How to Make a Workout Plan (that you’ll actually STICK TO)

Jul 31

In today’s post we’ll chat thru…

① Taking ownership over your routines + WHY you need a workout plan
② How I make a MONTHLY WORKOUT PLAN that I actually stick to
③ 3 PRO TIPS to make the MOST out of your WORKOUT PLAN

LET’S DIVE IN. 🖤

Hello, Hi, and Welcome back! I’m really pumped for today’s episode bc it’s a tool I’ve used in my life for many years now that has helped me stay consistent AF when it comes to taking care of myself…AND I’m kinda pumped to pass this tool along to you. If you’re the on again/off again type when it comes to your workouts or someone who tends to be controlled by “life” hijacking your schedule, this is gonna be GOLD for you today. But before I get into the tangibles…one of the biggest lessons I want to drive home when it comes to making a workout plan you’ll actually stick to is this:

YOU CONTROL YOUR ROUTINES; THEY DON’T CONTROL YOU.

When we start thinking about our health as an active choice, rather than sitting back and waiting for it to come upon us, we take back our power. It gives us a chance to take ownership over our journey and build routines that serve our best + highest self. If we choose to give our fitness + movement goals space in our day AND on a regular basis, it becomes second nature. Something we can’t live without. If this isn’t you (yet) please don’t fall into the lie of believing you’re not a “fit” person or not the kind of person who can stay consistent with her health. That’s just not true. If you can see examples of women doing the things you’d LOVE TO DO in your health, than you have everything you need to begin modeling how they show up and live that out.

It’s just your reasons for why haven’t gotten bigger than your excuses. But that’s an easy thing to overcome. You can literally choose today to make a game plan when it comes to your workouts that you’ll actually stick to and I want to show you how.

WHY DO I NEED a workout plan?!

Let’s face it…if you leave it to chance, chances are you won’t do it. There will always be a reason to skip moving your body when life gets full. Having a plan keeps me FOCUSED, and when we are focused we are less likely to give up. Also, when you create your own plan, you’re in the driver’s seat. You get to create something YOU enjoy showing up to…which will also help with consistency bc we will never stick with something that we hate, right?

Now you might wonder if plans or programs created by others (aka professionals) work? Absolutely! This is the path I did for MANY years and what truly helped me become CONSISTENT AF in my journey. At the top of the month (or whenever my last plan/program ended) I would decide on the next program I would do and then print off the workout calendars that went along with that program. If you are a beginner this is my suggestion. Pick a program. Follow the calendar to a T.

Nowadays, though, I make my own calendar based on all the insight I gathered over the years of following a specific program. When I have my own plan, I feel more confident about what I am doing, and because I have learned over time what works for my body, I feel more in control. I want you to be confident that as you continue your fitness journey, you will KNOW what works best for you which will, in turn, help you confidently build + evolve on your plan month after month.

HOW TO MAKE YOUR PLAN:

① REFLECT ON YOUR GOALS:

Before diving into actually picking a program to follow OR creating my own calendar, I find it helpful to take a moment to reflect on my journey and the goals I have. So often we dive into wanting to start the thing that we don’t even really pause to consider WHAT IT IS we need that will help us be successful. I want your goals to be YOURS. Honest + authentic to you…in this season…right now. Not what Sally on the internet did as a 28 year old version of you.

So a few questions you can ask yourself:

What are you currently doing for exercise? Is it working? Does it need adjusting?
What are your fitness goals? Lose weight? Gain confidence? Boost energy? Clear your mind? Strengthen your muscles?
Where will you workout? At home? At the gym? In a studio or class? A nearby park or trail? A mixture or combo of these?
How much time can you realistically dedicate to working out? Think about days per week + time frame for each workout.
Where in your cycle will you be each week of the month? How can you create a plan that honors this rhythm?
Any travel plans or events coming up that might need some out-of-the-box thinking as far as movement goes?

Putting pen to paper is really helpful to start with because then you can seek out classes, workouts, and a rhythm that align with your answers.

② DECIDE WHEN, WHAT, + HOW LONG:

First let’s talk about WHEN you’re gonna workout bc if it’s not scheduled into your day + aligned with the season you’re in…you won’t show up to it.

