The Case For Under-Doing It At The Gym

Wherever you look, you see advertisements, TV shows and ‘inspirational’ Insta posts that seem to take a perverse joy in telling you how important it is to absolutely wipe yourself out every single workout (it's about drive, it's about power, etc., etc.). It’s like if you’re not left feeling like you’re going to throw up, you’re eligible for a full refund or something. 🥵

For some people, that’s what they crave. I’ve been there - if I’m full of nervous energy or I really just want to be able to fall asleep as soon as my head hits the pillow, pushing it to the limit can be the go. 

But my spicy take is that if you’re looking to pick up a routine and stick by it, cut yourself a little slack and focus on having a good time. Here’s why:

Feeling good while you work out encourages you to go do it more 🤩

That sounds a little obvious, but if you’re walking away from every workout feeling defeated (and not in a good way), then over time as you change into your gear or head to the gym, your brain is going to be anticipating that feeling of being frustrated or totally wiped. You’ve kind of consigned yourself to defeat before you’ve even started.

The alternative is to get a good workout in, but time it so you stop just before it gets super draining. When you stop feeling like you’re having fun, move on to something else or call it a day. You’ll walk away feeling fresh and empowered and ready to take on your next session with a smile on your face and a spring in your step.

You’re less likely to hurt yourself 🥴

One of the huge weaknesses when it comes to the ‘suffering = progress’ fitness crowd is that if you’re going to do that you really have to ride that line between ‘good’ pain and ‘bad’ pain. If you’re pretty new to fitness or lifting weights, then chances are your form isn’t 100% fantastic.

That’s okay btw! It’s all part of the journey - but usually when you’re starting out with low weights and your form isn’t fantastic, your body can more or less compensate or deal with it. If you start going really hard or doing intense movements designed to push your limits, that’s when you can run into a bit of trouble.

As you get tired, your form is going to degrade, and if something gives out while you’re putting out your 90% effort, things can go pear-shaped pretty quickly. The last thing you want is to lose all that hard-earned progress you’ve made because you’ve gotta go back to the physio!

It can feel a little less satisfying, but it’s always a good idea to do less things really well, than lots of things not so well - especially when it comes to risky exercises.

Less time recovering means you can put in more time 💪

That sounds like a paradox right? Let me explain it this way. Let’s say that your current plan is to head to the gym and go super hard for about an hour. In order to recover, that means that you might only be able to work out 2 or 3 times a week.

That’s around 3 hours max that you’re putting in per week. But what if instead of working out for an hour every few days, I put in 40 minutes for my sessions? That means I could do an exercise session every day, which adds up to around 5 hours a week in the gym. Over the course of the year, that adds up to over 100 extra hours spent exercising.

At the end of the day, it’s all about doing what works for you. But if you’re like me and can’t think of anything less appealing than blasting your bod at the gym, there are some good reasons to take your foot off the gas a little.