Everyone at one point or another has a day when they do not want to go to the gym or their normal workout. Whether you enjoy lifting weights, running, cycling, or yoga there is no doubt that on certain days you would rather be doing anything else. When these feelings come upon us we either get motivated and drag ourselves to the gym or surrender to the urge for relaxation and skip the workout.

Ideally resisting the desire to skip workouts is ideal, but another alternative is to hit the gym for half a workout. Getting up for half or some portion of your usual exercise program can provide several benefits over missing a workout entirely.

Having a day every once in awhile when you do not feel up to or have the energy for a workout is common. Depending on how hectic our lives and grueling our exercise program may be there are bound to be days when we simply do not feel we have the inclination for a workout. When this feeling strikes sometimes telling ourselves we do not need to perform a superstar workout or hit all the same exercises as normal is enough to make the gym seem less intimidating. Particularly if you are someone who pushes themselves hard, reminding yourself you can lower the intensity for the day may be enough to get you moving, and some workout is better than none.

Feeling sluggish may also be a sign from your body that you may be worn down. By maintaining high impact routines you could be over stressing yourself increasing your risk for injury. In such situation a modified workout may be effective in keeping you loose while giving your body time to recover.

Additionally, you may find that once you are at the gym planning on a half workout you feel better and end up with a fuller workout than you intended. Sometimes just getting up and moving a little is enough to motivate us towards more. If your normal run is 5 miles and one day it seems a bit to far try lacing up your shoes anyway for a short 2 miles. It is likely that after only 2 miles you will want at least a couple more.