6 reasons to swap workouts (and how to do it right) 6 reasons to swap workouts (and how to do it right)
Centr Team
23 Mar 2022
Centr makes it easy to train your way. You can commit to a program, cherry pick sessions to suit from Explore, or follow the daily workouts in Your Plan that have been curated for your goal.
If it's the latter, we know what's in Your Plan doesn't always work for everyone. Maybe you’re nursing an injury, still sore from your last Da Rulk session, or simply aren’t in the mood for the type of workout we’ve laid out for you.
Whatever the reason, we support you in listening to your body and shifting your weekly workouts – but we want to make sure you do it right.
In this essential guide, we'll explain how to swap, and help you switch without sabotaging your goals.
How to swap workouts
When you open the Centr app, you'll see your daily workout for the day laid out in Your Plan in Home. At the top right of that workout is a two-way arrow. Simply tap on this to switch to a Coached or Self-Guided workout. Once you make your selection, tap "confirm swap" and the new workout will now appear in Your Plan.To help you make the right trade, we've laid out the most common reasons to swap, plus some smart swap suggestions.
1. Your muscles are sore or tight
Heavy strength training can naturally lead to tight muscles, and tight muscles can lead to injury – something we’d all like to avoid. If you’ve been repping hard with Torre or giving Luke’s HIRT sessions your absolute all, your body might feel tighter than a coiled spring.
If that sounds like you, we recommend swapping your workout for a low-impact bodyweight workout or recovery session. Limber up with Tahl’s Full-body Meditation, fire up your supporting muscles with Sylvia’s Pilates: Fundamentals or try some active recovery with Luke.
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Feeling tight, tight, tight? Let your body and mind unwind with Tahl’s top-to-toe stretch session.
2. You don't have the equipment
Whether you’re on the road without access to your kettlebell stash, or the line for the squat rack at the gym is way too long, we’ve got the minimal or no-equipment workouts you need to keep moving. Use the ‘No equipment’ filter to find workouts that fit your needs, or check out some of our members’ favorite no-equipment workouts for every goal.
3. You miss that cardio boost
If strength and muscle gain is your goal, you may find yourself pining for a bit of sweaty cardio now and then. You can swap your regular Torre for a weights-based HIRT session with Ingrid: it’ll still help you work towards improved strength, but you’ll get the heart-pounding intensity too.
It’s also fine to swap out your strength training for a more cardio-focused workout, like Michael’s skipping and boxing sessions. Just remember that if you switch out too often, your muscle gain progress can slow.
4. The workout is too hard
If the selected daily workout is simply too hard for your fitness level, you don’t have to throw it out entirely. You can switch the individual workout to a lower fitness level (from Advanced to Intermediate, or Intermediate to Beginner) and start working on your weaknesses in that area. Remember, you don’t have to complete all the exercises at the same level as the trainer in order to get a great workout. Just do as much as you can, and it will get a little easier each time.
If you really can’t manage it at all (especially if you have an injury that prevents you from doing certain moves), swap it ‘like for like’ as much as possible. Cardio for cardio, strength for strength, glute session for glute session.
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Luke’s got the perfect HIIT HIRT session to fire up your cardio and strength gains.
5. The workout is too easy
First of all: great work on hitting those fitness goals! If you’re finding your regular workouts are no longer challenging you in the same way, it might be time to graduate. Why not head into Settings and upgrade your workout difficulty level?
If individual exercises feel too easy, don’t be afraid to progress those moves. For example, you can add weight to bodyweight exercises that no longer challenge you. If you’re finding weighted reps too easy during strength training, you may need to invest in heavier weights to progress. You can also add resistance bands to certain cardio moves, such as Michael’s punches and Luke’s bicycle crunches, to make them more difficult.
6. You're time poor today
Life gets busy, we get it. When work is crazy or the kids have you run off your feet, it’s best to swap your regular workout for anything you can do to stay moving. Give one of these short workouts for busy people a go the next time you need a workout that clicks in at 25 minutes or less.
