Who is doing fantastic with their exercise habits? Really? I think I’m probably not the only one who has trouble motivating getting off the couch sometimes. Especially in the winter, but now that it is spring, I am still trying to motivate. I can, most of the time, get going really good for about 3 weeks. I don’t know what it is about the 3 week mark, but inevitably, one of the kids gets sick, or I get sick, or some life circumstance gets in the way and disrupts my awesome streak. You know how hard it is to restart after you stop. Uggg. So if you are like me, I have researched some (hopefully) fail-proof methods to get you going:
1. Pick a time to exercise. I’m assuming that you already know what exercise type you are going to do. Now commit to a time that you can squeeze in every day.
2. Set a goal: Why? Because without a goal you have no reason to be doing it. Your goal can be a certain weight, a size, an event, etc. It’s a good idea to have a short term goal (I’ll exercise 4 days this week) and a long term goal (to do the Portland marathon).
3. Write it down: If you don’t keep track, you’ll forget. So write what your goal is, what your starting weight is, what work out you did, how long, etc. Now you will know when you progress.
4. Feedback: You need some kind of feedback to keep you motivated. It could be a measurement, a pants size, a picture of you each month, something that lets you know you are improving and moving forward.
5. Accountability: Ok, I hate this one. I don’t really want anyone knowing that I skipped my workout and ate pizza instead, but the guilt factor does work. If you have a workout partner, or a friend that you share your progress with that will work. For some, just writing in their workout journal is enough accountability.
6. Use an online tracker: This can be helpful to some. A good one is www.loseit.com you can log your food and exercise and set a weight goal. The program will tell you how many calories you can eat each day to reach your goal in a certain time-frame.
I want to hear other ideas for motivating to exercise! I know that we can do it this year if we help each other!