As an ectomorph training is a very important component of bulking up, building strength and improving your own well-being. There is a point where it becomes incongruent with your desires however, and it actually becomes more effective to skip a day or two of lifting weights than it would to push on.
Everyone – ectomorphs, mesomorphs, endomorphs…everyone – has those feelings where they just wake up in the morning and feel a bit “blah.” Perhaps they had a great sleep, and are begin the day with a beautiful breakfast, but still, there’s a feeling of lethargy, and just a downright lack of motivation.
Conventional wisdom would suggest that this is just a weakness that can be bulldozed by pushing through the barrier, and forcing yourself to train if it happens to be a training day. But I feel that approach is stuck in the short term mindset.
It’s okay to skip training. If you wake up, and just don’t feel up to doing anything too stressful – including both physical and mental stress – then don’t. There’s no need to feel guilty. I’m a firm believer that it’s important to listen to our bodies and our thoughts very closely, and when something feels a bit “off” then it’s best to be patient, and push forward on another day.
Pushing yourself during times of above-average stress and “fuzziness” may stimulate muscle growth in the short term, but what about the long term? Are you really going to be able to sustain strength training if your memories of it become clouded with painful drudgery? It’s better to sacrifice short term gains for long term fulfilment.
The key here is to not avoid training when you are actually capable of going through with it. If you’re not sure of which camp your in, get any piece of equipment you prefer (like a dumbbell or a pull up bar) and do 1 rep of any exercise. And then do 2 more.
The first rep is to identify any obvious warning signs like genuine aches, or feelings of dizziness (at which point you should stop straight away), while the next two are for the purpose of seeing if you have the potential to at least inch forward with your progress.
After the 3 reps, honestly answer the question: am I feeling alright? Only skip training if the answer is a fairly clear “No.” Otherwise, push on. And, if you remain unsure, take the day off, but be wary of skipping multiple training sessions in a row (you wouldn’t want to lose momentum now, would you?).
