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Fitness is an endeavour that cannot be put on pause. It’s a lifestyle and not a goal. And it is a lifestyle that is fuelled by motivation. If you have decided to take your fitness to the next level, don’t underestimate the value of the right mindset and staying motivated throughout the entire journey.
Here are just a few tips on how to stay motivated and not slip back to your old habits:
1) Know Exactly What You Want: What is your end goal? Is it “to lose a few pounds and trim a few inches”? Or is it “to lose 10lb total and drop 4 inches off the hips”? If it’s the latter, congratulations, you are already on the right track!
Just like the creators of the iPhone, who were working on creating a smart phone with a touch screen and not “just another phone with some cool features”, you should know exactly why you are investing your time and effort. Sit down and write your exact goals and when you would like to have them achieved.
2) Plan Your Journey: What actions are required to achieve your goal? Is it working out for 60 minutes 4 times a week, and eat 5 healthy small meals a day? List all of them and put them somewhere, where you can see them all the time.
3) Take Action NOW: The next step to your success is to make room for all the new fitness activities in your schedule. Schedule the activities right into your daily calendar and don’t let yourself off the hook, until you complete them.
The best way to do it, is to create a Fitness To-Do List and list all the daily fitness activities. Every time you complete an activity, put a check mark beside it, as a reward to yourself. It doesn’t sound like much, but there is something rewarding about crossing off a completed task and you will look forward to completing your workouts and meals!
4) Visualize Success: It sounds like a new-age mumbo-jumbo, but studies show that those people who visualize their success, are much more likely to achieve their goals than those who don’t. They are also less stressed and possess a positive outlook.
Start with describing your ideal body that you would like to have, and write it all down. How would you like your legs to look? What about your arms? Pick a picture of a magazine celebrity, who you would like to look like, cut it out and post it where you can always see it.
Delegate 5-10 minutes a day to visualize how your life will change once you achieve your goals. How would your friends react? What activities will you be able to do? What clothes will you be able to buy? These exercises don’t seem like much, but they possess a tremendous motivational power.
You are in charge of your own success and the harder and more consistently you work on it, the sooner you will reach your goal. It will be hard at times and you will want to quit hundreds of times, whatever happens remember one thing; You Can Do It!
About the Author: Ana Plenter