In college, my workouts were typically before or after my shift at the rec center (perfect timing right?). Mostly I lifted weights, ran on the track, or took a class if my schedule lined up. I was also a performer, so I took a lot of dance classes and trained myself in ways dancers would. After college and transitioning into the classroom + a really full season of my life, my workouts were in this tiny pocket of time right after dismissal from school and before I had to be at my next job, which was coaching colorguard + dance. I did one of two things - I either stayed in my classroom, closed all the windows, and pressed play on Insanity OR I drove across the street to a park and laced up my running shoes for marathon training. And bc I was coaching dance, I often moved my body in my second job quite a bit teaching and tech-ing routines. After that season, I became a Beachbody Coach and built a solid business + team in that space for about a decade, so the at-home workouts and guided programs were my JAM - and moving my body was a KEY PIECE of my business. I printed out those calendars and followed the programs to a T and this helped me maintain my fitness for many, many years, as well as challenge myself when new programs came out. I’ll also mention that within that time frame I got certified to instruct PiYo classes and worked on getting NASM certified, so going to group fitness classes like Orange Theory and various yoga studios was also really fun for me.

Nowadays, I do a combo of everything. I love the structure a workout plan gives me. I love following the guidance of a coach or trainer bc it’s one less thing I have to think about or construct in my day - it’s mindless! And I enjoy getting out of my home for a challenge, whether that’s hitting the trail with a run or bike ride, going to a sweaty yoga class, or challenging myself in a bootcamp style class.

All of that is to say that your journey is going to PROGRESS + SHIFT as YOU progress + shift. I want you to decide WHEN you’ll workout. In my college days, it worked to do it bookending my shift bc I was already at the rec center. After college, right after work was a beautiful window and then as my schedule became more flexible, I found I loved moving my body in the mornings. Now I do a mixture of both. I move in the mornings to energize myself for the day ahead and I love to move as a way to “end out” my workday. Think of the season you’re in and streamline it. When does it make the MOST SENSE to move your body?

Next you need to decide WHAT you’ll do + for how long.

I gave you the examples of how my taste in movement shifted over the years so I want you to think about what would be FUN for you right now AND what would CHALLENGE YOU, too. Leg day isn’t always “FUN” but I know the benefits I get when I push myself to strengthen my lower body. So let’s not confuse the definition of fun. What might be “fun” in the short term is typically not “fun” in the long term. Let’s have a long game mentality.

Fun = not having to live with the burden of being overweight, sick, and unhealthy.
Fun = results you get from doing the thing when you didn’t want to.
Fun = pushing yourself + building confidence bc of it.
Fun = longevity and vitality.

What would FUN be for you? In the long term? Think about THAT.

My workout blocks are usually anywhere from 30-45 min and for me, 5 days of movement per week with one day for yoga and one day for full on rest, is what works in this season. Here’s what my calendar looks like currently:

Monday - Total Body (this includes weights + cardio)
Tuesday - Lower Body
Wednesday - Yoga/Stretch/Foam Rolling (maintenance day bc I’m usually sore by Wed)
Thursday - Upper Body
Friday - Total Body (again, weights + cardio)
Saturday - Flex Day (choose what would be fun: maybe a run, maybe a long bike ride, maybe a yoga class or a spicy spin class)
Sunday - Rest Day

Think thru your season. If you’re pulling motivation from a program, print that calendar and stick to it. If you’re crafting your own, how many days would be sustainable for you? What kind of variety can you put into your days? There are four components of physical fitness I think about when constructing my calendar:

aerobic activities - like walking, riding a bike, jogging/running, pickleball or tennis, swimming, HIIT workouts, jumping rope, dancing, even yard work…basically anything that gets your heart rate pumping and burning calories
muscle strengthening activities - think about your major muscle groups: legs, hips, back, abdomen, chest, shoulders, and arms. how can you use weights, body weight, or resistance bands to strengthen your body?
flexibility - stretching, yoga, mobility work, foam rolling, massages…these are all great ways to ensure your body keeps doing the things you want it to, improve your activities along the way, and avoid injuries.
and rest - yep…rest! Rest days help you get stronger, keep you from injuring yourself or burning out, help you create sustainability in your routine, and give your body, mind, + spirit time to recover so you can come back stronger. This is when we REPAIR what we’ve damaged all week long and it’s ESSENTIAL to your routine. So please plan in rest and honor it!

