Sam Wood is one of the biggest names in the health and fitness industry, with more than 20 years of experience in the space.
Leveraging his background in personal training and his platform as a media personality, Wood founded a leading fitness company that helps many Aussies reach their own health and fitness goals.
It goes without saying that Wood has a wealth of fitness knowledge and plenty of tips to share, and surprisingly one of his biggest fitness tips doesn’t involve exercising at all.
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Wood tells 9honey that the people he knows who are the most consistent year in, year out with their fitness all do one particular thing.
Rather than forcing themselves to consistently show up to the gym every week with a ‘can’t stop, won’t stop’ mindset, Wood explains that these people will all make a habit of blocking out regular down time in their routines.
“They schedule breaks,” Wood says.
“They’ll have a week of maybe a couple of bike rides in that week or no exercise in that week [at all].
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“They’ll still move their body because they’re pretty active people but they will deliberately deload, not schedule any intense workouts, have a week off the gym if they’re gym people and just do other things, you know a hit of tennis or whatever it might be.”
Wood explains this could look like scheduling a week off an exercise routine every few weeks or months or blocking out a bigger chunk of time to take a break from working out. And it’s something that can have major knock on effects.
“I think one, your body thanks you for it, but two, your mind thanks you for it,” Wood says.
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Taking a break from exercise especially if you are following an intense gym or other exercise regime can be really good to give your muscles a rest but it can also help give you a reset on your attitudes towards exercise.
After a while, even when doing an exercise you love, it’s easy to fall into a rut and lose interest in working out all together, especially when motivation goes out the window – it’s why so many people sign up to gyms in January and stop going by March.
Intentionally blocking out a break, Wood says, can help prevent that lull before it comes and keep the interest in working out alive.
“You realise you miss it and then you come back to your regime or a new program and I think that can be a really healthy thing.”
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Some people can find themselves feeling disheartened when they fall out of a fitness routine but Wood stresses it is “absolutely” OK to take a break if you’ve lost motivation or are in a busier period of life. Wood himself admits that he’s “fallen off the wagon four times” over the past year.
“Don’t be too hard on yourself,” Wood says.
And after a break, once you feel ready to get back in the swing of things. Wood says it can be surprisingly easier than you think.
“I always say you’re only three workouts away from getting back on track,” Wood says.
“If you can do three workouts in a week, it’s amazing how quickly you can sort of regain your momentum, regain your mojo and turn things around.”
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