Shake it up...Shake your booty!

I have mentioned in previous blogs the need to make exercise a part of your daily routine, your lifestyle. Something you do without giving it much thought. So, your new to training and you have slogged through those first three difficult months and at long last its habit. Your alarm goes off at five o'clock every morning and you love getting up and working up that rewarding sweat or jumping into your car at the end of your work day and rushing off to gym. Its become social and you have got to know a few people who train at the same time of the day as you. At last you are comfortable and you belong! So why do you suddenly feel a bit bored and as if you are not really achieving as much as you should be? Perhaps you have reached a plateau and need to shake up your programme, perhaps you need a bit of motivation, something different and something fun.

So what do you do?

Make a radical change and avoid all equipment. Use the oldest and most efficient method to build muscular strength, tone and endurance - Yes your very own body! Own body weight exercises which I have discussed in a previous blog are challenging, fun and safe and there are masses of variations. Take it outdoors to get even further benefits. If you still have doubts as to whether you will achieve results from these exercises just take a look at a gymnasts body! They don't lift heavy weights and yet they have the best all round bodies by far. Your body will respond best to functional, 'real-world' movements as opposed to contrived exercises on man made machines in the confines of a gym. Climb a tree, carry a bag of dog food on your shoulder, swim, hop, skip, jump, climb. Use a log in place of a barbell. You will have to rely on 'feel' rather than simply looking to see what weight you are lifting. The added benefit of this is also that a thick 'handle' is best for developing strength in your forearms and much better than a standard barbell or dumbbell grip.

If you really want to shake things up and add a huge challenge and loads of fun. Get onto your head, literally. Headstands and handstands require incredible core and upper body strength. Start off using a wall or a friend for support until you get stronger. You will also be improving your balance and proprioception. Its also good for a laugh when you first start out, so do it with a friend. Laughter is after all the best medicine.

Imagine what you could do with a bag filled with sand? The possibilities are endless. All you need is a bit of imagination. I bet you have seldom seen a builder or farm worker who is out of shape. Why? Well apart from climbing ladders with bags of cement or sand over their shoulders, carrying heavy buckets of water or bales of hay, you wont see them sitting down unless its their lunch break. They bend, stretch, reach and carry! Mimic some of their activities using 'natural' props.

Another way to put the 'mojo' back into your training is to try a few different activities, get out of your comfort zone. Focus on your weak areas. For example if you lack flexibility, do a few yoga classes. If you are chairperson of the rhythm-less society like me and completely lack coordination, you know the one who in a group workout goes left when everyone else goes right, who goes forwards when everyone is going backwards.......yes I know you've seen me attempting those zumba classes, I'm the one you laughed at. Best you start shaking your butt and get involved in some of those classes, its the only way you will ever get it right. I frequently do these classes and if my only purpose is to provide light comic relief for everyone else, that's fine with me because I just might master the moves one day!

Do some running outside on grass, barefoot. Its always lovely to be in touch with the earth and feel the grass between your toes. Put your shoes back on and do some hill sprints, run up stairs and work on your speed. Plyometrics are a great way to build up explosive strength and again best done outdoors with the sun on your back. Use natural props like logs to jump onto or over, trees to dodge, bend and weave around. Jump over streams and onto walls.

So are you having FUN yet? I know I am! Are you feeling motivated and out of your rut? Ready to go back to the gym, to your regular programme for a few more months before you have to shake it up again? I hope so!

Last but certainly by no means least and possibly a focus that you had never considered before but for me one of the most important things to think about when next you decide to skip a workout. Think about this..... Training is very often all about you, how you want to look and feel. Why not set an intention or purpose for your workout or dedicate your session to someone or something else. Understand? No? Wear a pink T shirt or ribbon and dedicate your hour workout to all those struggling with breast cancer. Do it for the person who is wheelchair bound and cant run, do it for your Father because all he ever wanted to do was run a marathon but was hampered by injuries. Get it!!?? If you only train for yourself and for your own gains that's all you will ever get. But if you train with an intention in mind, something that is larger than yourself, then you will find yourself motivated and capable of achieving far greater than you imagined and the added bonus is that you will in any case end up with those bigger calves that you were so intent on working on. This for me will unlock your true potential and power. Try it, you have nothing to lose.

Get busy moving, shake it up!