Motivation Tips To Keep You Exercising

October 24, 2007 by Lucy

We all have days when we don’t feel like doing much at all. The weather might be grey, we’ve had a busy day, or complete boredom and lack of interest with the fitness program we’re using at the moment. Whatever the reason, a fitness session just isn’t for you today - and it’s on days like this that we need a little extra motivation!

I’ve had plenty of those gloomy days. To get me through them, I found it helpful to use some of the following tactics to motivate me.

Read something inspiring!
It could be a biography, quote, poem, or even a song. Use other people’s experiences to get your spirits up.

Join or start a walking group! It’s very social and each member of the group gets to feed off the motivation of each other.

Make a list of activities you’d like to enjoy and choose 1 to do each day.
Use a training journal or log-book!
By keeping track of your exercise activities you can see the progress and improvement in your fitness week to week.
Start an interest or hobby that requires physical fitness!
It could be walking, rock-climbing, tennis, golf, scuba-diving - the possibilities are endless. If you require physical fitness to enjoy the activity you choose, you’ll be more inclined and motivated to train for it.
Increase your incidental activity!
This is the amount of activity you do in the normal course of your day. This is an activity not generally classed as exercise. You could: walk to work, take the stairs instead of the elevator, get up to change the channels instead of using the remote, or play with the kids for 15 minutes more per day.
Ever thought of cross-training?
If your exercise program is getting monotonous, then break it up with one session per week of swimming, bike riding, jogging, sprints - again the possibilities are endless. You could even play a different sport and use it as a training session.
What about using a Personal Trainer!
Personal trainers can provide motivation as well as a great deal of training variety.
Put on an exercise video!
If exercising in public places is not for you, then try training at home. There are many forms of training available on video including: boxing, aerobics, pilates, and yoga.

Just start! There is always an excuse not to exercise so don’t think about it, just start exercising - do it today.

Listen to music!
Put on some music. It’s uplifting.
Watch TV!
Most fitness centres currently have a theatre where you can watch your favourite shows while working out. Helps immensely to pass the time while exercising.
Read about the benefits of exercise!
We all know that exercise is good for us but do you know why? Reading a reputable publication on exercise can inform you of the great ways exercise can improve your life. It’s more than just being able to walk up those stairs!
Make things simple - complicating them will tire you out and your motivation will fly out the window!
You don’t have to find a fitness centre or join a Tai Chi group. Just go for a walk or run in the fresh air. Just start!
Create a list of reasons on why you want to be healthy and read it regularly!
It may be to improve health, play with the kids, or trek through Tibet. Whatever the reasons write them down. Place it somewhere that you will see it all the time.