When and When Not to Hit the Gym
We’ve all been there. You had a plan to go to the gym. Now that the hour has arrived, it’s the last thing you want to do. Should you force yourself to go?
You may expect us to shout, “YES!” But getting to the gym no-matter-what is not always the answer. The subject is more nuanced than a simple yes or no. So let us introduce you to the Coffee Talkers’ Guide to Getting to the Gym (Or Not).
Are you physically ill? If you have the signs that some kind of illness is coming on, you should skip the gym until you feel better. Adding the stress of a workout will give your immune system a hit, and will likely make your illness worse. Additionally, it is a service to your fellow gym members to not spread your germs all over the gym.
Are you feeling mentally “off,” with symptoms of depression or anxiety? In our experience, you should try to get to the gym. Some muscle activation and movement will most certainly make you feel better. We are big fans of the truism “Move a muscle, change a thought.” So we recommend getting to the gym if at all possible. However, this is not a day for super intense or heavy training. Focus on just showing up and taking it easy. Most people are familiar with the feel-good brain chemicals like dopamine that are released when you exercise. But researchers have recently discovered what they are calling “The Happiness Molecule.” It is literally a molecule that makes you happy, that is released from your muscles when they are used. This is a strong case for exercise being the best medicine. Even if you can’t get to the gym, try to get outside for a walk. As Kierkegaard so aptly put, “Above all, do not lose your desire to walk. Everyday, I walk myself into a state of well-being and walk away from every illness. I have walked myself into my best thoughts, and I know of no thought so burdensome that one cannot walk away from it. But by sitting still, and the more one sits still, the closer one comes to feeling ill. Thus if one just keeps on walking, everything will be alright.”
Are you still sore from your last training session? As we have discussed in a previous blog article, we are staunch advocates of letting your muscles heal completely, before using those same muscles again. That doesn’t mean you can’t do an upper body workout if your legs are sore. Just don’t keep hammering away at muscles that are already sore. As we’ve said in past blogs, muscle growth and strengthening happens during recovery. Continuing to train muscles that are already sore hampers your progress.
Have you had particularly poor sleep? As with the mental challenges above, we recommend a light training session. Just enough to get the feel-good chemicals going, which are a good remedy for the agitation that often accompanies a bad night’s rest. A little movement will also set you up nicely for a better night’s sleep.
Have you had such a busy work day that your only opportunity to train is late at night? As a rule, we recommend not training within three hours of your target bedtime. A late-night training session can rev you up so that getting to sleep may be challenging.
Are you completely stressed out? This is another time when hard training is not a good idea. However, a 50 % effort training session can be a good stress relief, and with many examples above, gets those feel-good chemicals pumping.
Do you have an injury? We are not advocates for training through the pain of an injury. However, we recommend exploring movements to see what you can still do without feeling pain. Adjusting your training in this way will even help your injury to heal–both through increased blood flow and spikes in human growth hormone as a result of training your other muscles.
Even if you can’t get off the couch to do anything–be gentle with yourself. The one constant in life is change, and the way you are feeling will not last. Reflect on the guide above, and see if pushing yourself to train is even a good idea. A few days off will not ruin the progress you’ve made in your training–and maybe a rest is exactly what you really need.
Until next time
Scott and Lennart