Hi friends. Korey here. I used to write a lot of blog posts years ago, then I kind of got out of it. Lately I’ve been inspired to start doing more content creation, so here we are, my first blog post in a long time!
“5 Key Gym Numbers to Watch” – crucial metrics that can have a significant impact on your progress, health, and overall well-being. Let’s dive in and explore why these numbers matter and the action steps you can take to work on them:
1. Attendance: Why it’s important: Think of gym attendance like a savings account. If you want to save a certain amount of money, say, $10,000, what sounds easier: Depositing $2,000 on 5 separate occasions to deposit into your account, or steadily depositing a little bit each month? The answer is obvious, and it’s the same with your workouts. If you workout 5 out of 30 days in a month, you’re not going to make much, if any, progress. But if you work out 3 days every week, you’ll quickly start noticing some change. Then it starts to compound over time! This will for sure help you maintain momentum, build discipline, and experience the consistent gains we all want.
Action Step: Aim to schedule your workouts and set reminders. Prioritize gym time as you would any other important appointment (put it in your google calendar). Make friends at the gym. I know it sounds funny,..but honestly, the people we see most often are those that have a few solid gym-buddies that they love hanging with. Folks who don’t meet or talk to others tend do fall off much more easily.
Goal: 3 days per week, minimum of 13 per month.
2. Sleep: Why it’s important: Sleep is the unsung hero of muscle recovery, energy levels, and daily function. Getting 7+ hours of quality sleep helps your body repair and rebuild after workouts, enhances cognitive function, and boosts your overall mood. Some have said that if sleep could be put in a pill format, it’d be the ultimate recovery drug.
Action Step: Establish a bedtime routine to wind down before sleep. Limit screen time before bed and create a comfortable sleep environment. Set a consistent sleep schedule to ensure you’re getting the rest you need.
Goal: Shoot for 7+ hours
3. Logging Your Daily Workout Results in Sugarwod: Why it’s important: Tracking your fitness numbers is like having a roadmap to progress. Ya’ll,..real talk, Sugarwod is amazing. It allows you to track strength gains, PR’s, workout times and stay accountable to your goals. When you don’t log your results, its way too easy to forget how much weight you lifted last time, then you end up just guessing and wasting time in class thinking about it.
Action Step: Move the Sugarwod app to the first page on your phone. Open it and look at the workout EVERY DAY (even when you’re not coming) ENTER YOUR RESULTS EVERY TIME YOUW ORKOUT, and as a bonus, write some notes about how you felt. I personally almost always write detailed notes about all of my workouts (feel free to go check my entires!). Plus, they’re fun to go back and read later in the future. Use this data to make informed decisions in upcoming workouts and celebrate your achievements.
Goal: Log 3 workouts every week.
4. Hours Spent Being Active Outside the Gym: Why it’s important: While gym workouts are essential, they’re just a piece of the fitness puzzle. Incorporating physical activity into your daily life enhances cardiovascular health, burns calories, and contributes to an active lifestyle. There are 168 hours in a week… don’t be fooled by thinking that exercising for 3 of those is enough to see the results you want. It’s a combined effort of moving more every day.
Action Step: Find activities you enjoy outside the gym – go walking or hiking, bike rides, or play some sports (pickle ball is so hot right now). Set a goal to accumulate at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity activity each week. (Don’t count your hour class as 60 minutes of activity,… be honest with yourself about how long you were actually working hard).
Goal: 20 minutes every day of moderate activity.
5. Steps: Why it’s important: Movement is medicine. Striving for 10,000 steps per day helps you avoid prolonged sitting, improve circulation, and maintain a healthy weight. Walking isn’t just the new thing to talk about, it’s likely the most recommended activity from multiple health related professions.
Nutritionists recommend walking to their clients who want to improve their health or lose weight.
Personal trainers recommend walking (for the same reasons as above).
Physical therapists recommend it, Doctors recommend it. If all of these professionals suggest we walk more, maybe we should?
Action Step: Use a smart watch or your phone to track your daily steps. Take short breaks during the day to walk around, use stairs instead of elevators, park further back in the parking lot and make walking a part of your daily routine. Aim for 8,000 per day until that becomes routine, then bump it up to 10k.
Goal: Start with 8k per day.
Remember, these key gym numbers are interconnected and work together to create a holistic approach to fitness and well-being. By paying attention to each of these areas, you’ll unlock new levels of progress and achieve a healthier, more active lifestyle. You don’t need a new pair of shoes, or a new program, you just need to focus on these basic things!
Stay motivated, stay consistent, and keep pushing towards your goals!