Tag: workout plans

Fitness Motivation ? 5 Tips for Getting Motivated to Workout & STAYING Motivated to Workout!

theguy 0 Comments 12/02/2019 Get fit

When you’re brand new to the world of fitness, it’s super easy to get overwhelmed with any and everything relating to diet and exercise. But one of the hardest parts about starting a healthy lifestyle, is the elusive idea of “motivation” and inspiration. How do you get motivated to work out? How do you STAY motivated to work out? I give you five tips for finding that healthy lifestyle motivation, and a couple tricks for keeping that inspiration high. First, visualize your goals. This can mean a lot of different things to many different people. Are there a pair of jeans that you want to fit into? Is there an occasion, or a trip coming up that you want to look good for? Visualizing your goals can help immensely when it comes to fitness motivation, and the nice thing is that you can visualize your goals in many different ways. If you have an event coming up, having a weekly countdown to that event really helps keep me on track. For daily motivation, scrolling through before-and-after pictures of people when they’ve jumped on the healthy lifestyle bandwagon is hugely inspirational for me.

Reddit.com/r/progresspics is a great place for this, particularly because the people in that subreddit are usually pretty average people for the most part, without the help of sketchy supplement sponsors, or undisclosed plastic surgery operations. They’re people that are primarily just like you and me. Usually, they also dive into the exact workout and diet plans that they used to achieve their goals, which is pretty motivational all on its own and can further inspire you to maybe do the same. Motivational tip number two: have your workout gear laid out, ready to go the night before. If you want to start working out first thing in the morning, simply having your clothes already laid out makes it a lot easier to just throw on first thing in the morning before you can even talk yourself out of it. But it doesn’t just stop with clothing; the same could go for your morning breakfast as well.

Having easy things prepared the night before like overnight oats, or a piece of fruit, or even pre-brewed coffee, makes your morning routine a lot easier to ease into. But even if you’re not a morning workout person, I would still try laying your clothes out anyway. Sometimes I find that simply having my workout clothes ready to go is hugely motivating all on its own, because it’ll be staring me down, urging me to squeeze a workout in halfway through the day or into the evening if it’s laid out somewhere visible. One thing I find absolutely paramount to keeping motivation through the roof is having a plan. You want to start running? Awesome! How many miles do you want to hit? How fast do you want to go as a goal? How long do you want to run for, or where you want to go? Even just having the basics in mind is key to having a successful workout. The same is true for strength training, or really any other form of exercise. What muscle groups do you want to hit? How many sets of what exercises? Write these things down, or keep a log in your phone so you can build and expand upon these workout stats.

Personally, I like to use Google Sheets, which is basically like a cloud version of Excel. Everyone with a gmail account has access to it, which could potentially be literally every single person watching this video right now. It’s extremely simple to write out an exercise routine in chart form, which is then easy to modify from your phone right at the gym or wherever you plan to be. Seeing yourself progress in a workout log or in an app is hugely motivating, and you’ll wish you’d started earlier when you see those milestones surpassed.

Another tip is to surround yourself with inspiration. There’s nothing worse than feeling that itch to workout, but having your surroundings bog you down. This can be anything from having outdated music on your Spotify playlist, or not having a workout partner, or even having a cluttered house. Little things like these can grate away at your motivation level, and can start to drain you over time so try to have these things in check. There are a ton of different workout playlists on apps like Spotify, so if I’m feeling sick of my regular music, I’ll switch it up by trying a completely different playlist than my own. And sometimes, when no music sounds right at that moment, I’ll listen to a podcast instead.

I’ve linked a couple of my favorite podcasts in the description bar below if you’re feeling like you just need to spice up your auditory motivation a little bit. If you’re somebody that likes having companionship when you work out for that extra boost of motivation, maybe try a few classes at your local gym, or meetups on Facebook. Chances are, you live somewhere where someone else is looking for a workout partner as well, and this is a great opportunity to branch out, make new friends, or try something new like a fitness class. Wait. And if you’re somebody that likes at-home workouts, keeping your space clean and clutter-free is a huge motivation factor for me. I try — keyword is “try” — to spend 15 minutes a day decluttering my space and I never regret doing so. It gives me more space to move around, and when your workout is done, you don’t feel brought down by your surroundings afterward.

Above all, know that habit trumps motivation. At the end of the day, motivation and inspiration will only get your foot in the door, and sometimes not even that. It’s up to you to make it a habit and continue to inch toward your goals. One thing that helps me keep the habit is setting a schedule and trying as hard as I possibly can to stick to it. If you’re wanting to put on a bit of muscle, plan your week out with what muscle groups you want to hit on what days, weights you want to start with, the number of sets and rep ranges, etc. Have this all written down somewhere, and for one whole week, try to stick to the schedule. Apps like Google Calendar make this a lot easier, because you could put your specific workout into the calendar and it will remind you on your phone when it’s time to go work out.

Another mind trick I have for keeping the habit is to treat it like a real, true job. I found the biggest personal gain in my overall fitness and health when I treated my workouts and eating habits like a second job, and not like some optional thing. Getting outside and going on a run wasn’t an option, it was something I HAD to do, and like a job, it was a priority in my life. If a friend called me up and asked me to hang out during the time that I was supposed to be working out, they would have to wait until I was done. And like a job, sometimes it’s okay to take vacation time or sick days.

Truthfully, there are just some days where getting a workout in isn’t an option, because either you’re feeling under the weather, or you’re too busy, or you’re on vacation, or really anything else. But like a job, those moments are temporary and fleeting. When motivation fades, it’s up to you to stick with the habit that you’ve established, and I always find that treating it like a job really helps me keep that habit.

Making your health and fitness a true priority in your everyday life will show you monumental gains, not only in a physical sense, but also in your confidence and overall happiness. Getting a workout in always kind of sucks when you’re just starting, but, oh it feels so good when you’re done. Being inspired and motivated by your surroundings, your goals, and your plans, is a huge step in beginning your healthy lifestyle. But at the end of the day, it’s up to you and your willpower to turn your motivation into a sustainable habit.