A few days ago I documented a day in my life on Snapchat……
* Insert disclaimer here: Yes, at the ripe age of 50, I bravely entered the world of Snapchat only to last about 2 days lol!!
Back to my story – a number of people commented on the time of day that I get up (3.20am) in order to hit an exercise bike at the gym (4.15am) to warm up before my first group start (4.50am). Most thought I was mad, and to be honest, if you had told me 18 months ago that I would be doing this, I would have agreed.
My natural body clock is actually that of an owl and I could easily slip back into the routine of staying up to all hours and getting up late, which is how I lived during my years as a professional musician. When I retrained to become a Personal trainer however, I quickly realised that I need to change this as the majority of people want to train in the morning before work.
I began by getting up at 4.45 am in order to start work at 5.30am and eventually that wake up time became earlier and earlier as I squeezed more in more clients wanting early sessions. My own workouts occurred after I had finished my shifts and I found myself beginning to skip the odd one more and more frequently as – quite frankly – I was too worn out after giving all my energy to my clients.
I didn’t know how to remedy things until I saw a post by an IFBB pro that I follow on Instagram mentioning how she gets up at 3 am in order to get her training done before her kids are up for school – and the penny dropped: If you consider something to be valuable, you will MAKE the time for it.
I KNOW that I need to workout on a daily basis. If I don’t, the chronic pain that I live with flares up, my knees which have oesto-arthritis become stiff and inflamed, my back hurts, I feel ten years older, my muscles atrophy quickly and my mood gets grumpy. So I have reworked my schedule in order to ensure that I not only give my best to my clients, but I also make looking after myself a priority too. In my case, this means getting to bed earlier so that I can get up at 3.20 am to get to the gym by 4.15am in order to fit in a good 25 odd minute moderate cardio session where I warm up my body and mind as I read books that motivate, inspire and teach. I then train alongside my first group of clients which motivates me to work hard. I can’t have my team seeing their trainer slacken off!
The result? I have very rarely missed a training session this year and feel so much stronger and healthier for it.
Getting up early to train may not work for you – but what choices can YOU make to fit it in? In fact what are you doing to achieve the other things that are valuable to you as well?
Your body?
Your family?
Your dreams and goals?
If you are not finding time for them, then I challenge you to rework your schedule and MAKE time. If it is valuable to you – and let’s face it, having a healthy, strong body SHOULD be valuable – then stop complaining that you have no time and MAKE time!!
Cat xx
