.” Usually, once I break the inertia and get moving, I can get a real workout in.
One more thing: fantastic video. Thanks for posting.
Results are what keep me motivated. A low carb diet with a lot of attention on ketosis combined with body weight exercise has brought me down to 9% body fat and for every month I see new muscles appear from leaning down.
That and really brutal metal. Nothing better 😉
The best way to stay motivated at home is to constantly beat your record. Make it a habit of always doing better than last time. If its cardio add a extra minute or up your intensity. If its weight lifting try adding another rep or increase the weight another 2 1/2 pounds. You might not always beat your record, but you will be working out close to your potential.
hay rusty ,
i wanted to thak u i started dieting (eat stop eat)with hiit and steady cardio 4 times a week with 3 training days and first week i didnt loose any fat but today i was shocked to see that i lost 2 kgs in a week well almost 2 its like 1.8 to be exact but i m so excited diet really becomes easy when u see the results and good thing is now im lukin and feelin great my body fat level is 22 % ryt nw ill wanna get it down to 8% and also i wanto tell u that im 6,1″ and 80 kg what do u think would be the ideal ripped weight for me ??im planning to loose 1 kg every wekk i no its alot but m just eating 900 to 1000 calories a day with 2 days of fast
motivation is need by everyone at different times in their life, thanks
Sue, thanks.
No problem with the fish oils (my wife has been giving them to me for a long time now) and a funny story about my cartilage: when the doctor checked my knees he found out that my cartilages look like the ones of a little kid (that’s why I have always suffered from pain on my knees and legs).. I must be a mutant 😉
Intense exercise, absolutely needs a strong mindset otherwise you are doomed to failure.
One should work on self motivation and this is a marathon procedure and not a sprint.
Nice job.Keep on!