More and more people try to keep being active as a part of their routine, but not successfully. They find a reason good enough to drop it and they can’t resist the feeling of being lazy. Especially when the New Year starts, they tend to want to change their lifestyle and have a fresh start. Yet, the resolution lasts just a few weeks.
So how come it doesn’t work?
The most important thing to do is to make your mind filled with thoughts. Your attitude should be positive and you should think of the motivation to work out as the main trigger to your optimistic mindset. Picture what you want to achieve as an “already done” thing and then don’t stop until you get there. Think about how it will feel once you’ll get used to it, how amazing it’ll be to see the progress you’ve made. Use any emotion you feel to get rid of your energy and get stronger each time.
The first thing you need is to have the motivation and I don’t mean just being in a mood to be healthy but something much stronger that will remind you of the importance of staying consistent. For example, realizing how much you’ve been eating unhealthy food, which disgusts you, and the willingness to treat your future health seriously (decrease the possibilities of serious illnesses). Of course, the reason could be feeling uncomfortable with the way you look and as long as it isn’t just a one-day thought, it’s enough of a motivation. The point is to find something that will trigger you for enough time to get used to your new routine.
Next, you need to find out specifically what your goal is. What does your body need and what do you want to focus on during the workout? Don’t treat this working-out routine as one for your whole life, adjust to what you want on your way. Still, some kind of repetition is needed to see the results. Set up your goals for a few months and find the type of exercise that suits you (additionally, challenge yourself, the point of improving is making progress, so the way you train should get harder after some time).
Add the little things – get yourself comfortable clothes and all the accessories you’ll need. Make a workout a pleasure and trick your brain into thinking about all the new things you can try out. Talk about the training, and watch some videos on achieving what you want. Do your research and a schedule on when and for how long you wish to work out. Don’t be too harsh on yourself but remember – it’s a physical activity, so it’ll eventually connect with cramps, tiredness, and sweating.
Also, you might simply get bored after some time of working out the very same way. As a simple example, I find running the most boring activity that I’ve tried so far. But no one said it just has to be one chosen thing to do. If you don’t have a specific choice of what you’d like to practice, you can start by doing any kind of physical activity. Of course, it’ll be more fun for you but on the other hand, there won’t be such big progress in particular (obviously it’s still better than doing nothing).
My experience with working out is pretty simple. I used to play volleyball in middle school but dropped it because of having no bigger goals connected with it. It was the best sport I’ve trained, though it requires other people who also want to train with you. Then, I got an exercise mat and bought myself some leggings, so I began to work out by myself at home (I didn’t have enough money to go constantly to the gym, although it’s not so far away). Yet, without the motivation to train regularly, I stopped after some time and didn’t feel the need to continue. Right now I feel a lot more motivated by myself, I began once again with training at home with a completely different mindset and with having much bigger goals (I’m not doing it this time just for myself and I have someone who also wants to get into training). Having someone who will support you on your journey is a priceless thing and won’t let you quit making your dreams come true once you just feel not in the mood.
Remind yourself that at first it’s going to be harder and once you’ll get used to your routine, it’s not going to be that much of a struggle to be motivated. Keep going with it and once you’ve started there’s no going back! Go on and reach for your dream body and health to have a better future and well-being.