It can help you progress, and improve motivation and overall well-being
Caroline Livesey, Xhale Coaching
Can that actually be true? Just writing down your training can help you not only progress, but also feel better?
If you are not in the habit of recording your training then perhaps this is a mystery to you. But the evidence is there. Our coaches at Xhale have countless examples of this in action, so why not give it a try if you don’t already? Or share this article with someone who needs encouragement to keep striving towards their own goal.
There are many reasons that we see recording training on Xhale impacting people in a positive way – but here are some of the main ones.
Accountability
Having accountability to someone is perhaps one of the main reasons people hire a coach. But you can also be accountable to yourself. It can be surprising how much your motivation increases once you have committed on “paper” (for example in your training plan). On Xhale, a self-coached athlete can prescribe their own plan for the week (or longer), and then have the satisfaction each day of ticking off those sessions. Once your plan is laid out, you are much more likely to complete the training you intended.
Consistency
Writing out this plan, and then recording the training you have completed, helps you acknowledge the work you have put in. We all get those days (sometimes weeks) when life gets in the way and training has to take a back seat. If you can reflect on your hard work during the weeks and months before the blip, it helps you not to be derailed completely. Xhale has helpful charts to show you weekly and monthly training totals. Reflecting on these can give you confidence in the progress you have already made, and motivation to build on it despite the setbacks.
Progression
Perhaps you have a goal in mind. A race, a personal challenge or some other aspect of your fitness and well-being. Plotting out on Xhale how you can progress towards that goal is a great way to get started. Having your plan written out also motivates you as you do make progress. Recording each training session, each small win, and each step forward gives you that sense of achievement and elevates feelings of well-being. You can look forward to the developments that will follow if you stick to your plan. Doing this also helps you to easily reassess if things don’t go your way. Perhaps injury or illness strikes, or you just don’t progress on the pathway you had laid out. Having your journey recorded helps you to be objective, and lay out a new achievable plan that can still get you to your goal. If this sounds like too complex a process for you to manage yourself, then we have a great community of Xhale coaches on hand to help you out. Have a read through our coaches directory and get in touch with them through our platform.
Finding Balance
For those with busy lives, trying to fit in training can feel like a real struggle at times. I can’t count the number of times people tell me “I don’t have time to exercise”. But exercise needs to become a habit if you want to have a long health-span and feel good. Recording your training can help you to plan it into your weeks, and to find a balance that works for you. Without a balanced life/work/exercise plan thought through at the start of the week (all can be put in Xhale with our easy calendar synch), many people find it impossible to prioritise exercise and their goals become overwhelming or feel unattainable. When this happens we are far more likely to give up, feel frustrated and perhaps feel guilt that we have not achieved a goal we set. Instead, finding a good balance and being able to train consistently can hugely elevate health and well-being. Start small, build in a couple of sessions a week around your other commitments and take it from there.
..finding a good balance and being able to train consistently can hugely elevate health and well-being.
Seeking Help
At some point in your training journey you may want to find a coach to help you take the next big step forwards. We all need external advice sometimes, and the right coach can be well worth the investment. The first thing they will ask you is likely to be “what sort of training have you been doing” or “how long/fast have you been doing xyz” Imagine if you can just instantly share all of your training with your new coach? It is that easy with the Xhale coaches’ directory. Find your coach and then give them access to all your logged training ahead of your first consultation.
Whatever your goal, be it training for enjoyment, improved health, or working towards a big challenge – Xhale can help you to create good habits. Why not log in to your account now, and start to plan out your pathway to progress. And if even that feels overwhelming to you, then check out the coaches’ directory and have a chat to one of our great coaches. Many will give you their time free of charge to get you started, the majority of people who coach really care about elevating the health of others!
About the author
Caroline Livesey is a PRO triathlete, elite gravel / road bike racer, ultracyclist, adventurer and sporting / life coach. She and her husband live in Mallorca and regularly have athletes to stay so they can share their knowledge. She coaches athletes of all levels in multi-sports events and the individual sports. She prefers cake to pizza and is on a mission to hunt down the best carrot cake in Mallorca which might be the hardest test she has undertaken yet.
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Email: caroline@trainxhale.com