A super common problem I run into is that when I make it to the gym, something will just feel off. Sometimes I can tell it’s going to be one of those days before I even make it to gym, on others I will be excited all day to go lift but during my workout I can tell I’m not at 100%. We all have those days when we get to the gym and something just isn’t right. Sometimes you may feel a little unmotivated going into the workout, realize the weight feels heavier than usual once you start training, or your lack of rest/nutrition is starting to wear on you. Rather than just totally skip that workout or leave during the middle of a workout, there are some ways that you can manipulate your training to best suite you for that day. In the lifting community we call this auto-regulation and it is a great way to help tailor your training plan to the specific factors that are affecting you in the day to day. We can’t always foresee when we are going to have a rough day at work, be short on sleep, or feel our allergies kicking in, which is why we need to be able to make the necessary modifications that allow us to still make gainz.
Implementing auto-regulation is not code for, have an easy day, but rather a way to manipulate your training in a way that allows you to train at 100% for that given day. The first thing I try to do when I can tell I may not be at my best, is see if I can switch around my rest days. Rather than have my rest days fixed, I let them be “floating” so I can take them on the most convenient day. This is super helpful for those days when you are low on sleep or have had a rough day at work and can benefit from taking the off from training. This allows for you to still hit all of your volume for the week but take days off when you need them most.
If I have already taken my allotted rest days or know there are other days when I just won’t be able to make it into the gym, I then begin to manipulate my actual training while in the gym. The two most common ways I will do this are changeup either the actual weight amount per exercise or rep scheme. There are even some instances when I need to implement both at the same time.
Examples:
Changing weight: As you’re warming up on deadlifts you can tell that even the warm up sets feel pretty heavy. So rather than do the prescribed 4 sets of 6 reps at 315lbs, you decide to do 4 sets of 6 reps at 285lbs. By adjusting the weight to fit your fatigue levels for the day, the sets are still challenging, but you are able to complete them now.
Changing Reps: When you start your chest workout, your first main compound movement is incline dumbbell chest press for 4 sets of 10 reps at 70lbs. During your first set, you barely hit 9 and only got a half rep on 10 because the weight just felt “extra heavy” today. So for the remaining sets you choose to go for 8 reps. This makes the remaining sets challenging, but you don’t push yourself to the point where you’re failing every set.
Changing both: As you begin your squat session, not only do you feel fatigued, but the weight also feels super heavy. You’re supposed to perform 4 sets of 6 reps at 225. Since you don’t think you’ll be able to handle that weight, you considerably lower it to 185 and then adjust your rep goal to 8. The sets are still challenging, but by manipulating both weight and sets, you are able to squat safely and effectively today.
Making those simple adjustments aren’t always enough though. Sometimes a problem other than fatigue will come up. Nagging injuries can often make some training sessions very difficult. When this happens, we may need to totally change up the exercise selection for the day. It may not be the best idea to do heavy squats when your lower back is acting up or bench when your shoulder feels like it grinding. Whether it is an injury or some other circumstance that makes doing a particular movement not smart to perform during your workout, but you still would like to train, we can then change up our exercise selection. You can try to keep your sets and reps the same, but just change the actual exercise being done and pick an appropriate load. There are tons of exercises that can be swapped out in such circumstances. You just have to pick the best one for your situation.
Common Swaps: Squats – Leg Press/Hack Squat, Deadlift – RDL’s/Rack Pull, Barbell Bench – Dumbbell Bench/Machine, Over Head Press – Machine/Front Raise, Skullcrusher – Overhead rope extension, Barbell Curl – Dumbbell Curl
These are just a few common swaps, but almost every exercise has some kind of variant. Or if there isn’t a direct variant, there is usually a machine version or dumbbell exercise that may add enough variability to make the movement doable and hit the same muscle groups.
So even though auto-regulation could be a great tool to help you continue to train when you’re not at your best, it shouldn’t turn into you fully changing up every workout. If you find yourself making these types of changes every workout, there may be some other underlying problem. At that point you may need to either create/find a new workout plan or totally omit some exercises that give you pain no matter what you try to fix. It’s a tool to help us get through those rough days everyone has now and then.