Fit For Life: Hello, Weekend…Don’t Blow it Now….

Fit For Life: Hello, Weekend…Don’t Blow it Now….

Ahhhh… the weekend is finally here. You get up every morning, some of you regularly exercise (maybe you attend my 5:25 am sessions), then you’re off to work with your healthy lunches and snacks planned for the day. You made it through 5 days of laser sharp focus, planning and execution of daily tasks that include everything from making breakfast to packing your gym bag before bed, so you are ready to go the next day. You worked hard all week and you deserve a pat on the back for taking care of yourself and taking care of business. So now the weekend is here, and I have some advice for you.

DONT BLOW IT NOW!

Don’t let the weekend be a reason or excuse to fall off and regress. You worked too hard to let this happen. You bet I look at social media. I see your posts with the doughboys, and steins of beer on your table, surrounded by nachos and pizza, and those ooey-gooey recipes - and my advice to you is – don’t do this to yourself.

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I am not saying you need to be perfect. Hell, I look forward to that extra hour sleep, and the pizza, and the dessert that I allow myself on the weekend, but everything in moderation.
Yes it’s nice to not be on a schedule, and to have some free time to enjoy yourself, but don’t let this be an excuse to destroy yourself, and diminish all the hard work you put in all week long.
You see, I don’t feel like going backwards and regressions to your goals are “living a little” or “rewarding yourself”. I feel that a week of hard work and preparation should end with a few relaxing days to yourself, so you can rejuvenate and be refreshed for the next week.

It’s a time to do things you like to do, and not worry about time or schedules. Not a time to do damage to your body, and sabotage your will power. Remember, it takes a 3500 calorie deficit over a week’s time to lose one pound of fat. So if you ate healthy all week, and blow it in two days, the scale will not give you favorable results on Monday. Therefore, all your hard work gets minimal results, and to me that’s a shame. Yes, every workout is beneficial, and every time you walk into the gym, you will get a little stronger, and feel a little better, but as I say over and over again, it’s the nutrition component that will decide success or failure when trying to improve your health and aesthetics. 

There you have it folks. The decision is yours. You can either stay focused all weekend, and have a small cheat here and there, and stay in damage control mode, or you can go into it with reckless abandon, and suffer the consequences come Monday morning, and all week long. 

So before you go for round two from the bar, or eat that second doughnut, remember all the burpees, pushups and squats you did all week, and ask yourself…is it worth it? We got this, folks. We have one life to live, so let’s get it right!

Matt Espeut, GoLocal's Health & Lifestyle Contributor has been a personal trainer and health & fitnesss consultant for over 25 years. He is the owner of Fitness Profiles, a one on one, and small group personal training company, as well as Providence Fit Body Boot Camp, located at 1284 North Main St., on the Providence/Pawtucket line. You can reach Matt at (401) 453-3200; on Facebook at "Matt Espeut", and on Twitter at @MattEspeut. "We’re all in this life together – let’s make it a healthy one!