How To Keep Your Social Life And Get Results!

What do you give up when all you want is results for your goals, but you also don’t want to give up your social life?

Nothing.

Here’s a few ways in which you can adjust your training schedule, eating habits and social activities so you don’t have to give up your social life.

Train with a Friend

Get your best friend involved with training as well. Nothing else is better at making your fitness journey easier than dragging your best friend along for the ride too. When one of you is ‘just not feeling it’ or when ‘work was just so stressful today’, the other person can help pick them up, motivate them and keep them accountable (guilt them into training).

Additionally, it can make training more enjoyable. You can challenge each other, gossip to each other (maybe leave this for your weekly walks), discuss family and holidays, whatever keeps you coming back and training is better than you not training at all.

Most importantly, you both can take the journey together. The only thing better than dropping 20kg of body fat is dropping 20kg of body fat WITH your best friend.

Adjust Training Splits for Events

Got something coming up on leg day? Just move it to another day. There’s not going to be any harm in rescheduling your workouts. Or maybe you can reduce the workout duration? Cut out 1-2 of your least favourite exercises and train for 45 minutes.

Can’t reschedule or don’t have enough time at all that day (unlikely, click here for busy schedule tips)? Adjust your split so you still training each body part evenly, but have more time.

For example, I have been training 5 days a week for as long as I remember but when my schedule just gets too busy, I drop it down to 4 sessions per week (and then a 5th when I can). I do this by cutting my split into upper and lower body workouts (instead of upper, lower, push and pull workouts). This allows me to hit each muscle group twice still, but also save an extra day for clients and work.

Note that you can always revert your training split back to what it was after you have attended your special event.

Pre Plan Meals when Dining Out

Going to a birthday at a restaurant and don’t want to fall to far off the wagon? Easy.

Search up the menu of the restaurant you are going to and select the meal that will best keep you on track. This meal might not be as healthy a choice as what you usually eat for dinner, but at least its not going to be the worst. Maybe you can find a dish that is likely to be high in protein, or maybe lower in calories, or something that will fill you up so you don’t get tempted by the birthday cake. This means you won’t need to pick up a menu, be tempted by the yummy dishes or sides, and you can focus on socialising.

However, it should also be noted that pre-selecting restaurant meals should be done on a full stomach, the same reason as you don’t go into a grocery store hungry (read this).

Active Social Activities

Finally, what better way to catch up with friends or family than to go out and actually work towards your fitness goals. Get your 10k steps in while chatting about the new episode of The Bachelor, or go to the water park and burn 150-200 calories an hour, or go hiking for your adventure date. There’s heaps of ideas that you can do to keep active and socialise at the same time.

So don’t stress. Don’t worry about losing your social life, its just another excuse your brain wants to make up to make you think you can’t achieve your fitness goals. But you can, you can do all of this and (yes ill say it) improve your social life through common interests and happier lifestyles.