![\"\"](\"https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2023\/06\/work.jpg\")
<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
I went to my garage to work out this afternoon and realized, \u201cMan, I don\u2019t feel like working out today.\u201d<\/p>\n
But I still started my warm-up on the deadlift anyway, knowing that sometimes motivation follows action<\/a> and all that jazz.<\/p>\n As I worked through my warm-up sets, things just felt heavy. Weight that should have been easy to lift felt like it weighed three times as much. I didn\u2019t feel any general get-up-and-go. I just felt flat, both physically and psychologically. I still didn\u2019t want to work out. Motivation did not follow action.<\/p>\n But I kept pressing on.<\/p>\n I did my first working set of deadlifts. They felt awful.<\/p>\n I continued to have zero drive to do my planned workout.<\/p>\n So, I changed things up.<\/p>\n I worked out.<\/p>\n I just did a different workout.<\/p>\n I didn\u2019t do what I had planned, but I still got my exercise in for the day.<\/p>\n If you train long enough, you\u2019ll have days like these. I have them about once or twice a quarter. They come on for various reasons. Sometimes I\u2019m just stressed from work. Other times they happen after I\u2019ve had a good run of progressively adding weight or reps to my training. My body and brain are saying, \u201cDude, we\u2019re going to make you take it easy for a bit.\u201d Other times those flat days crop up for no apparent reason.<\/p>\n But even when I don\u2019t feel like training, I avoid having an all-or-nothing mentality and don\u2019t give up on the idea of exercising altogether. I still get a workout in. It\u2019s just an easier one. My easy workout might not be doing much for me in the short term, but it\u2019s helping me keep the habit of exercising in the long term. Success in life is usually due to a long obedience in the same direction<\/a>. If I can stay consistent with my training, even on the days I don\u2019t want to train, I\u2019ll be alright in the end.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s what I do when I don\u2019t feel like working out and can\u2019t even will myself to do it:<\/p>\n Reduce intensity.<\/strong> My first recourse is to simply reduce the intensity of my workout. That means I reduce the amount of weight I\u2019m lifting. Instead of deadlifting 445 pounds for three sets of five, I\u2019ll do 315 pounds for three sets of five. If you\u2019re a runner, reducing the intensity of your workout could mean running slower.<\/p>\n Reduce volume.<\/strong> If I\u2019m still feeling blah after reducing weight, I\u2019ll reduce volume. That means doing fewer reps. So instead of doing three sets of five, I might do two sets of five. Or even just one set. If you\u2019re a runner, reducing volume would mean running a shorter distance.<\/p>\n Change up your exercises for the day.<\/strong> Sometimes what my mind and body needs isn\u2019t rest but rather a change. So when I\u2019m not feeling like doing my regular training session, I mix things up and do other exercises.<\/p>\n Today, for example, I did a few sets of a goblet squat with a kettlebell instead of my regularly programmed safety bar squat.<\/p>\n I\u2019ve had days where instead of doing my regular workout with barbells and dumbbells, I\u2019ll go all in on the kettlebell<\/a> and do swings, Turkish get-ups, and the like.<\/p>\n Other times, I\u2019ve dropped my scheduled barbell workout to do a quick bodyweight workout<\/a>, or I’ve spent the entire session doing mobility stuff.<\/p>\n Don\u2019t be afraid to ditch your plan if it means you\u2019ll still get some physical activity in that day.<\/p>\n