Protected Time Slots
Find at least 3 hours a week you can protect for your workouts that no one steals from you.
Today our lives are busier than ever. We have commitments to our bosses, families, communities, household chores, and other priorities. Your health and fitness are also crucial to keeping you strong mentally and physically so you can be there for the most important people in your life.
Your best tool for managing a busy lifestyle is Protected Time Slots.
A Protected Time Slot is reserved for you – a time when you can consistently show up for your workouts without distractions. And I am recommending you find at least three of those a week. You may exercise outside of those time slots, but these are the three you PROTECT.
So, when do you establish these Protected Time Slots?
Think about when there are the least demands of you on a weekly basis. One of those times for me is Saturday morning between 7:00 – 9:00 am. My wife sleeps in on the weekend, and I am not scheduled to work on Saturdays. So I plan my longest workout of the week for that slot. Sunday mornings we have other commitments, but Saturday’s I can always show up for my workout.
My shorter workouts of 30-45 minutes are easier to flex during the week if I need to adjust due to scheduling conflicts. So the recommendation here is to place your longer workouts in a Protected Time Slot.
FAMILY WORKOUT NIGHT
I also train one weeknight with my wife and daughter-in-law. This is our leg day, and we make it a family gym + dinner night. We hold each other accountable, get our lower body training done, and it is a night we all look forward to spending together having dinner with the three of us and our son and granddaughter after the workout.
Balancing family and fitness commitments can be a challenge. By making my family a part of the journey I’ve established balance that has benefited each of us and we have fun training together.
Mindset and focus are crucial elements of a successful fitness program. Just knowing you have that protected time slot for your workout helps you to set the intention for what you plan to accomplish in that session. Showing up is just the start — having a clear plan on what you are going to accomplish in your training session keeps you progressing to get stronger. Examples of intentions or goals for a training session:
Ride 20 miles at a pace of 18 mph or more
Improve 1% avg weight/rep from last workout
Improve avg run mile pace by 5 seconds
The workouts you put in a Protected Time Slot – treat those like an event. It is your time to shine. You are the main character for that episode. Show up ready to give your best and exit that session with pride in your effort, accomplishments and that you reserved that space – that Protected Time Slot – for yourself.
GO GET IT! And have a great workout.
Want to chat more about Protected Time Slots? I would love the opportunity to connect with you.
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