How to get back to training in top form?

The ups and downs set the seasons of your workouts. There are days when you want to give your all and days when you give what you can. Some even abandon their goals and will only resume them in emergency: When they have really regained too much weight. There are, however, little "tricks" that can keep you from letting go. When your motivation goes down, with one or the other trick, it can come back, because we all know that we can’t feel motivated in the same way every day. The champions themselves have periods of demotivation.

There is a proverb that says, "There is no shame in stopping, there is a shame in not starting again.” In other words, do not lose sight of your goal. If at times it disappears from your sight, find it back. The important thing is not “when” you achieve your goal but to actually achieve it.

So what do you do when this goal seems far away and you do not feel like you're moving forward? It is true that it is important to have an important objective. For a worthwhile purpose, you will do great things. For a goal that is not very important or very big in your eyes, you will not want to move. The problem with a great goal is that it can hardly be reached quickly and that patience is likely to be something you’ll lack.. So you need intermediate goals that will keep you on the road to your ultimate goal.

For example, if you plan to come to Olympia one day, if you wait until you are ready to go on stage, you may wait too long and your motivation will dull. Being ready is a preparation that takes years, and thorough dedication non-stop for several years is not going to be easy. On the other hand, if you plan Olympia, but split up your goals, give yourself intermediate goals, you will progress along the way by staying more motivated: You plan a beginners competition, then you try to make a result, then you try 'international amateur, and so on. You progress, you become better while keeping your ultimate goal in line of sight.

Yet, this goal fragmentation may not be enough to keep motivation intact day after day. When this happens, small pleasures can make it feel fresh again.

If you keep your routine too long, a program change can help you get back in top form. If you're wondering where you're at, make a change in your session and try to push a maximum in an exercise that's important to you. If you ever break your record, you will immediately regain your motivation. Or on the contrary, if you stagnate, concentrate on a more muscular feeling rather than on your weights.

An easy thing to do to get back in top form is to buy new clothes. You choose a new outfit with which you will feel well in the room. It's something easy to achieve and that will make you feel different at workout.

You can also choose to start a cure of a dietary supplement that you have never tested. Just knowing that you have spent money for a supplement will push you  and will force you to respect a strict workout schedule, to avoid a feeling of having invested for nothing. In the same idea, have someone follow your progress. If you pay for something, you will want to make your investment profitable and also not to disappoint your coach. Motivation will come much faster like this…

So here are some practical solutions, know that everyone is different, if you know yourself well enough, you’ll find the solution deep down.