The Best Routine For You Is The One You’d Actually Do

Routine Flat Lay - The 5th

So Jeanne’s post inspired me to write this. Particularly the bit about how she squeezed in some running time into her day. I’ve followed her for a while now, and it’s interesting to see how she’s grown into running this past year or so.

If you’ve been following my blog, you might’ve also noticed that I work out every day, thanks to me repeating that fact like a broken record. The reason? Because I’ve found a groove that works for me.

How I go about it is as thus: I put out 70% effort (or less). If, when I think about my problems, and I still feel the dread, I add another set. I keep doing this until the problem seems to mellow out. That’s it.

I don’t care if weightlifting builds more muscle than running. I don’t care if high-intensity exercise benefits my heart more than a mild jog. I just do it for the feels.

And most importantly, it’s what I would actually do.

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The Real Reason Why I Work Out Every Day (And It’s Not For The Abs)

A woman in yoga pants running up some colourful stairs

Barring the time I got ravaged by COVID or when I pulled my back, I’ve managed to maintain my daily workout schedule for about a year now. I don’t even remember how long it’s been. I’m just basing it off this post.

And I’ve uploaded said workouts in the form of Insta stories to hold myself accountable, even though it’s just to a handful of people.

But as a result of the stories, I did get a couple people sliding into my DMs, asking me whether I’m training to be invincible.

The answer is yes.

Am I preparing for a competition? Yes. For the competition of life.

Am I an addict? Yes. I’m addicted to the pump.

Do I take days off? Ye—uh, you almost got me there. No.

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How To Overcome The Obstacles Life Throws At You (Or What I Learned From Pulling My Back)

A drawing of the spine, skull, hand, and feet bone structure

I had to jinx it, didn’t I? I had to brag about my unbroken exercise streak. Now I’m sitting at an odd angle trying not to aggravate my pulled back.

It’s nothing serious, but it’s put me out of action for a week so far.

I was livid at first. I hated everything about being injured, and I pity the people who had to deal with me during my denial phase. I needed endorphins, damn it, and it sucked having to deal with life’s problems without that sweet, sweet drug.

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How Not Counting Reps Helped Me Break Through My Workout Plateaus

Woman working out on stadium bleachers

I feel like it wasn’t too long ago that I wrote this piece about working out every day for two months, and now it’s time once more to follow up on that.

I’m proud to announce that I’ve yet to break the chain, and I’ve now reached the five-month mark of working out every day. And this is coming from someone who much prefers sports to plain ol’ exercise.

I’ve learned so much about myself thus far, the main lesson being how much I hate exercise. But I’ve also learned that I can do hard things, especially on the days when I’m sure I wouldn’t be able to pull it off.

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Interesting Lessons From Working Out For 60 Days Straight

A man doing reverse dips on a bar. Photo by Kate Trysh

If you’ve been following me on Instagram, you’ll probably have noticed me spamming your feed with my daily workouts.

As of today, I’ve just passed my 60-day streak, and I did manage to learn some interesting things about myself along the way.

And you know the first thing I’ve realised? It’s that exercising is not about getting washboard abs or increasing your bench record. Instead, it does more for your mental and spiritual growth.

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