"Listen to your body" yeah but when is it telling the truth?

One of the hardest things I find about exercise is knowing when to listen to my body and when to ignore its protestations.

Fortunately since starting all this exercise and healthy eating I've not been ill (touch nearest wooden object). So I've not had to make the "am I too ill to go" decision. But I have had a few days where I feel a bit ropey and dizzy, mainly due to tiredness. This usually results in me dragging myself to the gym, feeling dizzy and putting in a rubbish session. I then feel angry and fed up.

Everyone says "listen to your body" but the bit I struggle with is do I need to genuinely take note of what it is telling me and rest up a bit OR is it my inner fat girl trying to make excuses?

Today is one of those days. Friday night Imogen's eczema flared up. This resulted in a 9.30pm dash to out of hours to get more steroid cream and antihistamine. By the time we got back and got her settled and ate dinner it was 10.30pm

Yesterday we were up early to go to Guildford to scatter my Grandad's ashes. A 400 mile round trip. By the time we got back, settled Immie and I had a few loose ends to tie up for work it was about 12.30am when I crawled in to bed.

This morning Imogen woke me at 6.45am (not too bad by kid standards) but I'm sat here feeling dizzy, exhausted and a bit ropey. I feel if I go to the gym I will be so exhausted I wont even get through 1 circuit.

But here is the problem. Is it my inner fat girl tricking me? Should I drag myself and go anyway? Should I go but just swim? (might be good for the stress levels?) Do I sack it off today? I honestly don't know. Mentally I really want to go. For me it is all about momentum, I need to keep up my momentum, the minute I miss a day here and there (remember I didn't go yesterday) is when I start to slip and everything gets 1 billion % harder.

It is exactly the same when going through the circuits. Sometimes you will do an exercise that hurts or makes you feel like you're going to vomit. (In the past the list has included stepups with a medicine ball, using a powerbag and the dreaded burpees. Currently dumbbell thrusters make me feel like arse!) A lot of the time you need to push through, no pain no gain (apparently!) but when is a pain a problem? When do you need to rest or adapt your circuit? When is it just my inner fat girl being a wuss?

So do I go today? I don't know. Maybe I'll see how I feel about 4pm today.

H x