Fun
By Gus
Should training be fun?
Doing some amount of exercise is infinitely more valuable to your health than doing none. Most people currently do nothing, and if focusing on something fun makes you more likely to perform the task then yes, fun must be added.
So if that’s you: quit reading and go have some fun. CrossFit looking good? Yes! Always wanted to try mountain biking? Rock on. Get out there, have a great time.
You still here? Okay, let’s find some nuance.
Adding fun can be a useful tool but it needs to be seen as a tool, not the purpose.
The last time I was training to run a race, I treated myself to a new audiobook as soon as I finished one. But the rule was “audiobooks are only listened to while running.” I dreaded all the long, slow training runs, but I had to get them in if I wanted my race to meet my expectations. Fun was added, I got the training done, and the goal was achieved. Thumbs up.
Other intentional doses of fun work too often to ignore its effect on performance: the hype from a training partner, the thrill of competition, an extra bit of caffeine, your favorite pump-up song, a beautiful view… none of these particularly change your training plan but they can definitely help make it more pleasurable.
It has to be admitted that my bar in running was always low. My training was never going to go past “confidently run a half marathon without issue.” If I really wanted to improve further, I was going to need to find pleasure out of something more atomic than audiobooks.
The evidence of improvement would need to be reward enough, even when the training was not. Even when the final result fell short of desire. Even when none of the fun tools were an option.
Once you’ve joined the 10% of people that actually workout on a regular basis, you have to decide where your bar is. Do you really want to change your body, your performance, a health marker? You need to be prepared for it to stop being fun. The stress required to make any change will necessarily be uncomfortable.
Oh you’re back? You’re moving consistently now? Cool, you’re ready to join back in.
For everyone that stuck around and those re-joining us. Be proud that you’re part of this community of people who actually work to improve their fitness.
If you’re happy with where you’re at: your body, your mental state, your relationships, your routine… then you’re not needing a change. You’re needing maintenance. Stick with what works! Get back out there and take that hike or whatever! Quit reading while I chat with the folks looking for a change.
You still here? Okay, let’s get real.
I got to this point too. After a few years with tons of fun, the fun tools were just not so important to me anymore. I didn’t want the pump up music during my workout, I wanted silence so I could focus on what my body was doing without distraction. Whether or not my friends were at the gym didn’t really change whether or not I was going to train that day. But I wasn’t making progress anymore, I was maintaining.
I wasn’t happy with maintaining. I wasn’t ready to tell myself I was strong enough. I stopped looking for fun training and focused on finding what was the most effective for me to keep improving. And it was exactly what I needed.
So if you’ve made it this far, I don’t think you should focus on what’s fun. I think you should focus on finding what’s important to you.
It may be that you actually need more time out of the gym — then the simplest, shortest program is what you need to strive for and experiment with.
It may be that you want to finally knock out that goal that’s eluded you and your training should be more specific.
It will take some soul searching and some honesty with yourself about where your time goes.
On my journey none of that emotional work was very fun, but in my experience sticking with it has been very rewarding. And as my brain has come to grips with what’s important to me, making the decision on what my training needs to look like becomes simpler.
A final note for everyone, even those that kept reading when they should’ve just gone for that hike already: all of this discussion requires a baseline of consistency.
If you’re not moving my philosophies don’t matter, the methodology doesn’t matter, what anyone else thinks at all doesn’t matter. You need to start moving again. You need to be proud of yourself for starting again.
And yes, moving again should be fun.
