How to Get Your Workout Routine Back on Track

Each client's fitness goals are different. Between short-term goals and long-term goals, your workout plan can constantly change. Physical activity comes in many forms. Some are more intense than others.

External factors heavily influence a client’s workout routine. Many assume their exercise routine is only dependent on the facility, gym equipment, and guidance available to them. However, there is more to it than that.

Clients achieve a healthy lifestyle through their daily routine, exercise program, and nutrition habits. Healthy living starts with small steps, setting a smart goal, and replacing bad habits with good habits. Let’s look at techniques to help clients make these changes a reality and get back on track.

Making Exercise a Regular Habit

Do you ever have trouble keeping on track with your fitness program? Chances are that during certain times in your life you are more consistent than others. This is completely normal, and if you figure out how to deal with this, you will receive the benefits of living a healthy lifestyle.

Setting goals is important to building a successful, regular exercise program, but that isn’t the only aspect. It also is dependent on your lifestyle routine. Preparing a fitness routine around a client’s goals and lifestyle puts them in a better position for long-term commitment.

Life happens and unexpected events arise that you and your clients have no control over. Having a program in place that can flex around these issues will help them stay on track. Healthy living outside the gym is what helps them achieve their fitness goals inside the gym.

To make exercise a regular habit, for you and your clients, implement some of the following techniques.

Write Down Your Routine

Writing out your routine mentally prepares you for what you need to accomplish each day. To start somewhere you must take action. Provide yourself with small action items to complete each day. You can talk and think about what you would like to accomplish. But until you act, you won’t get very far.

Don’t get stuck comparing your routine to others. Instead, maybe find a workout buddy who has similar goals and fitness levels. This way you can motivate and push one another. Everyone starts somewhere and if you compare or try to reach someone else’s potential you will never reach yours.

Set Short Term Goals

Everyone has an end goal and a picture in their mind of where they want to be. Unfortunately, the end goal does not happen overnight. When designing a fitness program, avoid only considering one big-long term goal.

Once you write down all your goals, separate them into small daily accomplishments. These are what lead up to the end goal. Design your program with sections of smaller, short-term goals. If you set a goal of losing 100 pounds and you don’t lose 100 pounds within a few months of working hard, you could easily become discouraged. The same goes for your clients.

To stay motivated, set smaller goals of losing 10 pounds per month to achieve your long-term goal over time. Achieving those goals and recognizing that you are losing weight will keep you much more motivated.

Short Workouts

Starting with shorter workouts will help eliminate burnout. Begin with 30-minute workouts and build up to longer ones. The last thing you want to do is start off too hard and too fast. This will lead to you or your clients falling off track. This is a huge part of the “I’m all in” mentality a lot of clients have.

It's not smart to start an exercise program with the mentality that you need to go 100mph right away. The most important part of building an exercise habit is focusing on the habit itself first—start exercising. Then worrying about the goals later—exercising to lose weight or build muscle. You cannot achieve any fitness goals or results without being consistent. 

If you have the mentality that you must be all in and not miss a single workout, you are setting yourself up for failure. There will come a time when you feel tired, sore, and fatigued. Times will arise when you can’t make it to the gym or you need to cut your workout short. This is where preparation and attitude play a huge part.

Positive Attitude

Preparing to deal with negative situations in a positive way will set you and your clients up for success. Provide your clients with alternative workouts anytime they’re running late or can’t make it to a session.

Changing the way you respond to negative situations will help you and your clients stay motivated and possibly still get in some sort of workout. Backup workout ideas eliminate any excuse that could prevent you from completing a workout. This leads to more of a sense of accomplishment.

Set Rewards

Having a reward for every workout completion helps push you on the days you don’t feel motivated. Everyone has days where they’d rather not workout. This is why discovering motivation from within is important. Remind yourself why you started rather than just your physique goals. This is what helps you continue living a healthy lifestyle.

If you want to go out with friends on the weekend, tell yourself you can’t until you complete your daily workout. If you want to watch a TV show, commit to making a healthy dinner first.

Set a Schedule

Lastly, one of the most important things to remember is that failure to plan sets you up for disappointment. When getting back into your routine, add your workouts and healthy habits to your personal schedule. If your workouts don’t fit into and around your job, family life, school, and other life factors then you won’t stick to them.

As a personal trainer, scheduling is an important part of designing a client’s workout plan. Too often, an exercise routine is created with only basic fitness goals in mind. When really, if a client cannot commit to a fitness routine because of their schedule, then their goals mean nothing.

