Have You Challenged Yourself Lately?

It is so easy to get really comfortable in our exercise routines, and do the same things over and over again. Humans are creatures of habit, and so once we think "I've got this!", we start to slack off a little. You probably know this because you may have gone through those ruts where your exercise gets really boring and you just get through it.

I experience this with yoga too. If you do the same things over and over, depending on your individual body, you may or may not see too much progress. And doing the same routines sometimes causes you to put pressure on the same muscles and the same joints over and over, which could cause injury. So it is important to challenge yourself to see progress and to stay safe.

What do I mean by 'challenge yourself'? Switch it up a little. Do those things that are actually really difficult for you. I know you want to do the easy stuff or the exercises your body has become comfortable with, but to see the most progress, you absolutely have to try the difficult things.

This month, on Instagram, apart from my September Inspiration challenge, I am also doing some days of a challenge called Aim True. It asks you to try challenges that make you feel one way or another. Yesterday, they asked to try a yoga pose that was challenging for us. For me, the image above shows one of those. This back bend is pretty challenging for me, which means I have to put more work into my back flexibility.

That's the benefit of challenging yourself. You realize where your weaknesses are, and it makes you work to be stronger in those areas. This is true in life too, not just exercise.

What are you going to do to challenge yourself this month? Think about it!

Cheers Eights & Weights!