For three decades, this was my routine. Determined to inject variety into my workout, I started doing longer runs every weekend. I then mixed in some snowshoe trekking and power-hiking. But it wasn't long before I realized I had reverted to my old habits. Liz Neporent, author of Fitness Walking for Dummies and co-author of Fitness for Dummies , says I shouldn't beat myself up.
Some people find it's easier to stick with a workout plan that's routine.
However, for most people it's variety that keeps them coming back. Variety is the key to overcoming a training plateau. Then crank up the volume in each successive period. It's like a rheostat for your workouts. The structure holds you to the change, because change is hard.