#10: Labor Day
Labor Day is usually seen as the end of summer. The last hoorah before school, work and other life responsibilities start to take over. The days start to get noticeably shorter, football starts and pumpkin everything starts to appear. It is also the easiest time to get out of your routine. With a busier schedule we start to find an excuse to skip certain things. The gym is usually one of those things that we put on the backburner.
We generally see a big spike in activity in August and early September. The gym is alive with activity and new folks. Everyone is setting and achieving goals. Unfortunately, the time period between mid-September and New Years shows a big drop. We get more and more enamored by the 1pm football game and the new Pumpkin Spice Carrot Infused Whip Cream Topped Doughnut. Our fitness takes a back seat for a while.
Then New Years comes and we are like “O, shit. I am out of breath from walking to the fridge to get my fizzy pop. Something has to change.” You email me and start back up with a New Years resolution. That’s great that you came back but the problem is that you lost the last three months. Not only that but you lost all of the work you put in during the prior three, four, six months.
How do we avoid this? Just writing about it isn’t going to stick. It might be motivating for a while but 2 weeks from now we will be in the same boat. Looking up at the sun shortened day wondering what to do with such limited time.
The good news is that we have a strong community of very supportive folks that have been with us for a long time. We know that it takes time to build a habit but we can build a habit. We are also armed with the knowledge that this is the time of year that things start to get in the way of our goals. Don’t let yourself get off easy with an excuse. If you get an email or message from me checking in on you then know that it has been too long and people are missing your smiling face.
It is very important for the overall progression of an athlete to not take unnecessary time off. Let’s make this the best fall ever and go into the new year already achieving our 2017 goals.
