Life Hacks: The exercise routine that has changed everything

I’m not being dramatic here. This isn’t some click bait title followed by a useless fluffy blog post. I have genuinely established an exercise routine that has actually changed everything. 

It’s changed:

• My energy levels
• My health
• My muscle tone
• My outlook on how I work
• What I wear
• How I take care of myself
• My mornings
• My evenings
• How I eat
• How I view exercise as a whole
• How my kids view exercise
• My sleep

And I’ve been doing this for almost a year now so I think this might be for life!

So how did it all begin…?

My new exercise routine began when I read a book called Atomic Habits. I loved it so much I listened to it on audible and read the book twice!

I loved it so much I even wrote a blog post sharing all my favourite quotes and highlights from the book.

Read more: Atomic Habits summary, my favourite quotes and key takeaways from the book

(Yea, I’m a geek. I studied English and uni and highlighting paragraphs in books is a habit I just can’t break!)

The book is all about creating positive habits and how we can automate a lot of our habits. Just like we make a cup of tea at 10am and automatically reach for a biscuit out of habit, we can eventually train ourselves to do less desirable things out of habit too.

Creating habits frees up headspace, makes you more efficient and gives you more time.

If you’re not a big reader then I’d recommend listening to it on Audible. I have an Audible membership for £7.99 a month and you get a new download each month. Sometimes I download fiction but I usually download some kind of personal development book because I find these the hardest/sometimes boring to read.

Tiny changes make big differences

Another part of the Atomic Habits book is about how tiny changes can make big differences.

I’ve always been an ‘All or Nothing’ kind of person. If I do anything I like to go big and go all in. 

I’ve always taken the motto ‘Go big or go home’ a little too seriously!

This all-or-nothing mindset has served me well in some ways but held me back in others, particularly when it comes to exercise.

If I go to the gym then I want to go for a good two hours and squeeze in two classes and a swim and then a sauna and steam and then a green juice. And while I’m here I might as well get a facial and get my nails done. And Tesco is next door so I’ll do the weekly shop and pop and see my friend who lives nearby.

What could be a 20 minute workout has suddenly turned into a four hour expedition so it’s not surprising I was only making it to the gym once a month!

The book totally reframed this mindset and taught me that little and often is the way to go.

Short, daily workouts

The focus here is on SHORT workouts.

Instead of doing one mega workout every few weeks, I switched to doing short, daily workouts.

I’d previously thought a 20 minute workout was a bit pointless but with a daily 20 minute workout I’m feeling fitter and healthier than I’ve ever felt before.

The reason I like 20 minute workouts is because:

• I’m not scared to start because it’s only 20 minutes (starting was always my biggest hurdle)
• I can always find 20 minutes in the day
• I’m more likely to give it my all when it’s only 20 minutes
• Research has found that short Hiit classes are more effective than 1-hour gym classes
• 20 minutes a day is still more than nothing!
• My kids can entertain themselves for 20 minutes so I can exercise while they’re at home

What workouts do I do?

Now I realise finding exercise you enjoy is the biggest part of the battle.

I’d previously signed up to every app and online fitness program going. I’d wasted SO much money on these but I finally found something I love with Peloton.

This isn’t necessarily one big promotion for Peloton but I do recommend trying to find online classes you can do from home with minimal space and just basic equipment. Peloton usually has a promotion to get 30 days free or something so give it a go! It’s pretty affordable after that.

I bought my Peloton Bike just over a year ago and I love it but I also really love the Peloton app and the variety of classes there.

I use my bike as often as I can but I use the other online classes just as much! I mostly use the strength and yoga classes but they have so many. There are 5-6 new strength classes on the app everyday and you can either do them live or ondemand. Seeing other people doing the class at the same time as you (for both live and ondemand) is really motivating. 

And if 5-6 new classes a day seems totally overwhelming (it is!) you can filter them by instructor (you soon find your favourites), length, class type, body activity, music and difficulty. You can also save and stack classes you like the look of so they’re easy to find when you’re ready to workout.

Peloton has so many 10, 15 and 20 minute strength classes and I’ll often do something like a 10-minute arms class followed by a 10-minute core.

Finding time for a 20 minute workout + habit stacking

We all know that 20 minutes isn’t a long time but it can still be hard to find a spare 20 minutes in the day – especially if it’s going to be 20 minutes where you need to get changed and you’re going to get hot and sweaty.

This is where I recommend habit stacking with your current shower routine and tag on a 20 minute workout before you’d normally get in the shower.

Before you know it, this short intense workout will be part of your daily routine.

This might mean you’re going to need to re-jig other parts of your routine to squeeze this in.

In the summer I tend to shower in the morning, but in the winter I shower in the evening and put my comfy clothes on by 8pm to sit and get cosy on the sofa!

How do you motivate yourself to exercise in the morning?

Whenever possible, I try to exercise in the morning. But, like I said above, I find this much harder in the winter when it’s dark. Morning exercise doesn’t come naturally to me and it isn’t easy with three young children, but I still managed it most mornings throughout the summer.

I start by:

1. Doing all my normal ‘morning jobs’ the night before (choosing outfits, getting school uniforms ready, tidying up etc) so I have more time in the morning and don’t need to get up earlier. But tbh, my husband is a morning person and he does most of our morning jobs.
2. Having nice workout clothes ready and waiting
3. Starting my day slowly with a nice coffee
4. Having an external cue that triggers my habit to exercise
5. Pre-planning the class(es) I’ll be doing so I’m looking forward to them and don’t waste time searching for a new class

What’s an external cue to trigger a habit?

My external cue that triggers my morning exercise habit is my husband, Sam, leaving the house for work. He leaves at 7.30am and that’s then my cue to exercise.

I’ll be honest here, if Sam doesn’t go to work…I don’t exercise!

Him leaving is part of that routine and when the routine is disturbed, I can’t do it.

I cannot motivate myself to just get up and exercise. I don’t know why but I can’t do it.

Sometimes it takes someone else’s habit to trigger your own, especially if it’s an activity you don’t really want to do!

How has this exercise routine ‘changed everything’?

When I started to see what a huge impact my short, daily workouts were having I started to realise that maybe ‘little and often’ is a better motto to live your life by.

OK, it doesn’t sound as fun or as exciting as ‘go big or go home’ but it’s actually a much more realistic and achievable way to do things.

I’ve started applying this ‘little and often’ theory to all areas of my life and it’s a game changer!

I’m more productive with my work, I keep on top of household chores better, have more time for myself and generally feel much calmer.

I’m pretty sure the ‘little and often’ tribe will be rolling their eyes while saying, ‘Yes, we’ve been saying this for years!’ but I’m afraid it’s taken me a really long time to catch on!

To summarise: The exercise routine that changed everything

1. Start by reading or listening to Atomic Habits
2. Get comfortable with the idea that ‘little and often’ is best
3. Find short online workouts you love
4. Use habit stacking to stack your workout onto your current shower routine
5. Rejig your current routine to make space for your new workout
6. Apply the ‘little and often’ theory to everything!

Read more

Peloton bike review: Should I buy a Peloton?

Peloton Bike Update after 7 months

Atomic Habits Summary

20 tips for exercising in the morning