Good morning and happy Wednesday :) This is my first health & fitness post and I'm fairly new to working out regularly so I thought I'd share tips that I learn as I continue my mission to get fit. I've been running regularly since February and I'm absolutely loving it, I've lost a stone since I started, I've toned up, it's boosted my confidence and I feel more energized and less stressed which is pretty good considering it's free! However, I'd be lying if I said that I don't have those days where I'd much prefer to switch off the alarm and get some more kip or the thought of making myself lace up my trainers and go out in the rain seems impossible, so I thought I'd share some tips on how I keep myself motivated.
- Take a friend: If you're anything like me, I find it pretty hard to keep myself going at times when I'm exercising; I start to make excuses or tell myself after 5 minutes that I've definitely done enough and can go and eat cake instead. So one thing I find that helps me is to arrange to work out with a friend. It helps because you won't want to cancel on them so even if you can't be bothered that day it'll spur you on, they will help to keep you going and it can just make the experience more fun. You could also sign up to a local exercise class to meet new people or if you enjoy running like me you could sign up to Park Run, an organisation that organises weekly runs at local parks all over the country so that you can run with other people which can help to boost your motivation. (Click the link to find an event in your local area.)
- Set personal goals: Whether you sign yourself up for a race or event or if you have a weight loss goal in mind, setting personal goals big or small can help to boost your motivation as it gives you something to aim for. I definitely find that on the days when my motivation is seriously lacking if I think about the 10k run I've signed up for it pushes me into getting myself out there.
- Reward Yourself: Keep yourself motivated by rewarding yourself with little treats, whether it's that new dress you've been lusting after or whether you tell yourself that after you finish working out you're going to have a cup of tea and watch Made in Chelsea. I find that giving myself little treats afterwards helps me to keep going because I know that I've earned them.
- Make an exercise playlist: Music plays a huge part in how well I work out especially on the days when I have to run solo, a great playlist is vital! I use Spotify which is great because it's free (if you don't mind occasional ads) and you can compile your own playlists with tonnes of tracks to choose from. Personally, I find that listening to Paramore seems to make me run faster and for longer, so that's my playlist of choice at the moment. Listening to music just helps to make exercise more enjoyable and it makes the time seem to pass much more quickly so I'd recommend it to anyone.
- Plan, Plan, Plan: Planning workouts definitely helps me to stay motivated and helps exercise to become a part of my routine. Some people prefer to work out early in the morning before work and others prefer an evening workout, so find what works for you and you'll be more likely to stick at it. Personally, I prefer a morning workout because I talk myself out of it by the evening and eat sweets instead!
- Keep track of your progress: One thing that really spurs me on is to look back and see how much I've improved since I started out. There are lots of free apps and gadgets available to help you to do this such as the Nike+ app available at the App Store or on Google Play. It maps your runs, tracks distance and time and lets you know how many calories you've burned in each workout. I love this app because it notifies you when you have ran your fastest time or ran your furthest run which just helps to motivate me to keep improving.
Does anyone have any other tips on how to keep motivated? Let me know!
Thanks for reading!
Adele x
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