Time is of the essence.

I live less than five minutes from my gym. I can leave my house at 7:58AM and get there at 8:00AM on the dot. It's that close. And yet, I'm always about five minutes late. Try as I might, I can't get out the door on time. (Unless, for some reason, I'm scheduled to meet with a client or teach a class.) I blame it on this mess:

By the time I get home from teaching Circuit Sculpt, or if I wake up at 7:00AM, I've got about an hour to shower and eat—and that's plenty of time when you're just headed to a gym. And yet...it isn't! My morning smoothie derails me almost every single time. And yes, I do sometimes get distracted by emails and/or eyeshadow. So it's my own fault, really. But regardless, I hate being late.

Which brings me to today's topic: what to do if you're late for a fitness class.

Fitness instructors usually devote the first five to ten minutes of their class to warming up. And we all know why this is important, right? A warm-up gets your body moving, literally warmed up and ready for some intense physical activity. This ultimately helps prevent injury and is the prime reason why you never want to be late to a class. But let's face it, sometimes life gets the best of you and the clock ticks out of control. So if you must walk in late, make it happen within the first 15 minutes. (And do so quietly, even if the music is pumpin'.) After that, it's beyond safe and also a major distraction as most classes are usually well into the swing of things.

If you do manage to get there during the warm-up, catch up as best you can and continue to address any "cold" muscles before moving on with the rest of the group. Remember, your instructor can't necessarily wait for you (even though they probably want to). So when you're behind, you must take on the responsibility of making sure that you are ready for what they've got planned. And once again, if you're more than 15 minutes late—probably best to just skip it this time. Maybe there's another class you can take that starts right after it, or perhaps there's something later in the day. Try not to be discouraged, just focus on the fact that you'll be trying something new today—which means you'll be giving your muscles a break from whatever they're currently used to. And that's always a good thing. 

Question: What fitness classes are you currently crazy about? How do you feel about walking in late? How do you feel about other people walking in late? Do you even like fitness classes? Talk to me! I value your opinion!