We've teamed up with Sam Wood, the #1 Leader in Online Fitness to hear how he trains and takes care of this body post work-out. 

Q1: Sam, What is your Wellness Philosophy? How do you try to be at your best, everyday?

I have a few really simple principals that I live by every day. Obviously, number one for me is family comes first.

The second is progress not perfection, and this is so important when it comes to health, fitness and wellbeing in general. We are always going to fail if we aim for perfection – it is unrealistic, it is unsustainable. And ultimately it leads to burn out, low motivation and low self-confidence. I motivate myself, my clients and my 28 members by focusing on small wins. Small steps lead to big goals. If you focus on the process of hitting small wins, the progress starts to add up. It’s been a really valuable mindset shift for me and so many people I’ve worked with.

The third is plan for success. Setting goals is one thing, but if we don’t plan how we are going to get there, it’s unlikely we’ll succeed. I plan my day with Snez and the girls, I plan so I can get my workouts in and get my work done. I plan so that my meals are healthy throughout the day and I’m not having to reach for junk because I haven’t prepared anything. Planning is key.

And the fourth is you can’t pour from an empty cup. I think it can be a slippery slope for people in the fitness industry and people engaging in a lot of training to neglect looking after their fitness beyond working out and eating right. And while those two aspects are very important, you should engage in self-care every day. Something as simple as a good stretch, a few minutes of meditation, taking your supplements to aid your recovery. Even making sure your night-time rituals are in check so that you get a good sleep. Take care of you, so that you can keep going and be your best.

Q2: What does a day in life of Sam Wood look like? Between your family, training platform and now author

1. Every day is different, but one thing that’s always the same is quality time with the family. A general day might look like…

• Up at 6am as the ‘Charlie alarm’ sounds
• Play with her and Willow until around 7.30am as we try and give Mum a sleep in as she’s extra tired with baby at the moment
• Walk Hendo and get my morning coffee while answering emails and getting started on my workday
• Break for an omelette or smoothie for breakfast at around 11
• Work from 11:30am to 4pm with lunch in there somewhere
• Train from 4-4:45pm
• Try and be home to help with dinner, bath time and quality time with family
• A little more work from 7-8
• Quality time with Snez from 8-11 and then head to bed

Q3: What's something you know now about health (be it training, eating or general wellbeing) that you wish you'd known five or 5 years ago?

I learn increasingly how beneficial good quality self-care is, and how much it contributes to bettering yourself and achieving more and more moving forward. Keeping fit, working out – they’re so essential to staying healthy and living a long and happy life. But we can’t always have our body under stress. We need to look after our muscles and our nervous systems, if we want to maintain healthy lifestyles.

Q3: How do you recover after a workout?
After a good workout, I always do a nice gentle cool down and a stretch to make sure my muscles and joints are happy, I will then use my HoMedics Massage Gun which I find amazing for releasing tension and increasing circulation after my body has been under strain. Obviously if I’m working my body really hard I’m at risk of pulling up sore, or worst case - injuring myself. So, my HoMedics Massage Gun really helps provide that additional layer of recovery.

Click Here to Shop the HoMedics Therapist Select Massage Gun

We’ve all been there. After a long day (or week!) of work, you just want to curl up on the couch and binge-watch your favorite show or enjoy a movie marathon.

It can be challenging to stay motivated to exercise or stay committed to goals when you don’t know where or how to start. And after over a year of unprecedented motivation depletion, we could all likely benefit from a shake-up to our routines.

SETTING BOUNDARIES WITH APPS, EMAILS, AND SOCIAL MEDIA

We all know the internet can be toxic. From stressing yourself out with constant news consumption to comparing your workout routine to the influencers you follow to worrying about how many likes you’ll get on your post, the constant comparison between your real life and others’ often faked fabulous lives on social media isn’t healthy, and constantly being attached to your work-related apps isn’t great either.

If you have to use social media for work, set a schedule and then delete the app from your phone. If you don’t have to use it for work, limit yourself to a certain amount of scrolling every week or just on the weekends. And if you need something to guilt you into cutting back on your social media use, the screen-time function in iPhone settings will let you know exactly how long you’ve been on your phone each day, the average time you’ve spent on your phone over the course of a week, and it’ll even tell you how long you scrolled through Instagram. On the other hand, it also features a downtime function where you can choose when you won’t be able to access certain apps, like Twitter, IG, text messages, and even work-related apps.

WRITE DOWN YOUR GOALS AND THOUGHTS

Another way to combat your lack of motivation is to write down what your goals are, why, and how you want to accomplish them, and the negative thoughts that are standing in your way so you no longer have to hear them in your head. Seeing your goals written out in detail can make them seem less daunting so you’re more likely to pursue your goals. It also helps you remember to accomplish them.

Writing down your goals can also enhance your productivity, self-esteem, and commitment levels (bonus points for the boost of dopamine you get when you actually accomplish them). In an article written by Hara Estroff Marano for Psychology Today, she suggests considering the following steps as you write them out:

• Visualize your goal.
• Why do you want to achieve your goal and how will it make your life better?
• What steps do you need to take to accomplish your goals? Don’t be afraid to adjust your timeline along the way!
• Invite a friend to join—it’s easier to stay motivated when you’re being held accountable.
• Think about what it’ll feel like when you finally accomplish your goal.
• Don’t forget to reward yourself along the way.

REACH OUT TO FAMILY AND FRIENDS

It’s important to find a group of people you can lean on when times are tough, whether that’s family, friends, or even coworkers.

According to an article published by the NCBI, support from loved ones is an essential part of building resilience to stress and can help with the symptoms of traumatic events. So, even if your relationship with your parents or siblings isn’t the best, reach out to friends and set up a weekly phone call, text thread, or video chat to talk about your week. In order to stay social outside of your friend group, consider taking online classes, joining a gym, or volunteering in your community.

SOURCES

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