Is a Training Schedule Always a Good Thing?

Exercise has always been a central pillar in my life but in recent years it has decreased dramatically in intensity and frequency. Currently my exercise is sporadic and varied. I have no exercise regime and can’t help but feel that I’m being lazy. I often feel like I should commit to a training schedule and return to the fitness I know I’m capable of, but actually, while I was at my fittest I’m realising that I was my least healthy. I’ve looked back at my exercise levels and compared my mental and physical health when I did and didn’t follow one.

The Exercise Regimes: I had an active childhood thanks to me being a competitive child and spending much of my time outdoors. I learnt discipline at a young age, being swimmer and gymnast. As a teenager I also followed a regimented training schedule as a middle distance runner and high jumper, as well as playing netball and doing sport with my school. I’d train or compete in some form everyday, sometimes doing two sessions a day. Entirely self-driven, I would relentlessly compete with myself and others to be better, faster and stronger.

A Needed Break: at university I removed myself from the competitive sports scene, keen to give a social life outside of sport a go. The experience of being able to drink without having to train the day after seemed like a necessity for me at uni and, in hindsight, I needed a break from years of pushing myself to my limits. I didn’t stop sport completely – I still learnt to play squash (badly, and mainly so I could go to the sports club night in the SU) and enjoyed the novelty of going for a run without feeling sick from exhaustion afterwards.

Still No Schedule: at the moment I’m enjoying sport to stay active, to clear my mind and to meet likeminded people. There is no set activity that I’ll do and no set day that I’ll do it. If I’m feeling energetic I’ll train with my local running club, go to a Parkrun or do a HITT workout at home. Sometimes I’d rather get out and go for a slow run in nature. Or if I’m not feeling like pushing myself I might go for a walk or do some yoga.

A Change to My Mental and Physical Health: The regimented training schedules and relentless competition resulted in the physically fittest me I’ve ever been, but I was also the most mentally drained I’ve ever been. Pushing myself to my limits on a frequent basis impacted my body in physical ways that I’m still trying to figure out. For starters, I would place bets on my adrenal fatigue being at least partly caused by this. On the other side, replacing a training schedule with a drinking schedule at uni meant my body shape changed and I was no longer the toned stick I was used to. This led to a me wishing I could motivate myself to be more active or follow an exercise regime, something I never achieved despite half-hearted trips to the gym. The intention was there but there was no way I would get back the body I had before, putting in a fraction of the time and effort and always feeling tired from uni work or nights out. Currently I’m keeping flexible with my exercise levels and working on shifting my mentality away from a feeling that I should be a certain fitness and be toned to be ‘healthy’. I’m finally allowing my body to rest when it needs to and don’t feel a constant need to push myself which I think has helped me to become mentally and physically healthier, even if I’m not as slim and toned.

Conclusion: I think exercise regimes can be both good and bad depending on your phase of life and the motive behind them. I’d say a regular training programme can be brilliant if, for example, you get a high from the endorphins, want to get strong, or find the routine is good for your mental health. But not so brilliant if it makes you feel mentally or physically drained, you’re exercising to counteract an unhealthy lifestyle or because you think you will only be happy if you look a certain way. At the moment committing to a training schedule isn’t suiting me because I need to prioritise elements of my health other than fitness and am still learning to love my body whatever its shape. Most of all I’m doing what feels good for both my mind and body. At the moment this is doing varying types of relatively low intensity exercise and being outdoors. Maybe one day it will feel good to have training schedule again, but definitely not right now.

Disclaimer: I’d like to acknowledge that I’m naturally quite an active person and really enjoy the outdoors, so in doing ‘what feels good’ I’m still moving a fair amount. Also, this is in no way an advice piece or a conclusion that considers everything. I’m sharing my observations and experiences as I figure out how to be the healthiest I can be. If it resonates with you then yay, but if not that’s fine too.

Cas x