After 5 years of intentional fitness training (physical and mental), the main reason I now exercise is to feel good. So here I am sharing these life-changing tips with you, to hopefully help you love working out too.
1. Know your why, set mindful goals
Why do you want to enjoy working out? You might want to feel healthier, stronger, or more confident. Maybe you want to use exercise to manage your stress, or maybe it's some other reason that you're reading this.
Whatever it is, write it down somewhere, and then set mindful goals as part of your why. Not weight loss or muscle building goals, but fitness goals. To run a certain distance, to stretch further, increase the number of reps in sit ups and chin ups, lift heavier, hold a headstand for longer…the list goes on. Make these challenging (not overwhelming) to keep things interesting, tailoring them to your abilities and what you believe you can achieve.
When you compete with only yourself, the gym or your workout becomes more enjoyable and you can focus on your improvements. If you’ve done it once you'll know you can do it again, and overtime you can slowly work towards beating your personal bests at your own pace.
2. Do what you enjoy
Running, circuit training, boxing, resistance training, interval training, cardio, etc. There are so many forms of exercise out there so you'll find something that you like. Do what you enjoy more often, and mix things up to keep yourself interested and motivated. You don’t need to go the gym, go for runs, or do the same workout routine as someone you may know. Remember, your workouts are about you. Base them off what you enjoy, what you want to achieve and what you know you'll go back to.
3. Let go of expectations
You've seen influencers looking good as they complete a really intense workout. You know of athletes who have performance levels so advanced, you can't even get your head around how their bodies can function in such a way.
News flash: You don't need to train or be like them (especially not right away). Don’t be intimidated, but instead use them as motivation and as a reminder of what the human body (and your body!) can be capable of. They didn't get to where they are now overnight and it'll take time for you to improve as well.
When you don’t set expectations for yourself, you're more likely to show up because you won’t have the negative pressure of self-expectations lingering at the back of your mind. And with consistency and overloading (continuously challenging yourself), you'll improve. Because that’s how it works - our bodies are adaptive by nature and constant effort will make you fitter and stronger.
4. Schedule in your workouts
Literally put them in your calendar. Whether it’s a gym session/class, a run or even a virtual workout video you'd do from home - plan and schedule it in like you would a meeting. This will help to keep you accountable, and when you look back at your schedule you can feel proud of what you've achieved and acknowledge all the times you've shown up.
5. Write down how you feel
I'd recommend tracking the first 7 seven sessions as you're easing into a workout routine. Write down how you felt before, during and after. What you enjoyed about it, and what you could do differently next time.
The hardest part of a workout is often changing into gym clothes and starting the exercise. Your mind often creates excuses and getting past this moment can feel like a huge effort. But if you track how you feel (and note the post work out feeling, I doubt you'd ever regret the workout) then you'll be reminded of how good you felt, and how it was so much more doable then what your mind was telling you before you started.
Over time you can notice patterns - whether it’s the pre-workout mental strain, or the post workout high - and you'll learn to not let how you feel before a workout dictate your choice to show up.
6. Be consistent
My favourite tip and it's the most important. You don't need to do a super hard or long workout every time or even most of the time. You’re much better off pushing through a 15 minute session when you’re really feeling off, than not showing up at all. Once you've decided how many times a week you’d like to train, show up every time but tailor your training to how you feel on the day.
I like to think of exercising every day in the same way as brushing your teeth. It's not necessarily enjoyable all the time depending on your mood and energy levels, but it always feels good after, and it’s something that needs to be done.
Humans are designed to move, and by showing up consistently you're allowing yourself to make exercise a natural habit and less of a mental effort.
7. Have a good playlist
Music (or a good podcast) makes working out so much more enjoyable. Blasting good music during a training session enhances the enjoyment factor, decreases the discomfort of the actual workout, and can help you look forward to training.
8. Share your training with others
Someone else can help you stay accountable in case motivation isn't enough for you to drag yourself to your training session.
If it’s a gym workout, find a friend who's into fitness and willing to go through with the workout with you (avoid complainers or someone distracting).
Running is also amazing to do with someone else. Get used to running at a talking pace and if your friends aren't into running they can always ride their bike while you run.
In either situation, you'll notice less fatigue and your workout also becomes a social catch-up as an added benefit
9. Don’t rely on motivation
Motivation gets you started, habits keep you going.
No one is motivated all the time, so don’t expect yourself to be. It's totally okay to not feel like exercising, but getting into the habit of showing up to every scheduled workout will help you out on the days when you’re not feeling driven or pumped.
Habits are so powerful and you can absolutely form new ones.
10. Celebrate yourself for showing up (not for physical results or killer workouts)
Physical results are nice but they'll come naturally with regular tailored training. They also depend on so many factors that you can't always control (genetics, metabolism, body composition, hormones, etc.), so it's not worth most of your focus. Instead, appreciate the benefits of showing up and you'll learn to continue training, even if you’re feeling unmotivated or if the physical results don’t come fast enough.
The benefits of regular exercise are so much more than just physical changes, but if you don’t work to make it a lifestyle you won't be able fully reap any of these benefits.
And if all else fails, just do the work out because you know you'll feel good after. You deserve that.
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