This article is for the adult athlete, sometimes referred to as the “weekend warrior.” The dad that plays hockey on Tuesday nights or basketball on Sundays, or the mom that swims once a week or even runs the occasional half marathon. Below are a few tips on how you can make your training more productive and be more efficient to fit into your busy schedule.
Train for Something – Most people want results from their training, but don’t know how to tell if their training is working or not. Well here is a good way to determine if you are getting something out of your training or just pretending to work hard. Sign up for a race, enter yourself into a competition, or join some form of a league that holds weekly games. I hear a lot of people say “when I get in better shape I will think about doing a half marathon” or “when I get a little stronger I plan to do my first Powerlifting meet.” No! Not when, but rather now. Find the next event you would be interested in doing in the local community calendar and then sign up for it. You would be surprised how much more of a purpose your training has once you have something to train for. Filling out a registration form and sending in a check makes it real. You may not win, but at least you will know what you need to do to get better.
Train with Someone – Some people prefer to train alone. It works well for them and they are no less focused than the person that trains with a group or a team. I for one prefer to have people around me when I train. It is not that I am not motivated to go and do it myself if there is none else around, but I enjoy the atmosphere of having someone to push me and to let me know when I did something wrong and what I need to do to fix it. Some of my best training sessions have occurred in a garage with 5-6 people packed into an area covering roughly 500 square feet of space or less. If you need someone to pick you up on their way to the gym just to make sure it gets done, then do it. Do what it takes to make the training happen.
Open your Mind – If you have been doing the same thing over and over for a long period of time. Try something different. Not only will you experience something different and challenging, but it might be just what you needed in order to get over the hump.
Those are just a few ideas to help you get more out of your training.
