Proper Workout Environment – The Fancy Vs The Dungeon

So here is something that I probably don’t address enough when talking about an effective training environment. Choosing a proper environment or atmosphere to train in can be as important as the workout that you are going to engage in. There is a lot of truth in those old Rocky movies when Rocky prepared for the big comeback fight. He would get beat when he got soft and trained in the nice fancy public eye with a lot of distractions, and he won big when he got down and dirty in the old broken down barn in Russia!

The Fancy: I want to address the culture of many clubs across America. You walk into a lot of clubs and they have everything from finely polished machines to jacuzzis and nice neat aerobic classes. Smoothie bars are ready to wait on you hand and foot like a tiki bar on some ocean front getaway vacation spot. Many of the trainers are “not trained” enough to know what truly works to get a person into shape. The ultimate observation is that of 100% of the members only about 35% actually use their membership. Of the 35% only about 2% have an effective strength and conditioning program in place. The rest are overweight, unmotivated, and would rather be part of a social club than getting good hard results!

The Dungeon: Now my definition of the dungeon can be something that is actually dark, dingy, and is only a place you would rather get out of as quickly as you get in. However, it is also a mindset of your training environment. You can easily turn your home, front yard, or garage into a dungeon. You see the more uncomfortable the environment the better the training effect. There is no time for nice fancy machines, a jacuzzi, or social club. All you need is a little square footage some dumbells, kettlebells, and maybe some loud music. You see this is the environment of my most fit athletes and clients. There is no show and all results!

Make your training atmosphere a dungeon. Stop wasting time, money, and worrying about getting a good parking spot. What you spend on a couple of sets of dumbells and kettlebells will far outweigh what you waste on a social club!