Remember when it was the beginning of the year, and you had all of these amazing goals? Remember when you said that you were going to be healthier? Eat right? Be more active? Then one day, you got off track, and you said that you’d get back on track the next day. Next day turned to next week. Next week turned to next month. Next month turned into, “well, I’ve gotten this far, I might as well restart next year”. You lost your motivation. Put up “lost” flyers around your neighborhood, and stopped caring. Well, I’m knocking at your door, because one of your flyers blew my way, along with your lost motivation! Here are solutions to the most common reasons we lose motivation to be consistent in our workout routine.
Issue: My workout is boring!
Solution: Stop being boring!
Humans, we are creatures of habit. Even when we are all over the place, we are, habitually, all over the place. Often times, we get into a routine, and we get tired of said routine, and we lose the drive we once had to make a difference.
A story, if you may. You win an all expense paid trip to Costa Rica. Having always eaten food common in America, you try a Costa Rican dish, and fall in love with it–so much so, that you find the recipe that creates an exact copy of the dish. You go home, and you are just so tickled to not only create this amazing dish, but to also eat it. You eat this dish EVERY DAY for dinner. Eventually, this dish loses its pizzazz, and you grow weary of it. You no longer enjoy the dish like you used to, and stop eating it altogether. This is the exact same thing with working out! You go to the gym, and you do the same routine every day. Whatever it may be, when you first started out on your journey, you were just so tickled. Switch it up! Change the amount of sets and reps you complete. Load up, and de-load. Do different exercises that work out the same muscles. SUPERSET! Take a class. Try something new. Jazz up your fitness routine, and stop being a creature of habit.
Issue: I’m not seeing any progress!
Solution: Set realistic goals!
Losing 20 pounds in 30 days, while possible, is not a realistic goal. Often times, we have a look in our head of how we wish to look, and we need to look the part, like, yesterday. So, when we don’t see drastic changes, or we don’t reach our goal when we want, we lose motivation.
Let’s start by setting SMART goals. SMART is an acronym for:
Specific – State exactly what it is you want to accomplish. Instead of saying, “I want to lose weight”, say, ” I want to lose xx pounds”. Instead of saying, “I want a summer body”, say, “I want to fit into xyz”.
Measurable – How will you know that you’ve achieved this goal. What is the intended outcome, and how can such be measured?
Achievable – Set your goals high, but know your limits. What steps and actions will you take?
Realistic – Can you realistically achieve the goal(s) you’ve set out? And within the timeframe you wish? This is not the time to lie to yourself. Be honest. Do research.
Timely – When exactly do you want to reach these goals. This would be the time to set multiple times, for multiple, and miniature goals. Having one ultimate goal is great, but you need baby goals on the way. If your goal ultimate goal is to lose 20 pounds, set realistic monthly goals. You can even break down your goals to the week!
Issue: Ever since I began working out, I’m just so tired!
Solution: Go to bed and make sure you’re actually recovering!
Working out will have you pooped. You will be tired in the beginning, and you will be working on adjusting your schedule to fit your new fitness routine into your life. Your sleep should not be the area to suffer. EVER. Sleeping and recovery go hand in hand my friend! I don’t want to scare you or anything, but sleep deprivation can cause your brain to eat itself. Click me to find out! And if your brain is feasting on the delectableness of itself, you can guarantee that your body is definitely not recovering from yesterday’s workout properly.
Recovery is a real thing, and you need to partake in such. I am a huge fan of splitting my workout routine between upper and lower body. This gives my body the necessary recovery time required to not only feel better, but to work better. If you work out your legs one day, you should not be working out your legs the next day–you need to allow for your legs to rest and recover, at least 24-48 hours. This should be applied to every large muscle group you decide to exercise for the day. If you do not allow for proper recovery, what ever gains or goals you have in mind, will be lost to the wind.
Issue: I just don’t feel like I have any external motivation!
Solution: Get you a swole mate!
Many of us can work out on our own and have that accountability to see our workouts through. Many of us need a work out buddy who will hold us accountable, and we’ll hold them accountable. I am not entirely for the use of social media as a motivator. Social media is a great motivator in the beginning, but as the weeks go on, sometimes, so does our drive to continue with our fitness journey, if we are not getting the amount of likes and comments we deem necessary to make ourselves worthy. I’m not saying don’t use social media–I’m not saying that at all. All that I’m saying is, get you someone who is on a fitness journey themselves (preferably on a similar journey as you), who will not allow you to slack off.
By: Journey Fitness