If a client with a weight loss goal can be in the gym five days per week, their program should reflect that. If the same client's schedule changes and they can only be in the gym three days per week, then their workout program should flex to reflect that adjustment. Maybe your client can do two additional workouts at home instead. So, you might offer your client a workout app to help make up for any lost time in the gym. Working their goals into their schedule will bring greater success.

Beginner Strength Workout

Feel like you’re starting fresh? Let’s take a look at how to set up a beginner workout geared toward increasing overall strength. 

Did you know the recommendations for increasing muscle mass and gaining strength are completely different? Strength training involves using loads greater than 85% of your 1RM. The rep ranges should be no more than 6 and resting for up to 5 minutes is crucial. When strength training you should aim for approximately 2-6 sets.

Sample Strength Workout

Complete 4 sets of each block, alternate between the two exercises. Take 3-5 minutes of rest in between each exercise.

Start off with a dynamic warm-up and movement prep. This can consist of band work, PVC warm-ups, lower body dynamic movements, and more.

• A. Barbell Back Squat: 4 sets of 5 reps

• A. Dips: 4 sets of 6 reps each arm

• B. Barbell Deadlift: 4 sets of 5 reps

• B. Pull-ups: 4 sets of 6 reps

• C. Bulgarian Split Squat: 4 sets of 6 reps each leg

• C. Dumbbell Incline Press: 4 sets of 5 reps 

Finish with static stretching. Perform stretches to target the upper back, shoulder region, and lower body musculature.

Beginner Hypertrophy Workout 

Hypertrophy or muscle building training involves using 60-85% of your 1RM. This includes 3-5 sets, a rep range of 6-12, and up to 90 seconds of rest.

Sample Muscle Building Workout

Complete 3 sets of each block, alternate between the two exercises. Take up to 90 seconds of rest in between each exercise.

Start off with a dynamic warm-up and movement prep. This can consist of band work, PVC warm-ups, lower body dynamic movements, and more.

• A. Kettlebell Goblet Squat: 3 sets of 12 reps

• A. Dumbbell Single Arm Press: 3 sets of 10 reps each arm

• B. Barbell Bent Over Row: 3 sets of 8 reps

• B. Lying Hamstring Curls: 3 sets of 12 reps

• C. Dumbbell Flat Press: 3 sets of 10 reps

• C. Walking Lunges: 3 sets of 12 reps each leg

Finish with static stretching. Perform stretches to target the upper back, shoulder region, and lower body musculature.

Beginner Cardio Workout

The benefits of cardiovascular training can be achieved in just 20 minutes. Starting off with a slower pace and working up to a higher intensity is important. The more intense the workout the shorter it can be. The less intense, the longer the workout should be. 

Sample Cardio Workout

Complete 3 rounds of each block, alternating between the two exercises. Take up to 60 seconds of rest in between each round.

Start off with a dynamic warm-up. This can consist of walking for 5-10 minutes or dynamic movements such as arm swings, arm circles, step-ups, lunges, and walking knee hugs. 

• A. Rower: 200M

• A. Burpees: 45 seconds

• B. Battle Rope Waves: 45 seconds

• B. Kettlebell Swings: 30 seconds

• C. Medicine Ball Slams: 45 seconds

• C. Cycling: 30 seconds all out

Finish with static stretching. Perform upper and lower back stretches, arm and shoulder stretches, and of course, hamstring and quad stretches. This workout should take no more than 30 minutes to complete.

Maintaining Fitness Through Nutrition

Healthy eating in parallel with effective physical activity is crucial to weight loss and other fitness goals. Building healthy habits takes time. The last thing you want as a personal trainer is for your client to feel overwhelmed with exercise tasks. Allow them to ease back into their routine by making exercise a regular habit first.

Once they become consistent with exercise, you can advance them to a more solidified workout schedule. At this point in time, they may be ready to adjust their nutrition plan as well. Healthy food will provide many benefits on top of their exercise goals and results are what motivates clients to continue being committed.

Clients begin seeing the most results when they pursue healthy eating and monitor caloric intake along with their workout routine. The foods they eat determine body composition changes and help them maintain body composition. There is no one diet that works for everyone, so it may take time to find the foods that work best for their specific body and goals. 

Remember that helping clients choose a healthy meal or snack gives them an advantage. If they end up missing a workout, they can help account for any negative effects through nutrition. 

Help clients build better health habits by arming yourself with the skills to coach behavioral patterns. ISSA’s Health Coach Certification course will teach you how to transform lives through health, wellness, and nutrition coaching. You’ll learn how to help clients effectively change behaviors and activities needed for them to achieve their goals.