Unless you are a professional athlete or an avid gym junkie, the thought of having to put on those trainers and head to the gym to exercise can be something that is pretty difficult for most of us to be enthusiastic about. All of us have goals to lose weight, tone up or just get fitter and stronger. However, it is not uncommon that motivation tends to sometimes elude us all and cause these goals to seem difficult to attain. Well, fret not, for here are 7 surefire ways to get yourself excited about exercise. Still a little skeptical? Read on to find out how you can truly transform yourself into someone who is actually passionate about fitness and looks forward to that heart pumping, adrenaline inducing run on the treadmill after a long day of work.
- Get Fit With Friends
It’s often proven that when a group of people, whether they are your friends, family or just your partner get together and set fitness goals, the results achieved always far exceed the results that you may achieve when embarking on your fitness journey alone. Get a bunch of your pals to sign up for krav maga classes, Zumba sessions or just simple group personal training sessions. Having someone you know with you not only makes exercise a fun and social event, but it also helps when you have someone with you to keep an eye out on when you are slacking and to help motivate you in achieving your shared goals.
2. Think Positive
Psychologists and doctors have suggested that actively breaking the habit of negative self-talk patterns is a very powerful way to support successful healthy lifestyle changes and choices. Should you ever catch yourself thinking, “I am too busy to exercise,” actively remember to rephrase this negative thought into more empowering and positive terms such as, “I choose to make my health a priority.” or, “I deserve to look and feel great because I am a wonderful person”. Although this may sound a little cheesy to you, it is proven that over time, positive thought patterns have the power to elbow out negativity, helping to keep you motivated and on the ball.
3. Make Yourself An Amazing Workout Playlist
We believe that music really has the power to motivate people when it comes to being active and getting fit. No one ever runs on the treadmill listening to Tchaikovsky, so now is the time to create a banging playlist that will keep you pumped for hours. There are a number of workout playlists available on Spotify these days, or you can even go the extra mile and make your own gym playlist of your favourite upbeat and heart pumping songs.
4. Purchase Some Cute New Activewear
Looking at that oversized, torn and tattered gym t-shirt from 5 years ago isn’t exactly something that is going to make you want to ecstatically run into the gym after work. Invest in some cute workout attire, get yourself feeling good in them and head out to the gym looking like a champion. Whilst this may seem superficial to you, it has been scientifically proven that the clothing that a person wears can be the catalyst for performance-improving mental changes, also known as enclothed cognition.
5. Sign Up For A Charity Marathon/Race
Having an event or goal to shoot for is something that really helps you amp up your motivation levels. Knowing that running a race or marathon is going to help the less fortunate, underprivileged children or the homeless is something that can truly spur you on to push your body to new limits. There is always a charity race going on, so there is no excuse to back out either!
6. Create A Warm-up Routine
Athletes often use routines or rituals to get into the zone before a game or an event. Similarly, you can utilise these same tactics for your own workouts. Making a pre-workout ritual can truly help train your brain into getting used to the mindset of working out. Whether your ritual includes a combination of jumping jacks, jump roping or dynamic stretches, creating your own personal routine is a great way to train your brain into falling in love with exercise.
7. Purchase A Fitness Wristband
Nothing gets those competitive juices flowing as much as keeping track of how many calories you’ve burnt for the day or how many steps you’ve taken this week. Purchasing a Fitbit wristband or a Nike+ Fuelband are great ways to keep track of your fitness goals and keep you motivated at all times.
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With these 7 surefire ways to get excited and motivated about exercise, we are positive that you’ll hit your 2017 fitness and health goals as well as keep up with them in the long term and form an overall healthy lifestyle which you will be able to share with your friends and family.
