The 5-Minute Rule
You know those days you just don’t feel like doing it?
You woke up late,
you had a long day at work and you just feel like crap?
I’m feeling exactly like that right now.
I was trying to think of something cool to write, maybe a new workout program or maybe something about nutrition but nothing wanted to pop into my head.
I considered just copying and pasting a few of my old articles together to give you something, but I realised how piss poor that would be to you.
So I thought I’d rather just share the truth as to how I’m feeling right now and how I overcome the feeling of low motivation and just manage to pull my finger out and get it done.
The 5 minute rule
Whether it be a workout, doing meal prep or writing a blog post, whenever I feel the resistance and feel unmotivated I will do the 5 minute rule.
I can’t remember where I picked this up but it’s one of the best things I’ve used in so many areas in my life including fitness.
The 5-minute rule is pretty simple.
You start the task you don’t want to do for a minimum of 5 minutes and that’s it. If after the 5 minutes you are still feeling the pushback and can’t get your head into it you then stop.
But most of the time you will persist through and finish what you didn’t want to start in the first place. Merely the act of starting something is the little push we need to get through the resistance that we’re facing and once we’ve started we now have momentum and won’t want to stop.
Let’s use the gym for example
On the day you’re just feeling tired and exhausted and the last thing you want to do is workout. Since you’ve started following the five-minute rule you go to the gym and you just decide to do 5 minutes of one exercise. Maybe you start off with bicep curls because you really enjoy them. Once you get through your sets of bicep curls you’re starting to feel a lot better and you decide to do another exercise and do another 5 minutes or even better do the whole workout.
It might not have been an amazing workout, but you got it done and you feel better for doing it instead of skipping the gym going home and feeling sorry for yourself by eating a bag of chips.
Some of my best workouts have been on the days I’ve just felt like crap. I was unmotivated and really didn’t want to exercise. Yet, after following my 5-minute rule and just doing one exercise it’s like someone slaps me in the face with some pump up powder and then all of a sudden a fire has been lit under my ass and I feel good, energetic and manage to push myself pretty hard.
But remember this doesn’t always happen either. Most of the time, you will come in do the 5 minutes, decide to push all the way through even though it feels tough and then go home.
You may not feel amazing but you will be satisfied that you went to the gym and did somethi , since something is better than nothing.
Just like how I feel right now, this may not have been my best blog post, but simply the act of writing the words on this page and give you something actionable you can use has got me feeling better.
I’m curious to know, how do you motivate yourself on the days you aren’t feeling it?
Reply and let me know, I bet you it’s not as good as my tactic ;)
Bonus Tip
I almost forgot to share this crucial and important tip that you MUST follow when doing the 5-minute rule. You must put on some music that gets you pumped up and excited. I don’t care if it’s the spice girls, Beiber or anyone else. Put on some jams that light your fire and get you excited.
Music is a powerful drug and can completely alter your state. Before writing this I made sure to play my Spotify playlist just to get my groove on.
So, the 5-minute rule + epic music = GAME CHANGER
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