Back to School: Returning to Training After a Break..

by Alex Wright Created on September 1, 2015 Updated on December 2, 2022

Returning to training after a break, whether that is a couple of weeks or a couple of months (even a couple of years!) can be tough so we thought we'd let our resident Lazy Lay Off Gym Staff Alex and Jay put in their ten peneth and help you have a successful return to the gym! Alex Wright, Fightstorepro Director, Industry Mogul & Coach at Cyclone Boxing The first battle you need to win when training especially after a tough day working is walking through the door of the gym. Generally everything tends to get easier after that but after a few weeks of drinking cold beers and sitting in the sun this can be much, much harder, especially if you have a whole heap of stuff to do as well. I've had my fair share of lay offs due to work, injury and just life in general. So I'm adding in my tips from the point of view of someone with a busy life and maybe where training is no longer the number one priority but an important part of your life!

My first tip is get the love going.... No, I don't mean with your wife or girlfriend, I mean the sport. Watch some matches; your favorite fights. Watch Tyson smash his way to the top or replay Wanderlei's glory days on PRIDE! Watch 7000 Feet, get inspired! After an hour on the sofa with what you promise is your last beer, you'll be boxing your way round the living room and doing the press ups you should have done in the morning!
Next buy yourself something new... Fight shorts, Boxing gloves or even a nice new kit bag. Personally I think this is a good motivator to take down the gym.
Lastly call up/text/email your training friends and arrange to go with them. If you don't show then they're calling you a pussy and well...... you can't have that can you!

Jay Furness, Fightstore media, writer, and professional fighter Being honest, I can't ever recall being away from some form of training for an extended period for as far back as I can remember. As a young 'un playing rugby from an early age, and now competing at an international level in MMA whilst coaching, working and being a new dad, I still always manage to find the time. Granted the quality and consistency isn't always the same as you make do with what you can when spare hours in the day are hard to come buy, but any activity is better than none.

Make the time - there's always something! As it stands I have a fair amount on my plate with a few jobs, coaching, training, parenting and all the other general day to day activities, yet I hear people with much less in the way of commitments making the excuse that they simply have no time. If you've got the enthusiasm then you'll find the time, or you'll take it away from other less productive hours. I coach classes at 6am at our gym, and then if I have a busy day afterwards I can at least take pleasure in the knowledge that I've had my fix for the day. Getting up in the grim, early hours isn't for everyone, but it's an option. It makes you feel great for the rest of the day and means you've already ticked off one achievement before you'd normally have even stirred in your bed. Even if your gym doesn't offer this, the road does. Headphones in and running shoes on when the streets are empty can be bliss. Just don't run up behind unsuspecting walkers too quickly with your sense of urgency and heavy breathing. They don't like it.
Alex's first point was a great one; find that hunger. Sometimes a rest away can give you the impetus to really get going again. Absence makes the heart grow fonder and all that. When I've been on holiday or travelling around I've got to the point where I've missed the mats, when they've been a grind day in and day out before I had a week or so off. Get refreshed. Sometimes a break is a great thing for your enthusiasm in itself. If you have a break and still don't have the desire to go back and punch somebody in the face, you might need to ask questions of your chosen hobby and maybe mix it up with something that compliments it for now. Rock climbing is a good one for combat athletes, especially grapplers, and it can add a new fun element to cross-training.
Don't bite off more than you can chew. If you're a long in the tooth veteran, you no doubt want to get straight back into the mix like you did when you were a young whippersnapper. Depending on how long you'v had off, this might not be feasible at all. In fact, it can be detrimental. It could damage your body or, god forbid, your ego. Get back in gently and enjoy building it back up over time instead of wrecking yourself by pretending you can do the same workouts and sparring sessions as you can in peak fitness.

Of course all of these require that little bit of get-up-and-go, a rekindling of the flames that got you involved in combat in the first place.

Luckily, our Back to School offers can help you get back into the swing of things without breaking the bank. They include: -FREE Boon MT01 Muay Thai shorts when you buy Muay Thai gloves and Shinpads -FREE hand wraps with Cleto Reyes gloves -15% discount on clothing and BJJ gis when you buy yourself a new kit bag (code: KITBAG15) -FREE T-Shirt on orders over £100 -FREE Torque vest on orders over £200 We're here to help, whether it be with advice on training or equipment. Just get in touch if there's anything we can do! Facebook Twitter

My first tip is get the love going.... No, I don't mean with your wife or girlfriend, I mean the sport. Watch some matches; your favorite fights. Watch Tyson smash his way to the top or replay Wanderlei's glory days on PRIDE! Watch 7000 Feet, get inspired! After an hour on the sofa with what you promise is your last beer, you'll be boxing your way round the living room and doing the press ups you should have done in the morning!
Next buy yourself something new... Fight shorts, Boxing gloves or even a nice new kit bag. Personally I think this is a good motivator to take down the gym.
Lastly call up/text/email your training friends and arrange to go with them. If you don't show then they're calling you a pussy and well...... you can't have that can you!

Make the time - there's always something! As it stands I have a fair amount on my plate with a few jobs, coaching, training, parenting and all the other general day to day activities, yet I hear people with much less in the way of commitments making the excuse that they simply have no time. If you've got the enthusiasm then you'll find the time, or you'll take it away from other less productive hours. I coach classes at 6am at our gym, and then if I have a busy day afterwards I can at least take pleasure in the knowledge that I've had my fix for the day. Getting up in the grim, early hours isn't for everyone, but it's an option. It makes you feel great for the rest of the day and means you've already ticked off one achievement before you'd normally have even stirred in your bed. Even if your gym doesn't offer this, the road does. Headphones in and running shoes on when the streets are empty can be bliss. Just don't run up behind unsuspecting walkers too quickly with your sense of urgency and heavy breathing. They don't like it.
Alex's first point was a great one; find that hunger. Sometimes a rest away can give you the impetus to really get going again. Absence makes the heart grow fonder and all that. When I've been on holiday or travelling around I've got to the point where I've missed the mats, when they've been a grind day in and day out before I had a week or so off. Get refreshed. Sometimes a break is a great thing for your enthusiasm in itself. If you have a break and still don't have the desire to go back and punch somebody in the face, you might need to ask questions of your chosen hobby and maybe mix it up with something that compliments it for now. Rock climbing is a good one for combat athletes, especially grapplers, and it can add a new fun element to cross-training.
Don't bite off more than you can chew. If you're a long in the tooth veteran, you no doubt want to get straight back into the mix like you did when you were a young whippersnapper. Depending on how long you'v had off, this might not be feasible at all. In fact, it can be detrimental. It could damage your body or, god forbid, your ego. Get back in gently and enjoy building it back up over time instead of wrecking yourself by pretending you can do the same workouts and sparring sessions as you can in peak fitness.

Of course all of these require that little bit of get-up-and-go, a rekindling of the flames that got you involved in combat in the first place.

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