Finally hitting the bar again

It’s been a funny few months; my motivation for workouts has been almost nonexistent. I’ve still been moving my body every day, but I have been struggling to give it my all. I think part of the problem has been that I haven’t been enjoying my workout programme, and the demands of life have left me with very little energy to lift heavy things. In early September 2025, I had a bit of a rock-bottom moment that kick-started a restart of a healthier lifestyle and a completely clean-eating diet; part of that was committing to working out every day, no excuses. 

Going through the motions

While I may not have given up on working out, I do feel like I’ve been going through the motions and not making any progress; in some cases, I feel like I’ve been going backwards. My lifestyle shift had the wonderful bonus of changes in my body composition, like a huge reduction in body fat, but I haven’t been very successful in maintaining all of my muscle mass as I’ve dropped weight. This has meant my ability to lift heavy things has fallen off a cliff, and my ‘keep calm and carry on’ approach of just keeping up training has done nothing to help. So it is time for a change.

New programme, new me

I’ve decided to start a new training program, designed by me, to meet my needs and help me reach my goals. So, what will this programme do? Let me tell you.

1. Exercise every single day. Over the years, I’ve learned that rest days are my enemy; days off from exercise tend to make me want to do less and can derail me quickly.
2. Rebuild my base fitness level. I’ve let my cardio, mobility, and flexibility slip, so I’m going to gradually build back up.
3. Rebuild strength and muscle mass. I want to get back to my 1 rep max records from early 2025 and increase my muscle mass over the next 3 months.
4. Set regular goals to show progress. I’ll be setting monthly targets, so I have a sense of achievement on a regular basis.

Program structure 

I’ve designed a 4-week program for myself that combines mobility, flexibility, low-intensity steady-state cardio, high-intensity interval training, and strength training with progressive overload.

I know I have a jam-packed month at work, so I’m giving myself some flexibility to adjust the workout order as needed, but here is how I’ve structured the programme. 

Over the next 12 weeks, I’ll be following my program and posting about it here, mostly to make myself feel good about doing it but also to hold myself accountable.

If you want to follow along, feel free; just check out my disclaimers first. Everyone is different, and workout programs are not one-size-fits-all.

Workout disclaimer

I share my workouts to show what I do, not to tell you what to do.  

I post my workouts using percentages of my max lifting capacity rather than stating the weights or speeds I use. Everyone is different and has different levels of fitness and capability. Your body is yours alone. If you want to start working out, I recommend spending some time with a personal trainer to get you on the right path.  

When working out with weights, remember your one-rep max is yours alone; finding the weights that are right for you is important. If you decide to try a workout, find out which weights you should use first.