In a week where Gwyneth Paltrow was simultaneously named as the most annoying celebrity and the most beautiful person in the world, Edmonton finally decided to begin the initial mating dance with spring in an effort to conceive summer. Much like the captive panda, the breeding of Edmonton Summer is a tricky adventure, and in this case it meant snowfall into the end of the April and a disproportionate number of potholes. The dreariness of constant cold, crumbling roadways, and thick layers of concealing clothing, the myopic landscape breaching way for a glimmer of warmth and sunshine seems as much like an oasis in the desert as, well, an oasis.

 

The lifestyle for about six months in Edmonton involves checking outside to see if it snowed, driving to work in the dark, working all day, driving home in the dark, shovelling, and then going to bed. Once summer rolls around, I can start biking to work, running Boot Camp classes outside, mowing my lawn, and getting an epic farmer tan like no other. Well, except for maybe the farmers.

After a while, winter wears on me. Likewise, after a while I get bored with summer and need to see some fall colours and feel a slight nip in the air that doesn’t involve turning the air conditioner up to high. Maybe it’s my own built in ADD, maybe it’s a desire to experience life to its fullest, or simply to do something different for the sake of doing something different, I tend to want to break my routine on a regular basis.

We all have routines. Some of us have ruts (a routine that is so engrained it is nearly impossible to get out of). Some of us have compulsions (everything has to be exactly so or ALL HELL WILL BREAK LOOSE!!!! SERIOUSLY PUT BACK THE NUTMEG TO ITS PROPER POSITIONING 6 CENTIMETERS AWAY FROM THE EDGE OF THE COUNTER AND PERPENDICULAR TO THE PHONE OR I’LL HAVE TO TAP MY FOOT THREE TIMES!!!!). Consider that the two most common rituals we all go through are our morning routines and evening routines in the bathroom. Be it the shower and shave in the morning or the brushing of teeth and washing of face in the evening, or the specific and highly sensitive moisturizing routine, we all have a thing we do that makes sense in our heads and makes other scared to talk to us.

But every now and then, something comes along to shake up that routine, such as travel, a house guest, a late night or early morning, or an alarm clock that’s received a work stoppage order from a mysterious inspector hell bent on making you miss your 6am training session with your awesome trainer who is standing there patiently, yet who still wants to just go grab a coffee before he stabs someone in the eye with his non-clicking pen.

Not that I know anything about that.

Whether we like to admit it or not, we all tend to get into a workout routine that feels right for us, or at the very least doesn’t suck the very soul from our being. You walk in, foam roll a few things haphazardly, warm up on the treadmill or elliptical, and then bang out a few sets of whateverthehellyoucallthat while flexing in the mirror between sets and doing the head nod to everyone you feel you should know but can’t actually remember how or why you know them, nor their name.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x-ZHmY2udEk

Instead of doing the same old same old, try to switch up one thing in your workout to make a massive difference in how that workout goes and what you feel like at the end of it. Here’s a couple examples of simple things to make you feel like a boss during a hiring fare.

1. On The Minute Work Capacity Stuff

Let’s say you want to do squats. Great!! Now instead of taking enough of a rest break between sets to watch an entire episode of Lost, get back under the bar before Cinderellas carridge turns back into a pumpkin. Start your set when the second hand is at the 12. Bang out 5 reps with a weight equivalent to a tough 10 rep set, rack that sucker, and then go again once the second hand creeps up to the 12 again. Hit up 10 sets of this for 10 minutes of heaven, 50 reps of squats with your 10 rep max, and enough time left over to enjoy a pina colada protein shake from the juice bar while you contemplate the idea of people coming out of spin class dressed like they’re ready to rock their own version of the Tour de Nowhere in their full kit, complete with cycling shoes with cleats. For spin class. I repeat, FOR SPIN CLASS.

Why it works

The reduced timeframe on the rest periods helps to keep your heart rate up and you focused on the task at hand. You can’t deviate for anything. Not to scan songs on your iPod, not to get water, NOTHING I SAID!!! The pace is frenetic like the playclock in the NFL, and you have no choice but to reach under that center’s sweaty crevice to fish out the glory of the next touchdown that may be your fourth set of 10, you quarterback stud, you. Hutt HUTT!!!

2. Ultra Long Eccentrics

Say you’re planning an epic chest day. Fantastic!! Good for you!! Let’s flip the script and get jiggy with some stupid tempo variations. Let’s say for your lowering phase (the eccentric for the geeks out there), you slow that sucker down and do a 10-count. This extra time under tension, specifically during the eccentric would make Guantanamo look like a trip to the day spa to get cotton balls put between your toes and stuff like that. The cool thing is you can do this with a barbell, dumbbells, or even a straight up pushup. It’s versatile like that.

Once you’re at the bottom, use what ever kind of testicular fortitude you have to blast that weight up as hard and fast as possible. No problem on the first one, but by rep three or four you’ll more likely be sounding like you’re giving birth against your will and the kids crawling out with a purpose, giving no mind to how your inner self is nicely feng shui’d the way you like it.

If you want to hit this up, use about 60-70% of the weight you would use for the same number of reps for a straight set with a sane tempo, and go until you have to pull your pecs out of the way to see your belt buckle.

Why it works

The ultra long time frame of the eccentric portion helps to produce a greater amount of strain within the tissue and can cause a bigger muscle pump and micro damage that will then repair as bigger, badder muscles.

3. Train at a different time of day

We’re all probably use to working out at a certain time of day due to work schedules, family lives, and availability of ellipticals with fresh magazines stocked on them and ready to go. If you work out in a commercial facility, you’re probably used to seeing the exact same people there all the time when you’re in there training, because they;re all on the same schedule.

Switch things up and hit it up at a different time. It will feel like a completely different crowd, but with all the security of the same equipment, layout, and crappy music played through the communal speakers. Aside from the ambiance, the difference in your circadian clock may prove to be a bit of a shock to your system for the better. I tend to have better workouts between 10am and 3pm, but occasionally when on vacation with my wife, I find myself working out at 7am with her. She’s one who doesn’t like to leave her routine at all when it comes to things like that, but it means we have the workout done and out of the way for vacationy frolicking of an epic varietal.

4. Do a different exercise

Are you functional? Do a damn biceps curl. Are you a bodybuilder? Swing a damn kettlebell. Are you a cardio bunny? Lift a damn weight. Are you listening to anything Jillian Michaels or Tracy Anderson say? Leave. Just leave, and never come back.

There’s literally hundreds of ways you could spice up a dreary routine without making a big deal about it. A small change can have a big impact on how the workout goes, and give your battery a little kick start to help you want to get your awesome on even more.

What do you do to spice things up in the gym? Drop a comment below and share your fantastic.