3 Ways to Get Back on Track After a Workout Setback

Workout setbacks happen. When you fall off your fitness routine, what's most important is that you pick yourself back up and recommit to your workout routine. Use these tips to get back on track after a workout setback.

What is a Workout Setback?

Workout setbacks are incidents that set you back from your fitness goals. Busy periods at work or home count as fitness setbacks. So do missed workouts due to injury, illness, or other life events. If you usually run outside, but can't get out due to bad weather and don't do an indoor workout instead, you've encountered a setback.

Workout setbacks are a natural part of life. If you take time off from working out, your muscles will feel it. If you compound the issue by eating unhealthy foods, you'll feel it even more. While you should always prioritize your health and take time away from training when you need to rest and recover, it's essential to get back on track as soon as you're able. 

How to Get Back on Track After a Workout Setback

If you've fallen out of your fitness routine without realizing it, understanding that you've encountered a setback is the first step. Take time to process your feelings, such as being disappointed if you let excuses keep you from eating healthy and working out.

Once you've acknowledged your feelings, let them go so you can move on. Shift your focus from what happened in the past to the choices you have in the present moment. Maybe you need to take it easy while recovering from the injury, but you can make healthy eating choices.

Perhaps you've let work get in the way and need to shift your schedule around so you can keep your fitness commitments. Taking the steps in your control to help you get back on track will boost your mood and motivation.

Once you've got a plan, consider what you can do differently the next time this issue crops up. If you don't have a plan in place to continue working out when your job gets demanding, you'll skip workouts the next time your boss needs you to put in extra hours. When you have a contingency plan, you'll meet your obligations at work and in the gym.

Streaming fitness apps make it easier than ever to work out from anywhere. Perhaps you've missed your regular fitness class, or the weather is unpleasant, and you can't get outside. Download the SHOCK: Women's Fitness App and try a quick workout. If you need a little extra motivation, you can exercise with SHOCK personal trainer Ashley Steele and join one of our live or on-demand streaming classes! Spend time creating a fitness area where you can go and do these workouts. Invest in a few pieces of flexible fitness equipment (such as dumbbells or resistance bands), which you can use at home or pack during business travel.

It can be tempting to try tough love after a setback, perhaps with an extra grueling workout or a strict diet that feels more like a punishment. While meant to motivate you, these strategies often end up making you feel worse about the setback. If you push yourself too hard after a setback, you could wind up with an injury.

Now that you have a plan, you've processed your feelings, and you know what to do differently next time, you've overcome the setback. Slip back into your fitness routine and let any negative emotions drive you to push toward your goals.