We’ve all been guilty of it, we want to be the best version of ourselves. We go to the gym we work out we eat healthy. We do all the things we should. Then we stop. For whatever reason, days weeks months go by. Then we get a wake-up call, and then the question is.  How to start working out again after a long break?
We do we stop in the first place
Individually we all have a reason. Maybe it is work we all get busy and stressed. Or Maybe it’s home life, a change in routine. Maybe it’s just a don’t give a fuck attitude and you couldn’t be bothered.
Whatever it is, don’t beat yourself up over it. By being mindful you can realize it for what it is, accept it, put it aside, and start again.
But once you can do that, you can get on with it, then the question becomes.
How to Start Working Out Again After a Long Break
Ok, I need to be upfront here, there is no easy answer to that question. The best way to approach working out again after a long break is slowly and methodically, I like to break it down into sections.
Have the right mindset
This is a big one, you need the right mindset. Whatever made you stop training and working out, might rear its ugly head again.
So, being mindful again is the key here. Depending on what got you to where you are:
- Too busy at work
- Too busy in life
- Couldn’t be bothered
- Injury
Whatever it is, you need to start training again in the right mindset, Slowly.
I say slowly because you need to reprogram your mind to accept that you are working out. Let that fuel that great feeling of endorphins being released. Here is a great article you can read on it https://www.fastcompany.com/3025957/what-happens-to-our-brains-when-we-exercise-and-how-it-makes-us-happier
Body hurting and training light to start
If you’ve had a layoff from working out for a while, then get ready to accept the fact that getting back into the gym and lifting iron, will hurt your muscles.
Your muscles won’t be used to being loaded up and put under strain. So start training light when you start up in the gym again.
If you stopped training in the first place due to an injury make sure you have been to the doctor to get clearance to start training again. But again start training light your body won’t be used to it.
Nutrition and food
This is the cornerstone of any good training plan. Get your nutrition sorted, and while it’s all about calories they need to be clean and good calories.
You can eat McDonald’s and still lose weight, plenty of people have proven that if your calorie count is right. But if you eat good clean healthy food with the same amount of calories in it, you will be feeling much better for it.
Women need 2000 calories per day to maintain weight
Women need 1,500 colors to lose one pound of weight per week
Men need 2,500 calories to maintain
Men need 2000 to lose one pound of weight per week.
So I recommend throwing out whatever crap food you have been eating. Get some decent fruit, and vegetable proteins. And go nuts eating. I took a layoff once, and I think I od’d on mint chocolate biscuits.
What training program do you need to start again with
Well in the past if you have been training balls to the wall hard. Then taking a year off, you might want to start training at 10% of your prior weights and you can stick to the old program you used to train with.
If you were just getting into training, and took a month off. Start at the beginning again.
The real thing to remember is to start, get your mind right, and clean up your diet. It’s not so much about how to start working out again after a long break. Because it’s not that difficult.
Even if you just start with a simple thing like going for a walk regularly, and rebuild the foundation of your body from that.
