There are a few things online that annoy me to the point of ranting about them and this is one of them.
Workout shaming, the thing our industry can do without.
Workout shaming
or more specifically shaming someone for not working out either as much as you, or as much as you think is necessary is the worst kind of shaming disguised as “motivational”.
“Get your @ss up and workout because you damn well know you skipped it today”
^^^ this found it’s way to my instagram feed today.
Firstly, the censoring of the word “ass” annoyed me on principle. Either use the word or don’t but don’t pretend that by adding the @ sign that it’s more acceptable.
Secondly, if someone skipped a workout is it the end of the world? No!
Let’s break this down.
You deserve a damn day off.
Some programmes, including the one where this quote came from, are 6 days of exercise. Six days with one day off. That might be fine for some people, I myself did the 60 days of Insanity without missing one (as a fitness professional), but for a lot of people that’s like going from 0 to 100 without a build up.
If you want more than one day to recover, take it. Listen to your body, not to a fitness guru.
Hormones, cramps and period lethargy
One for those of us who menstruate. The week of your period can cause extreme fatigue in some.
Bloating
Irritability
Pain.
On those days a workout might be just what you need to give you some energy and make you feel better.
For others? Screw that. It’s a week for self care, gentle exercise and no guilt.
^^^sad pug needs a day off
Working out every day isn’t healthy
This depends on the workout of course, I’m not including lower intensity exercises such as walking, (some) yoga, mobility and flexibility training etc. These are low enough to count as daily activity that do not stress the body.
I’m talking about hard core cardio or really heavy lifting.
Your body gets stronger when you rest
^^^ READ THIS!!!
You cannot expect great health, good progress or a fit body if you run it into the ground every day.
Take a rest day, infact take 2, maybe 3 depending on how hard you work and where you are in your fitness journey.
But Ainzlie, some people workout twice a day?
Yep, they do. Some fitness professionals and athletes will train every day.
Do they go hard every day? No. Of course not.
But is this who the instagram post was targeting? No.
It targets non-athletes who want to achieve weight loss and/or a healthy lifestyle to keep going despite their need to rest.
Lets keep it simple
If you have a coach/are a coach then yeah, you know you can safely workout every day.
If you’re just trying to get fit and lose some weight, take the rest that your body NEEDS and throw your middle finger up at shaming posts like these.
Ainzlie
p.s – unsure about how to plan a good workout that is safe and healthy? Get in touch and lets discuss it. I’m now taking online clients as well so if you’re not based in Edinburgh you can still train with me. Exciting!
