Maintain Your Fitness


Aug 3, 2025

 by Josh Thorn
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How's your motivation right now? 

If your motivation is at a lull, we feel it too. All gym coaches and gym owners are familiar with the summer slump, it's as normal a season as "Back To School Shake-Up", "Spring Break Scatter", or the "New Years Rush". Summer is amazing BUT it's also the season of oppressive heat, crazy schedules, and hosting your in-laws. It's no suprise that you may have not have as much energy for burpees and deadlifts. 

Here's the thing: we maintain our homes, cars, and equipment. It's normal to have a season where we maintain our fitness as well. 

Maintenance is powerful. It's the opposite of the "all or nothing" mindset which ends up jerking us around. All or Nothing is a yo-yo of going from fulling buying in to health and fitness to being completely absent and feeling guilt or anxiety about showing up. It's when you do a week of consistent workouts...and then the next week ghosting the gym entirely. I've had those times, one week I might be on top of my meal prepping, get to bed on time, and feel great for workouts...and then the next week skip meals, lose sleep, and twist an ankle. 

The way to stay off the yo-yo is to find success in your steady state pace. Steady State is like your marathon pace that you can hold forever. You can immerse yourself in the flow, get on that runner's high, and just keep going. For most people as that applies to fitness, that means finding enjoyment in the process, staying connected to the community, and not feeling like you need to overhaul your life before you make it into a workout. 

Maintenance is that committment that says "I'm in it for the long haul, I'm not sprinting right now". It's when you're keeping the wheels turning and the lights on even when the energy reserves are running low.

What does steady state life-fitness look like for you? For me, sometimes it looks like three workouts a week instead of 6. Sometimes it looks like going on a jog with no speed requirements and stopping at the beach to wiggle my toes in the sand. I also like stopping my chores to throw in something fitness'y like a set of pullups or a backyard squat-hold. Little actions like that will signal to your mind and body that you're still playing, even if you're not going all out. 

Maintenance isn't the same as a plateau - it's just that you're finding a gear that you can stay in for a while. It's probably a higher gear than you started in, so be sure to share a moment of gratitude and reflection for that. It's not "falling off the wagon" either. It's acknowledging that you only truly get out of shape when you quit.

Don't shut things down - the summer slump is so regular it's crazy. It's better to keep those wheels turning and the lights on so that when the next wave of energy comes through, you're ready to get up to speed. 

Best
Josh