Hands up if this sounds familiar: you’re itching to get active, so you put on a cute workout fit, lace your sneakers tight, and… then you sit scrolling your favourite fitness influencers’ Instagram pages searching for the workout circuit that feels just right for today. Before you know it, way too much time has gone by – time that you could have spent crushing that workout!
It’s easy to feel overwhelmed with the sheer volume of options out there when it comes to how you “should” be working out, and it can often be incredibly demotivating to have an interest in fitness, but a lack of clear direction as to what to do and when. That’s where the workout calendar comes in. Read on to find out why sticking to a schedule may be just the thing to keep you motivated on your fitness journey.
Disclaimer: for those with Type A personalities, a lot of this may seem obvious, like second nature. But for a lot of other folks, getting oneself organized and into a fitness regimen can be a real challenge – much like getting organized in other facets of day-to-day life.
⏰ Planning workouts ahead of time – or signing up for a platform that will do that for you – can save you a ton of time and energy in the moment.
You live a busy life, and your time allocated to fitness might be quite limited. You might be working out at 6 am before a commute to work, or on a strict one-hour lunch break, or while your new baby is down for a very short nap – and that might mean you don’t have time to dilly dally when it comes to what you’re going to be working on. Having your workouts mapped out into a calendar allows you to dive right into your warm-up, without any time wasted.
🗓 A workout calendar can foster a sense of accomplishment, and forward-thinking.
Admit it: we’ve all started to-do lists with items we’ve already completed, just to cross them off. It can be incredibly motivating to physically (or digitally) check off challenging tasks from a list or calendar, and it can be just as motivating to be able to easily see what lies ahead. Soon enough, your calendar will be full of checked-off workouts – each one proof that you can do hard things – and you’ll be able to look ahead at what you’re building towards.
🧠 Forming routines is great for overall brain function.
There are a ton of mental health benefits to forming and following some sort of daily routine – from reducing stress to alleviating anxiety. They say it takes at least 21 days to form a habit that you’ll stick to (we’ve also heard it might be 30 days!), so why not try planning out at least three weeks of workouts all at once – you may find yourself actually looking forward to what you have planned!
🔄 Repetition is ideal when strength training, as is working on your progressive overload.
By following a plan created by fitness professionals, you’ll be able to repeatedly target the right muscles with the right amount of rest time in between, taking all of the guesswork out of what to do and when. Tracking your workouts in your own calendar can also make it easier to work towards progressive overload, without having to remember how much you lifted last time.
Sweat Nation members receive ongoing weekly workout schedules every Sunday, complete with a wide variety of on-demand follow-along workouts scheduled to help you build your fittest body, from the gym or from home. Start your week with a clear path forward to the best you! 💪
Working out doesn’t have to be a guessing game – with a little bit of planning and scheduling, you may be able to keep yourself accountable like never before.
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