Six Factors that Explain Why You Have Off Days When Exercising

No matter how often you exercise, we all have that weird experience where a routine will feel great one day and horrible the next. There are many factors at play, but The Wall Street Journal lists the six most common reasons for an off day.

Why you feel awesome running that 10K one day and horrible the next has to do with what you eat, drink, and what you think about. If you're looking for a bit more consistency in your exercise, here are the six factors The Wall Street Journal suggests you keep an eye on:

  • Sleep: A bad night of sleep can affect workouts for up to 48 hours. If you're struggling with sleep, The Wall Street Journal suggests you try to maintain your workout schedule as best as possible.
  • Water: If you don't get enough water before or after a workout, it can lead to inconsistency.
  • Drinking alcohol: If you've ever tried to exercise after a night of beers, this is pretty obvious. Drink lots of water and you'll be back on track.
  • Boredom: If you're doing the same routine over and over, there's a good chance you'll feel sluggish out of pure boredom. Mix it up and try new exercises.
  • Eating: Exercising demands a lot of energy, so if you're not eating the right foods, you might feel sluggish because you simply don't have the energy to really work out.
  • Recharge time: Sometimes, you feel like junk during a workout because you worked out too hard the last time you exercised. The Wall Street Journal suggests rating your energy level each day on a scale of 1 to 10, if you never reach 8 or 9, you're probably working out too often.

There are other possibilities for a sluggish workout too, like stress or anxiety, but the above should help explain why you feel amazing one day and slow as a snail the next.

The Ways to Avoid Feeling Off During Workouts | The Wall Street Journal

Photo by W Koscielniak.

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