Success isn’t always about ‘Greatness’, it’s about consistency. Consistent, hard work gains success. Greatness will come.
– Dwayne Johnson
I was lost. Completely lost and had no idea what to do, what direction to turn in, and how to handle it. I had been broken up with before, but boys, this was different. The last girl who dumped me did it very softy and gently, and let me down easy. Almost like letting a gently feather drop to the ground, without a sound. This one did not do that. She took my heart, mercilessly ripped it out of my chest before my eyes, threw it on the ground, grabbed up a sledgehammer, and stomped the thing into the ground with no sorrow whatsoever. I was devastated.
She had cheated on me. How could this be? The girl I trusted with everything, the one who seemed to be so trustworthy, forthright, and full of the virtues. She betrayed me, and because I had trusted her, I felt like I betrayed myself. Because she failed to be faithful, I felt like I failed to make a crucial decision. Could I even trust my own decision-making anymore? Could I trust myself anymore? I did not even know if I could answer that. I needed something to build trust in myself again. I needed a rock, an anchor, a shield, a suit of armor. I needed to work out.
I had forgotten how scrawny I had become. The weights felt like tons. My body felt like little spaghetti noodles. God, how far gone was I at this point? There was only one way to find out, and that was to keep lifting.
The weights moved slow, and so did the progress, but the progress came. With the progress came the self confidence. With the self confidence came the trust in myself. With the trust in myself came the healing. With the healing came the me getting over the breakup, and becoming a better man.
There was no guide, no set of rules, or no set standard to really follow when it came to working out while I was trying to get over my ex. There was nothing that seemed to be tailored to me, what I needed. There was nothing that seemed to fit my needs and there was no real guide in helping my sad self post-breakup. Here I am going to give you some guidelines to follow post-breakup when working out, that will help you get into a routine, which is crucial to moving on and getting over your ex:
- Find a routine, any routine
When you are sad and down about your girlfriend breaking up with you our routines begin to slip. We tend to sleep late, get up late, and eat whatever, whenever. This is not good when it comes to getting over your ex-girlfriend, and moving on. Our bodies love routine, and so do our minds. Once you get into a routine, it will help you start working out, eating, and living healthy automatically. I know, it is easy to go to the gym and want to just do whatever feels good, and this can be beneficial sometimes, but for the most-part you need to go online and find a routine that works for you or find a plan that works for you and your goals, whatever they may be. You may want to get leaner, lose fat, gain muscle, or just maintain and stay healthy. These are all good goals, but the point is, find a routine and make it easy on yourself. You just got your heart broke, you deserve it.
2. Just get in there
One of the keys to practicing a skill or hobby whether it be practicing piano, cooking, working out, or doing yoga is to just start. That is usually the hardest part. But once you begin and go through the motions of what you’re supposed to do, it becomes easier, and you’ll actually enjoy it. There will be many days where you won’t want to work out, especially if you are already sad and down about your girlfriend breaking up with you. This is perfectly fine/ok. The key is starting, and beginning the task. That is when you will start to notice results.
3. Consistency is key
This may have been repeated so many times to the point where you are tired of hearing it, but it is so true. The greatest results come from being consistent, not by working out a couple of days really hard, then taking the rest of the month off. Stick to schedule, plan, or routine, and take it day by day. Don’t be oppressive to yourself, and have a schedule that you stick to that you know you can follow, and for the most part follow it. It is ok if you have a weekend here or there where you slip up, or a few days even. But follow the plan for majority of the time, and you will see progress in your goals, as well as progress in getting over your ex-girl.
4. But don’t overdo it
“Exercise to stimulate, not to annihilate. The world wasn’t formed in a day, and neither were we.” – Lee Haney, former IFBB professional bodybuilder. These words could not be more true. I used to have the mentality that “more is better” and “more is more” and many of us in the United States have this mentality. When I would go into into a gym and follow principle #1 of using a routine the plan would say, “do 3 sets of 6-8 reps.” Of course, me being my dumb and naïve self would do 3 sets of 50 reps, thinking that I would get 50 times bigger by doing 50 times the exercise. Sorry Charlie, life does not work this way. The truth is that less actually is more. You want to follow a workout that stimulates your muscles, not destroys them, this is where the actual growth and progress comes from. This will save you time, your health, as well as your sanity when doing more-intense workout. Your heart will thank you for it when you get to the day you are over your ex and feel more confident.
5. Be open-minded
When I was younger, I thought yoga was dumb and weird. I didn’t know anything about it, other than it seemed like it was a bunch of hippies chanting weird noises while worshiping some sort of God I didn’t know about or understand. Boy, I could not have been more wrong. Then one day, I started an online yoga class, and my mind and body were changed. I was more flexible, more calm, and was a better man. It was a new kind of workout that I had never experienced before and I really liked it. It is one of those things you have to try for yourself. Don’t let your preconceived notions prevent you from trying new things, and getting over your ex-girlfriend.
6. Don’t give up!
This kind of ties in with being consistent. Do not give up on your goals, whenever they get touch and seem out of reach. I am not advocating for literally “never ever giving up not matter what,” because there are times you should leave a goal behind and turn towards something new and cut your losses. But the key is to be consistent and keep going when you face signs of adversity, because that’s when you will make breakthroughs and real progress. I play piano, and I love it, but plateaued a long time in my progress of piano playing, and by a long time I mean years. It was borderline awful, slow, and boring. I never seemed to get better. But one day something clicked, and I don’t know what. Maybe it was because I finally understood the circle of fifths, or began to understand scales, or improved my ability to read music. I don’t know exactly what it was, but everything clicked. I played better. I read music better. I improved, and it felt so damn good.
The same thing holds true of anything, including working out. You will stall, you will plateau for a long time, but the progress will come. Like working out, you will plateau in your progress of getting over a breakup, but one day the progress will come when you get over the breakup, and the results will taste all the more sweeter.
Need some tips/rules on how to maintain your diet during a breakup? Check out my posts on the importance of a simple diet during a breakup: https://howtogetoverabreakup.travel.blog/2021/02/04/dieting-for-a-breakup-the-subtle-art-of-simplicity/ and my post on some basic rules for following a diet during a breakup: https://howtogetoverabreakup.travel.blog/2019/08/26/diet-for-a-breakup-why-you-should-watch-your-diet-during-this-time/.
Disclaimer: I am not a doctor or medical professional. Please do not take my advice as if I was a doctor or medical professional, as I am not qualified to give that kind of health advice. Please be smart, and use your best judgement when starting a new diet/health/exercise plan and consult your doctor before starting a new diet/health/exercise plan. Thank you.
Like this blog? Is it helping you get over your ex-girlfriend? Follow this blog by clicking on https://howtogetoverabreakup.travel.blog/blog-feed/ and click follow on this page. Want to let me know what you think? Go to https://howtogetoverabreakup.travel.blog/contact/ and enter in your e-mail along with your comment. Thanks, I really appreciate it.
How To Get Over a Breakup 