This is becoming a problem.

When I first visited my gym last August and took a look at the schedule, I wasn't sure it would work for me. Given the crazy schedule I had from September-May, I knew that the only time I would be able to go would be at 6am. I have never been great at getting up in the morning; I used to struggle to get to work at 9:30am. How was I going to drag myself out of bed in the dark to work out?

At that time, I happened to be reading the terrific book Changing for Good (http://amzn.com/038072572X). This book introduced the concept of stages of change, which has become a widely accepted idea in counseling. There are tons of books about the stages written for therapists, but this one was originally intended as a self-help book for anyone wishing to change a bad habit. I've read it a few times in order to help clients, and the great thing about it is that I can't help but work on one or more of my own bad habits every time I read it. So, last August, I looked at the gym schedule and the advice in Changing for Good and thought "I can make this work."

For the most part, I have made it work. Since the second week of August last year, I have not gone a week without exercising at least four times, and I often make it five or six. Until this week. I don't know if its the heat, jet lag, or what, but I just could not drag myself out of bed this week. I even missed three group exercise classes that I really like just because I didn't feel like going. I know I'm going to pay for it on this weekend's long run.

The authors of Stages of Change would call this "recycling," which is their preferred term for "relapse." I think those guys might be watching me because, as I sit in my counseling office and type this, I just got a call from a client, with whom I've been working on the stages of change. She can't make it tonight. Which means I can go home and go to the gym. Time to recycle!