5 Ways to Always be Motivated to Exercise
Motivation is one of your biggest allies to getting fit and staying consistent. I've got 5 hacks to always keep yourself motivated to exercise
Over my 5 years as a trainer I've heard hundreds of clients say to me that they aren't motivated to exercise
Motivation is a weird one. It can come and go like the flick of a switch
It's something that needs to be topped up regularly but can plummet in the blink of an eye
These 5 simple hacks are designed to break-through your unmotivated barrier until you can become your own motivation
You see, that's the key. Your results becoming the reason you want to exercise
1. Fall In Love With Exercise
This is a super important tip
When I say the word "exercise", what do you naturally think of?
Probably the same thing as all January resolutioners
A cross-trainer in a gym
But do you even enjoy that? I know I don't
I've been going to the gym now for 9 years and If I was told to go on a cross-trainer, I reckon I could last 11 minutes before extreme boredom sank in and I called it day
I have a friend who's recently really got into those spartan assault courses
Weight dropped off him like you wouldn't believe!
He didn't sign up to lose weight. He signed up because he wanted to be out doors more and get muddy
He's genuinely having to up his food intake just to stop him self loosing anymore weight!
If your goal is to lose weight and become fitter. Imagine if that was you. Imagine if you were loosing weight by accident because you were so into your sport or activity
(Tomorrow I'm going to write a post listing "100 ways to move more" - you can use this guide to help find an activity)
2. Do It For The Post Workout Endorphins
I used to have a 1:1 client who suffered from anxiety and depression
She VERY wisely decided one day she wanted to cut back on her prescribed pills and get into exercise
When she turned up for our sessions, I could always see she was rigid and anxious
To this day it still completely blows my mind how different she was walking out of that gym
She would literally be standing a foot taller, her face beaming and happy-energy pouring through her very being
It was absolutely amazing to see
You see, when we exercise our bodies releases chemicals called endorphins
These endorphins react with the receptors in our brains which reduce our perception of pain and also trigger positive feelings through the body
It's also worth me mentioned our sessions weren't the most productive by any means
My focus of the session was just to get her moving, if she found it too hard I'd pull back straight away
My goal was to ease her into enjoying exercise, not turn her into an athlete
If I could get her to laugh and move I'd done my job. The endorphins would take care of the rest
I love that story, and I wanted to share it with you, but don't feel it only applies if you've got depression or anxiety
We could all do with a mental boost a few times a week, so even if it's not your best effort, by just moving and focusing on the good things to come you're far more likely to exercise
3. Think About How You're Sticking It To You Doubters
When I handed in the towel as a 1:1 personal trainer in April to become a full time online coach I received a lot of negative feedback from various people
Mostly strangers funnily enough (?!) but not all
Now when I'm working into the silly hours in the morning, 7 days straight
Do you know what I'm thinking about? What really drives me?
All those negative comments! The doubters fuel me to work harder
Also, is it any wonder why people get super fit after a breakup? In fact most bodybuilders are created from breakups!
Now, you might not have just gone through a breakup or been heckled at by strangers, but you can still use this principle to skyrocket your motivation
4. Only Train For 5 Minutes
Don't fancy training? No problem
Just train for 5 minutes then call it quits
Why only train for 5 minutes?
1. You'll most likely find once you get into it... it's actually quite fun
If you take the time to put your gym clothes on, you'll realise how quick 5 minutes really is. You're much more likely to train for longer (you might even enjoy it!) and if you don't?
Oh well, you did your bit
2. You're still creating good habits
Like I mentioned in my previous post; How to create good habits that actually stick
- I talk about how exercise and eating healthy is actually a habit
By getting into the habit of putting on your gym clothes and making a conscious effort to exercise, you're setting amazing habits to do it again and again
5. Become Your Own Motivation
This is the key, and perhaps the "secret" to unlocking your motivation
I used to have a 1:1 client who I'll call Jenny
Jenny came to me wanting to lose weight. She explained she'd been trying on and off for about a year now, but kept falling off the wagon or loosing motivation and ended up reverting back to her old habits
Jenny committed to our 6 week initial plan by training 2-3 times a week plus a long walk one evening
She also consciously made an effort to tweak her diet
We weighed in after 2 weeks and she'd lost 3 lbs. Great start
The most interesting part however was her motivation. It had multiplied enormously!
Jenny was now aware that the plan was working, and she wanted more of it!
She decided to up her training and kept close attention to her diet
Next weigh in; 4 lbs down
Her motivation; X10
That's the secret to motivation - You can become it!
I have clients who have lost over 5 stone. Their motivation; Looking back at their before and after photos
I have clients who have had pain in their lower back for years, which they fixed by taking action and staying committed. Their motivation: Moving everyday pain free
Conclusion
My advice to you is find a sport of physical activity that you absolutely adore that makes you fall in love with exercise.
And next time you're contemplating not exercising I want you to think of how good you'll feel after or how good it will feel to prove the doubters wrong, and if that still doesn't do it, just train for 5 minutes!
Try these techniques, stay consistent and watch yourself crawl closer to that end goal.
Every goal starts with you taking action
Ben
