How To Get Started With Your Training

The first problem that comes up with people who want to improve their health is knowing where to start. At first this question may seem trivial, but you’d be surprised how often this question is seldom ever taken seriously. After all isn’t any kind of workout better than not working out at all? Isn’t engaging in some kind of exercise better than not exercising at all? Why does this question even matter?

It matters because if you don’t know what you’re doing and why you’re doing it you risk the possibility of  wasting your time. Think about it. How often have you told yourself that you would do something only to put it off indefinitely? How often have you taken action without a plan only to find yourself clueless as to what the you are doing?

The thing is we as humans are imperfect and are predisposed to make excuses for our short-comings. These mistakes our more likely to occur if we just adopt a “make it up as I go” approach to our training. While some of us might be able to train on-the-fly most of us work better if we have a plan. That is a place to start with an end goal to reach that is accomplished by achieving  clearly defined objectives. That is why we must train. Not Exercise!

Training vs. Exercising

The first step you must take before you get started is understanding that you are going to be training not exercising. What is the difference between these two words. Exercising is an activity where as training is a series of activities structured and designed in such a way as to achieve an objective (i.e getting strong, losing weight, developing a skill, etc.) When we exercise we don’t care about reaching a goal, developing a good habit, or learning a skill. We just exercise until we feel hot, sweaty and tired. In isolation this is fine. If all you want to do is just exercise that in and of itself is fine. If however you do have a goal in mind that you want to achieve than you cannot simply exercise. You need to train. Consistently.

Only by training will you develop the good habits and perform the right exercises in order to accomplish your goal(s). Goals give you something to look forward to. Goals are rarely if ever accomplished by random chance or in this case mindless, inconsistent, and random exercise. You have to structure your training such that all of the activities that you engage in during that training period are conducive to accomplishing your ultimate goal. If you aren’t training consistently the only thing you are going to end up doing is wasting time. Lots and Lots of time!

Define Your Goals

You need to define your goals. Your training is going to vary depending on what your goal is. For example if your goal was simply to get your deadlift from 100 lbs to 500 lbs you don’t need to waste time running or learning how to become a boxer. On the other hand if your goal is to become a blue belt in Brazilian Jujitsu you are not going to get there if you just lift weights at the gym or hike 10 miles on a trail every day. If you want to become stronger you need to lift heavier weights. Likewise if you want to become a better fighter you need to spend more time sparing on the mat (or ring). If you want to develop a skill you need to practice that skill.

That being said however your training doesn’t always have to consist of exercises that exclusively develop that skill or accomplish that goal. For example just because squating a heavy barbell won’t make you a more skilled grappler  doesn’t mean that getting stronger won’t help you perform better on the mat. Likewise just because losing weight isn’t the primary goal of becoming a stronger lifter or more adept fighter doesn’t mean you won’t lose weight by lifting heavier weights or learning Jujitsu. Some activities can be complimentary to your goals or even result in extra benefits in addition to your main goal. The key is to always be mindful of your options and how they can benefit you.

Once you have clearly defined your goals you need to establish a training regiment that you must adhere to if you want to make any progress. That’s not to say you can’t change your training regiment by incorporating new exercises or developing new habits. You have to be willing to adapt your training depending on the circumstances and what your goal is. Once you’ve figured out how you are going to reach your goal you must train consistently and not allow yourself to get sidetracked.

This can be easier said than done especially if you’re not used to doing intense physical activity. Just stick to it  and focus on becoming better not perfect. Remember there is no such thing as perfect in life. The only thing you need to worry about is getting better so you can accomplish your goal.

Try To Have Some Fun

One more thing to mention before you get out there and do the work. Try and have some fun along the way. Understand that the journey to self-improvement isn’t always an enjoyable one. Exercising is seldom ever fun. Training isn’t always enjoyable. It can (and will) often be tiring, boring, tedious, monotonous, frustrating, and at times even demoralizing. There will be times when you don’t want to get after it. There will be times when you want deviate from your routine. Over time you’ll start to feel like it’s taking too long to see results. You just have to be patient and persistent when it comes to your training. That being said it doesn’t mean you have to always be bored of training.

As time goes on you’ll learn to get used to the monotony of training. You can however find more enjoyable ways to reach your goals. Take weight loss as an example. If you’re fat and you want to lose weight, you don’t have to exclusively go to a gym and lift weights all day. You can also take up sports, learn martial arts, or even something as simple as learning how to dance. All of these things can be a nice way to compliment your training. You still have to train, be it at the gym or elsewhere, and you still have to develop temperance and discipline. Those things are still important in the end. That being said you’re still free to have a little fun along the way.

Just remember what your goal is and what it takes to get there. You can still have some fun (and you should) along the way. It makes the grind much more tolerable in the long run. Also if you end up enjoying even the more mundane aspects of your training all the more power to you. It only gets better from there.