Training vs Exercising

How many of you are going to the gym for exercise? How many of you are training to improve your strength, conditioning, etc?

What is the difference you might be wondering? Well it's quite simple actually... Exercise hurts and is done for penance. You go to the gym, do 3x15 on 15 different single joint movements. This hurts, it burns, it's uncomfortable. But you're able to flagellate away all the guilt you have for watching too much TV, eating too much junk food, not eating enough veggies, not being active in your daily life, etc... Exercise is something you do because you'd feel bad if you didn't.

Training on the other hand isn't conducted in the same fashion. If you're training for strength you come in, do 3 sets of 5 on 2 or 3 lifts, stretch out and call it a day. You aren't going to be a wiped out sweaty mess on the floor, you're not going to be hobbling around for days, and you probably won't feel much "burn" from it. In fact, in the beginning you might not feel very "worked out" at all afterward. But guess what, that's ok! Because training has a plan, it has progress in mind. You get stronger, you put more weight on the bar and you start knocking goals off your list. Training is what you do because you feel great when you do! You get excited about it because you can measure your progress! Progress that goes beyond the number on the scale and focuses on performance markers instead.

Exercising or training also affects your nutrition. When you exercise you go on a diet. Right there that makes both of them unsustainable... It's something you're doing short term, to drop so many pounds/inches for a specific event, and then you're done. When you're training you're eating to support it. You eat in such a way that fuels performance and progress. It is sustainable because it's a shift in lifestyle towards being able to do things better.

I hope I'm getting my point across here, but think about it. Are you currently exercising or training? If you'd like to get off the hamster wheel and talk about training, drop me an email and we'll set up an intro. Serious training isn't for everyone, but if you've been exercising for a while and aren't happy with your results, perhaps it's time to start training.