How to stay motivated if you don’t feel like working out
A really tough can be quite exhausting, physically and mentally, so it’s always nice to reward yourself for your hard work. Knowing there’s a reward at the end can provide some incentive and motivation to push yourself and test your limits. At the same time, there’s no point reaching for something which is going to undo any of the good you’ve just done. Here are just a few ways you can reward yourself in a healthy yet indulgent way.
You’re new to exercising
Well, we’ve all been there. The good news is, there are several ways to leverage behavioural science to help you form a lasting exercise habit fast, even if you’ve never been into fitness before. Motivation and fitness often go hand-in-hand when building healthy lifestyle habits.
Use friendly accountability
When you book a session with a personal trainer or commit to meeting friends at a group class, you’re far more likely to follow through. The combined social reward of exercising with another person, plus the thought of how you’d feel if you stood them up, form a powerful double-punch to a lack of motivation.
Let a ‘challenge’ do the work
Set yourself a short term goal and be rewarded with a long-term habit.
Depending on the individual, it takes around 66 days to form a new habit. The same is true when it comes to working out. So, challenging yourself with a trainer or at a gym could be your ticket to a lifetime of fitness. By simply gritting your teeth and committing not to miss a single session, you’ll emerge on the other side with gains you can see, feel, and keep building upon.
Eat well – live well – be well.
Make a habit ‘stack’
Habit experts know that the best way to introduce a positive new habit is to piggyback or ‘stack‘ it on top of a habit we already have (provided that’s also a habit we want to keep!).
For instance, if you’re someone who has a daily commute you do every day, this is a habit. It’s a habit you need to keep, so it’s not liable to change any time soon. To stack your fitness habit, simply make a statement like, “after leaving work, I will go to the gym/studio/etc for a training session,” and follow through.
Excercise better – not less.
Change the question
Stop asking ‘what do I want to do?’ and start asking, ‘who do I choose to be?’
Your choice to exercise is about more than the one session you turn up to. It’s one step in a journey to who you are becoming. Re-framing this question is life-changing. Suddenly the stakes are higher. Along with that, the intrinsic (internal) motivation is higher. Gone is the need to bribe yourself with rewards (hands up who’s done that!). Gone is the feeling that exercise is a chore or something to be endured.
No, exercise is a tool. Exercise shapes your body and your mind into the person you choose to be: healthy, strong, and vital right throughout your life.
Ask the right question and transform your relationship with motivation for good.
Picks PT can help you with a Nutrition evaluation and private or semi-private personal fitness coaching. We service areas across Macarthur, Campbelltown, and Camden regions. For more information or to get in touch with us, you can drop us a line on our contact us page or call Nathan on 0420 998 460