A well-balanced exercise program should include activities that address all of the above components of fitness. Trying to find a mixture of each type of fitness allows you to create a well-rounded exercise routine. Most healthy people should opt for a mix — but always talk to your doctor about how to build a workout routine that's right for you if you feel like any of these areas would create pain.

③ FILL IN YOUR CALENDAR:

This is the easy part! You’ve already done the hard work, this is where we actually fill in the calendar with what we decided on. I love to use Canva for this step to type it out and make it look pretty, but I encourage you to find what works for you. Maybe it’s as simple as a NOTE on your phone.

④ PRINT IT + FRAME IT + PUT IT IN YOUR FACE:

When I first started making my workout plan I would tend to think it up in my mind and then do it on the fly. OR I would waste so much time before my workout trying to Pinterest something. Instead, print out what you spent all that precious time coming up with and then here’s the kicker and a

FUN WEEKEND MINI PROJECT:

Print off your workout plan.
Buy a cute 8 x 10 frame (the one I use is $5 at Target).
Put this in the frame and set it in your workout zone/where you'll see it daily
Use a dry erase marker to track your workouts, weights, mileage, etc daily!!!

Pro Tips to Make the MOST out of Your WORKOUT PLAN:

① MAKE SURE YOU’LL SEE IT.

Choose a location where you'll see your plan daily. For me this looks like placing it in my home gym area. Whether it's in your home gym, on the fridge, or maybe as reminders that pop up on your phone, make sure it's a place where you’ll see it on the daily.

② CHECK IN + ADJUST AS NEEDED.

You know I love a good CHECK IN to evaluate my progress. Our lives are FLUID ya’ll and sometimes a goal we set at the top of the year becomes irrelevant if a circumstance or situation has shifted. Remember that this is a TOOL, not a TRAP. That’s why I only print out ONE MONTH at a time so I can review and re-evalute if the current plan is working or if I need to make tweaks.

③ FOCUS ON ACTIONS OVER OUTCOMES.

I think this is the MOST IMPORTANT PRO TIP I could give you and what I want to drive home as we wrap up. Your health goals don’t become reality without aligned action. Visualize you actively doing the things you need to do to reach your goals. And then show up and do them. Maybe that’s setting your alarm and putting your phone on the other side of the room so you have to get your buns out of bed. Maybe it’s laying the clothes out the night before or rolling outfits together so there’s less guess work. Maybe it’s taking classes where you get penalized if you don’t show. Or maybe it’s finding that window after work and before PM life where you can sandwich it in. The goal of your calendar is to make PROGRESS and the only way we do this is my SHOWING UP. So make it easier on yourself to take the actions and REFUSE to let yourself off the hook when you don’t feel like it…bc the truth is…you almost never will.

One of the things that discourages us in our journey is the disconnect between where we are and where we desire to be. But think about it…

YOU AREN’T WHERE YOU WANT TO BE BECAUSE YOU HAVEN’T BEEN TAKING THE CONSISTENT ACTIONS LONG ENOUGH TO REAP THE RESULTS YOU DESIRE.

In order to bridge the gap it’s really quite simple…you have to BECOME the type of person who DOES THOSE KINDS OF THINGS. Whatever your health goals are, you have to embody being that person CONSISTENTLY. And then give it enough time to actually WORK, right?

This is why I love making a monthly plan for my fitness. It’s my way to SHOW UP AS THE PERSON I DESIRE TO BE. And I want that for you, friend. I want you to SEE that you can be her simply by DOING THE THINGS SHE DOES. If you loved today’s episode + are feeling super inspired to take action…I love it. Make your plan, print it out + put it in your face, and then tag me on social bc I LOVE seeing you make moves in your health and, truly, your life. I’m rooting for you and I can’t wait to see you back here next week on The Self Care Sisterhood Podcast. 🖤🤟🏼

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