Restart Your Fall Fitness With This 1-Week Challenge

By: Chris Freytag, CPT // October 13, 2019

In the fitness world, we think fall is even better than January 1^st for getting in shape. Why? As active as you are in the summer, the onset of cooler weather and a busier schedule in the fall can make it harder to stay on track with your fitness goals unless you’re proactive. That’s why it’s the perfect time to hit “restart” on your fitness and get back into shape! We created this one-week fall fitness challenge to help you tone up, burn more calories, and get back into the habit of consistent exercise. Ready to get to it? Learn why recommitting to your fitness in the fall is so effective, get some tips on how to be successful, and then dive in to your week-long fall fitness challenge!

Benefits of Recommitting To Your Fitness In The Fall

Yes, January 1st is notorious for being a time to re-establish a healthy routine. But there are a few key benefits to recommitting to your fitness in the fall:

Gives You An Energy + Mood Boost

Shorter, darker days can make a lot of people lose energy. They drag through the day and learn to get by on extra caffeine and sweets. One surefire way to boost your energy is by exercising daily. It will shake off that fatigue and help you be productive and happy.

Creates Consistent Habits You Can Carry Into The New Year

Colder weather tends to make people more sedentary, but it doesn’t need to be that way! The more you make exercise habitual, the more automatic it will be and the more you’ll hardwire yourself to actually want to workout. That way, when you’re in the depths of winter you’ll already have consistent habits set up that are harder to break.

Helps You Balance Out Heavier Food

Studies show that your caloric intake tends to increase as the weather gets colder. But you probably didn’t need a study to tell you that the pumpkin muffins, apple pies, and hot cocoa concoctions that abound during this time of year tend to perk up your taste buds. (Not to mention all the wings, nachos, chips and dips that tailgating bring.) Give yourself a leg up by committing to be more active this season and pair it with a few healthy swaps. You’ll feel healthier and can still afford the occasional fall indulgence.

Tips To Make This Restart Successful

You’re almost ready for your week-long fitness challenge! The challenge itself can be repeated for multiple weeks or used as a template for what a healthy week of workouts looks like. But before we get to it, here are some tips to help you get started.

Gear Up

Tap into that back-to-school mentality and get all your fitness gear together. Clear out a space for a mini home-gym; it can be as simple as a set of dumbbells and a yoga mat. Work with what you’ve got, just make a dedicated space. Take stock of your fitness apparel—are your sneakers falling apart? No need to go on a shopping spree, but if you don’t have the proper gear, you likely won’t be motivated to workout.

Here are three simple things you’ll need for this specific challenge. Consider them the basics of your home gym:

Set of dumbbells (8-12 lbs. depending on your fitness level)
Yoga mat
Good pair of supportive tennis shoes that can work for walking/jogging as well as cross-training.

Don’t Go All Or Nothing

One of the biggest mistakes fitness pros see their clients make is over-exerting themselves during the beginning stages of a fitness plan and then burning out a few weeks (or days!) into it out of exhaustion. Yes, you want to push yourself, but no, you don’t want to go too hard too soon so you cause injury and lose motivation. Give yourself rest days and alternate between high-intensity workouts and lower-intensity steady-state workouts. The workout challenge below will help you do that, because it combines HIIT, steady-state cardio, pilates, and more.

Listen to your body

If you’re in pain, listen to your body! Nip injuries in the bud by resting or modifying your workouts. There’s no shame in sticking to lower body workouts for a few days if your arms are oh-my-god-i-can’t-lift-them-sore. When it comes to muscle soreness, give your body one day off of a muscle group if you’re sore, but two or more if the pain makes everyday movements hard.

Make sure your eating reflects your new fitness habits

One of the hardest parts of getting in shape can be eating healthy. Working out more often can make us hungrier, so you need to manage your cravings with healthy, nutritious foods. Aim to eat lean protein, tons of fresh veggies and fruits, healthy fats, and whole grains. Healthy fats in the morning will keep you more full all day, so you’re not ravenous by lunch. Here’s a sample day of healthy eating to go along with your fall fitness restart:

What a day of healthy eating looks like

1-Week Fall Fitness Restart Challenge

Here’s where the rubber meets the road: actually following a fitness plan. We’ve created this 1-week challenge to help you restart your fitness and get back into the habit of working out. The challenge itself can be repeated for multiple weeks or used as a template for what a healthy week of workouts looks like. Click on the image below to get the workout!

Monday: 20-Minute No-Gym Workout + 5 Minutes To Leaner Legs

Tuesday: Ultimate HIIT Workout To Blast Belly Fat

Wednesday: 20-Minute Strength Workout + 5 Pilates Moves To Sculpt Your Core

Thursday: Active Rest Day

Today is an Active Rest Day. Let your muscles recover by doing something active but not strenuous. Do one of the following: a brisk walk, a yoga class, or a casual bike ride. Eat right, stretch, get enough sleep. Your body’s doing hard work!

Friday: 30-Minute Total-Body Tone Up

Saturday: 30-Minute Jog + 5 Bodyweight Moves For Buff Arms

Aim to jog at a moderate pace for 30 minutes. If you’re not a runner, you can work up slowly or take walking breaks as needed.

Sunday

You did it! At the end of this week, commit to repeating this challenge again next week, or swapping in different workouts and making your own game plan. If you ever need inspiration, we have tons of workout calendars on Get Healthy U TV that give you a built-in month-long fitness plan!