Yesterday I wrote a blog post about having a plan when you hit the gym. However it is very important to be flexible.
1. Listen to your body: Let's say it's a leg day and you "planned" to do this brutal workout but you are feeling a bit tired. Sometimes it is wise to listen to your body and take it easy. Some ways you can make the leg workout a little easier is to do lighter weight higher reps.
2. You feel an injury or you are sick: Just this morning I was working chest and doing a bench press. I felt a twinge in my left tricep and decided to change my workout a little bit so as not to use the muscle in that way. I still worked chest I just did not do any move that created that feeling in my tricep. If you are feeling sick it is always better to rest as if you workout through illness you could make it worse.
3. Don't let excuses slip into the plan. Having said all that it is easy to let excuses slip the plan. For example, you are feeling tired and use that as an excuse to sleep in instead of hitting the gym. Weigh the pros and cons. Use the 5 second rule, suck it up and hit the gym. You'll feel better once you do.
As I always say when I send someone their workout, here is your "proposed" workout for the day. This means it is subject to change. We are being flexible.